Book Review- Jessica Stone's Craving London: Confessions of an Incurable Romantic with an Insatiable Appetite

Thank you to Ripe Press for providing me with a copy of Jessica Stone’s memoir Craving London: Confessions of an Incurable Romantic with an Insatiable Appetite, in exchange for an honest review.

After a break-up in her twenties, New Yorker Jessica Stone took a leap of faith and without having an apartment (flat) or job, she moved to London. Failure was not an option as Stone literally pounded the pavement looking for openings at copy writing agencies and trying to navigate life in her new city. Soon, Stone finds herself settled into London life and although the dating scene is tricky, she finds love in London cuisine and other joys of city life.

One of the primary reasons that I wanted to review Craving London is because I am missing my favorite city. My husband is English and we usually visit England ( often including London) at least once a year. This year, the pandemic caused us to cancel our vacation. I was looking to Stone’s memoir to provide a bit of armchair travel to a city that we mutually adore, she did not disappoint.

In fact, one of her favorite places, is also mine: Borough Market. Borough Market is a culinary delight that I did not discover until a more recent trip to London. It’s a massive covered market with vendors selling food from around the world. It’s an overwhelming sensory experience. Stone is a huge food fanatic and budding chef. While in London, she took a patisserie course at the prestigious Cordon Bleu and she sought out both unique ingredients and food experiences in the city. Her memoir will make you hungry! It also made me keenly aware at how many amazing food experiences I have yet to try in London and despite having taken food tours of the city, nothing I experienced was repeated with Stones. I made a list of her recommendations!

Her memoir includes several recipes. I always think this is a nice touch when I see it in a book that is not specifically a cookbook, but I must admit that I never actually try the recipes. It did work with the themes in Craving London.

Stone’s primary struggle that is woven throughout her memoir is dating. She is a passionate woman who is living a very full and exciting life, including joining running and rowing clubs, yet her romantic life always seems to fizzle. She meets men who are not the right fit or as equally committed. Sometimes it seems to be due to cultural differences, but also it just seems to be that she is meeting jerks. I think it is common for people to worry about the aspects of their lives that seem incomplete, especially if it happens to be a romantic relationship, but from my perspective, Stone had quite a fabulous and enviable life. She had a solid ( mostly) career, plenty of friends, was engaged in many activities, well-traveled and she was living in one of the best cities in the world.

Craving London ended with Stone realizing this and she is quite an inspiration for all people to get out and enjoy life, whether or not romantic love comes your way. I’m writing this review on Valentine’s Day 2021 and although I am happily married, I can get behind this theme of living your best life, whatever that looks like for you. Thinking back to when I was single, I also lived my life like Stone, enjoying things that made me happy and never letting a lack of a partner prevent me for dining in a restaurant or trying something new. It’s human to struggle over feelings of disappointment or lack, but it is also important to hear that being single isn’t all doom and gloom. Stone didn’t learn this lesson over night either.

Craving London is the ideal memoir for both Valentine’s Day and these months that we’ve spent lock-inside due to the pandemic. I relished both Stone’s personal journey and her thoughts on life in London.

England 2018: Tate Modern and Picasso 1932 Exhibition

By the time I finished visiting The Old Operating Theatre and Herb Garret, it was late afternoon and I was ready for a refreshment. Near The Clink Prison Museum, I had spotted a cute cafe called Bill’s. I walked back through Borough Market to Bill’s, passing some delightful murals.

I also saw The Globe Theatre, which Dan and I toured many years ago. The current Globe is a recreation of William Shakespeare’s famous Globe Theatre and its mission is to perform both Shakespeare’s works and modern playwrights. I have not seen a play here, but it is on my must-do list. The complex also houses The Swan restaurant, which is where I tried “The Worst Thing I Ever Ate.” Clink on this link to read about my experience at The Globe.

As an adventurous eater, I feel that the Erma Bombeck quote really sums up my attitude towards food, but it was also hilarious that the quote was on a board advertising a restaurant where I experienced one of my biggest food fails!

A huge food success, was my decadent chocolate bomb with caramel sauce and summery cocktail at Bill’s. I cannot recommend Bill’s enough, for atmosphere, friendly service, and great food. I look forward to returning on my next trip to London.

I have to confess that the other reason that I took a break, is that my feet were swollen from all of the walking. It is amazing how many miles I walked in London. I also did it in a pair of strappy gladiator sandals, which was probably not the best choice for arch support, but they did keep my feet cool in the summer heat.

The Tate Modern museum is just down the road from Bill’s. I took a leisurely walk and snapped a few shots of London. London is one of my favorite cities in the world and I hope that one day, we will have the opportunity to live there..

The Tate Modern had long been on my London bucket list. I love art museums, especially modern art and the Tate Modern is one of the most prestigious art institutions in the world.

The Tate Modern is expansive with throughly modern architecture.

The museum, like many in London, has free admission. London isn’t a cheap city, but they do make many of the cultural and historical attractions free, which is awesome. I grew-up in Los Angeles, where we have one day a month of free admission to museums, not every day!

I was overwhelmed by the space. It’s vast. It seemed like there was more open space than art. I used the guide map, but I felt lost.

