The drinks pairings pick up on aspects of the texts that might otherwise go un-noticed. What happens when you read a novel (or poem) with an eye to the beverages it contains? There is a history to be told in the objects taken for granted, the things we absent-mindedly consume, and the minor details of the material world that a text conjures up. The pairings also allow other stories or brief anecdotes to encroach in from the margins, interrupting but often resonating with the main thread of the reading. Further, they remind us of the embodied situatedness of textual reception: we read with full or empty stomachs, before dinner or after, with a morning coffee or a night-cap to hand, sitting comfortably or otherwise, at home or on the bus or in a café or bar, as life goes on all around us.
- Introduction: Inca Kola
- “Combray”: Tea (madeleine optional)
- Paris Peasant: Port
- Mad Toy: Malbec
- Nadja: Absinthe
- The Shrouded Woman: Gin
- Agostino: Negroni
- Nada: Water
- Black Shack Alley: Rum
- Bonjour Tristesse: Champagne
- Deep Rivers: Chicha Morada
- The Time of the Doves: Vermouth (baby octopus optional)
- The Passion According to G. H.: Double Espresso (cigarette optional)
- W, or the Memory of Childhood: Perrier Water
- The Hour of the Star: Coca-Cola
- If on a Winter’s Night a Traveler: Campari and Soda
- The Lover: Martell with Perrier
- The Old Gringo: Tequila
- The Trenchcoat: Vodka
- Money to Burn: Medio y Medio
- Amulet: Pisco Sour
- Soldiers of Salamis: Nescafé
- The Book of Chameleons: Papaya Juice
- Death with Interruptions: Madeira
- Faces in the Crowd: Dry Martini
- My Brilliant Friend: Cheap Red Wine
- The Society of Reluctant Dreamers: Whisky
- The Impatient: Clove Tea
- Love Me Tender: Pontet-Canet
- Conclusion: Beer
