Woman, Eating: 'Absolutely brilliant - Kohda takes the vampire trope and makes it her own' Ruth Ozeki

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I truly loved Lydia as a character, vampire teeth and all. While her situation is unique her problems are those of any young woman trying to figure out her path in life. She mostly wants to be liked and loved by those around her. There is a constant nagging feeling of being different and less worthy of her peers and having obstacles that you can't really open up to friends about puts her in a precarious position. Speaking of friends, it's nearly impossible to have them when you have eternal life. When you stay the same and those around you fall in love, have children, and grow old and you are you, always and forever, for good or for bad. Not to mention her insatiable appetite and how she desperately wants to eat all of the food those around her are eating, especially that of Japanese food, which she feels would connect her with her human father.

In the Scala Radio Book Club this week (Thursday 24th March 2022), Mark Forrest chatted to writer and musician Claire Kohda on her debut novel Woman, Eating.If your looking for thrills, chills, suspense, horror, blood, guts and gore then move along as you will not find any of that here. This is a character study of an interesting and intriguing young woman, a coming of age, or at least, coming of womanhood, narrated by a fascinating voice I will not soon forget. 4 stars! The] loose, even defiant approach to narrative expectations can leave the novel feeling a bit slight, but that's a minor quibble. More books, vampire-themed or otherwise, could stand to feel this intimate. A delicate, consistently surprising riff on the vampire narrative, and a stealthy, subversive story of one young woman's declaration of self." - Library Journal (starred review) If you prefer dairy alternatives, such as soya drinks and yoghurts, go for unsweetened, calcium-fortified versions. A healthy diet is an important part of a healthy lifestyle at any time but is especially vital if you're pregnant or planning a pregnancy. Eating healthily during pregnancy will help your baby to develop and grow. Kudos to the author for a very different take on a vampire. I appreciate the info at the end of the book as well.

Lydia is a 23 year old art school graduate whose mother has recently been put in a nursing home. This is really her first time venturing out into the world without her mother by her side guiding her way. You see, Lydia isn't like you or I, she is a vampire. Her father was Japanese and what she considers to be her human side but her mother is a vampire that turned her when she was just a baby. Her mother was full of self loathing and refers to them as demons that deserve nothing more than pigs blood, the filthiest of all animals. They were always able to procure pigs blood by the barrel from a local butcher that asked no questions but now that Lydia is on her own she is finding it more and more difficult to satisfy her hunger and with no pigs blood in sight she will need to get creative. As a general rule, if you drink no more than 1 to 2 cups of herbal tea a day during your pregnancy, you should be fine. Alcohol Choose lean meat, remove the skin from poultry, and try not to add extra fat or oil when cooking meat. Read more about eating meat in a healthy way.Eggs that have not been produced under the Lion Code are considered less safe, and pregnant women are advised to avoid eating them raw or partially cooked, including in mousse, mayonnaise and soufflé. These eggs should be cooked until the white and the yolk are hard. A young, mixed-race vampire must find a way to balance her deep-seated desire to live amongst humans with her incessant hunger in this stunning debut novel from a writer-to-watch. You should avoid ready-to-eat cold-smoked or cured fish because it could be contaminated with listeria bacteria. These bacteria can cause an infection called listeriosis, which can lead to miscarriage or stillbirth, or make your newborn baby seriously ill. Cooking smoked or cured fish until it's steaming hot will kill any bacteria that may be present. Yeah, for me the vampire figure was interesting because the only thing that really sets a vampire apart from us humans is their diet. As someone who is mixed-race Asian, it is really interesting because I think for a lot of Asians, food and cuisine are used quite a lot to set them apart from others. So food becomes often, the source of why we might be made to feel different. Lydia, being a vampire, she’s made to feel foreign everywhere she goes because her diet is different to literally everyone on the planet.’