I ended up paying a nominal fee to tour the special exhibition: Picasso 1932.

I prefer touring a single exhibit, rather than an entire museum. I find that taking a deep-dive into one artist or a specific collection, provides a richer experience. Plus, for all of my love of art, I can only handle about 3-4 hours, before I start to glaze over and lose my focus.

I wasn’t initially planning on viewing the Picasso 1932 exhibition, but the size of the Tate Modern was overwhelming, and I am a fan of Picasso. 1932 was a year of intense productivity and creativity for Picasso. He was in his early 50’s and had just opened his first large scale show in Paris. He was famous and successful, but he had started to feel trapped. Picasso was also influenced by the troubles of the world, including The Great Depression and the looming threat of Hitler’s power. Picasso 1932 was a fascinating look into this specific time in Picasso’s career.

I ended this long day of sight-seeing by the early evening and headed back to my hotel to rest my weary feet. No matter how exhausted, I can’t imagine a city vacation being anything less than an epic cramming of museums and historical landmarks. My in-laws used to call this the “American Style” of vacationing and I accept that 100%. This American is going to see it all!

England 2018: The Old Operating Theatre and Borough Market

After leaving The Clink Prison Museum, I headed to Borough Market for a quick lunch. Borough Market is one of the oldest markets in London and it boasts an extensive array of food stalls and grocers, truly something to appeal to every taste. If you’re a foodie, Borough Market is something that you must experience. I was spoiled for choices, and throughly enjoyed the lively atmosphere, delicious smells, and talented street performers.

It was a tough choice, but I settled on a chicken wrap from Soul Food for my lunch. It was slightly spicy with fresh, crisp vegetables. Besides being tasty, it was an easy choice for a meal that I could easily eat while exploring the market.

My early-afternoon plans were to visit The Old Operating Theatre Museum and Herb Garret. Housed in the attic of a historic building,, this medical museum is a hidden gem with an interesting backstory: The site was originally a church, which became a hospital and in the early 1800’s the operating theatre was constructed. The operating theatre was in use prior to the advent of anesthesia or many of our modern pain medicines. Take a moment to consider this and check out these two pieces of art that were at the museum. Scary stuff

The Old Operating Theatre shut-down in 1862. The entrances were boarded up and no one realized that it existed, until it was rediscovered in the 1950’s. The Old Operating Theatre and Herb Garret were in great disrepair, but the bones of the structure were solid and it was possible to salvage this building of historic importance.

I got a little lost trying to find the museum. There is a big university campus nearby and I was confused by all of the side streets. It didn’t help that my GPS wasn’t working. But getting lost, allowed me to come across this cute sign:

And a marker for the famous poet, John Keats, who also went to medical school.

Admission to The Old Operating Theatre and Herb Garret was only 6.50 pounds for adults. A bargain!

It’s a small museum and took me about an hour to explore. Don’t let the size put you off, it contains many exhibits that are absolutely fascinating. Another important item to note is that to access the museum, you must climb a very narrow and steep winding staircase. I was nervous on the stairs, especially on the way down. I’m not sure if they have an elevator elsewhere in the building to make it wheelchair accessible, but it worth asking prior to visiting.

The museum provides an educational experience for kids, which includes a craft table with anatomy and physiology themed projects. There were many young children during my visit and all of them seemed engaged in the content.

The exhibits explore 19th century medicine and surgical tools. Some are familiar, such as the use of leeches, but I was horrified by others, such as cakes to combat tape worms, apparently a rampant problem of the time.

The Old Operating Theatre is completely open, so it is possible to walk both around the gallery and down on to the operating floor. Having seen the medical instruments and armed with the knowledge that medicine is not what it is today, it’s easy to imagine the suffering that occurred in this arena. However, along with the suffering there was also alleviation of suffering and innovation in medicine.

Spending time here, made me think of my one and only operation. When I was in my late 20’s, I had an emergency surgery to remove my gallbladder. I had been experiencing painful gallstone episodes for years and finally, I had one episode where the stone wouldn’t pass. I was absolutely panicked about the surgery, hysterically crying, and although I knew that it was necessary, I was more nervous than I have ever been in my life.

My mom was having none of it. She had experienced many surgeries and was not sympathetic towards my feelings. Further more, I learned after the fact, that she told the anesthesiologist to wait to sedate me, so that I could get a good look at the operating room. She thought that I would find it “interesting” and didn't want me to miss out on the experience. I went into the room fully aware and vividly remember seeing all of the shiny, sharp scalpels on a tray near me. I got a good look before being knocked out. I cannot imagine the trauma that patients of earlier centuries endured, when anesthesia was not an option.

I forgive my mom. It was pretty cool to see the operating room.

Finally, there was a mention of poet John Keat’s time spent in the medical field and an exhibit about Miranda Barry, who disguised herself as a man taking the name James, in efforts to become a surgeon. She was the first licensed female physician and surgeon in England.

The Old Operating Theatre Museum and Herb Garret is a highly-recommend addition to your London vacation itinerary. It is close to many other attractions, making it easy to combine with other sites for a full-day out. It provides a unique glimpse into the evolution of medicine and life in a different century.