Down and Out in Paradise: The Life of Anthony Bourdain
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- Create Date：2022-09-28 10:51:34
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Charles Leerhsen
- ISBN：1982140445
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Summary
A groundbreaking， candid， well-sourced—but definitely unauthorized—biography of the celebrity chef and TV star Anthony Bourdain， based on extensive interviews with those who knew him intimately。
Anthony Bourdain’s death by suicide in June， 2018 shocked people around the world。 Bourdain seemed to have it all: an irresistible personality， a dream job， a beautiful family， and international fame。 The reality， though， was more complicated than it seemed。
Bourdain became a celebrity with his bestselling book Kitchen Confidential。 He parlayed it into a series of hit television shows， including the Food Channel’s Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations and CNN’s Parts Unknown。 But his charisma belied a troubled spirit。 Addiction and an obsession with perfection and personal integrity ruined two marriages and turned him into a boss from hell， even as millions became intrigued by the ever-curious and genuinely empathetic traveler they saw on TV。 Bourdain was already running out of steam， physically and emotionally， when he fell hard for an Italian actress who could be even colder to him than he sometimes was to others， and who effectively drove a wedge between him and his young daughter。
Down and Out in Paradise is the first book to tell the true and full Bourdain story， relating the highs and lows of an extraordinary life。 Leerhsen shows how Bourdain’s never-before-reported childhood traumas fueled both his creativity and the insecurities that would lead him to a place of despair。
Anthony Bourdain’s death by suicide in June， 2018 shocked people around the world。 Bourdain seemed to have it all: an irresistible personality， a dream job， a beautiful family， and international fame。 The reality， though， was more complicated than it seemed。
Bourdain became a celebrity with his bestselling book Kitchen Confidential。 He parlayed it into a series of hit television shows， including the Food Channel’s Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations and CNN’s Parts Unknown。 But his charisma belied a troubled spirit。 Addiction and an obsession with perfection and personal integrity ruined two marriages and turned him into a boss from hell， even as millions became intrigued by the ever-curious and genuinely empathetic traveler they saw on TV。 Bourdain was already running out of steam， physically and emotionally， when he fell hard for an Italian actress who could be even colder to him than he sometimes was to others， and who effectively drove a wedge between him and his young daughter。
Down and Out in Paradise is the first book to tell the true and full Bourdain story， relating the highs and lows of an extraordinary life。 Leerhsen shows how Bourdain’s never-before-reported childhood traumas fueled both his creativity and the insecurities that would lead him to a place of despair。
Reviews
Jessica
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Thank you to Simon and Schuster and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review。I went into this book having already read a lot about Bourdain’s life， both from his point of view and from other books written about it。 What I will say about this is that it seems incredibly well-researched。 It’s so thorough that I definitely learned certain facts I didn’t know before and there were different angles exploring information I was familiar with that made me see it in a new light。However this Thank you to Simon and Schuster and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review。I went into this book having already read a lot about Bourdain’s life， both from his point of view and from other books written about it。 What I will say about this is that it seems incredibly well-researched。 It’s so thorough that I definitely learned certain facts I didn’t know before and there were different angles exploring information I was familiar with that made me see it in a new light。However this book is DENSE。 Every paragraph felt like criss-crossing references to other things that I had to wade through， and it made the subject matter less approachable。 The timeline was also non-linear so I feel like if someone who isn’t that familiar with Bourdain’s story were to pick it up， they might be a bit lost。 My main criticism is that the thesis of this book is about how his ex-girlfriend contributed to his suicide。 I find that to be a fairly problematic conclusion， and while reading this， didn’t ultimately agree with it。 It almost seemed like the author decided that’s what happened， and tried to extract and twist information to fit his narrative。 Additionally this is billed as that being the overarching theme， but it really is only fully dealt with in the last 25-ish percent， and is not wrapped up in a satisfying way。 In conclusion， I think this is a very thorough and well-researched book about Bourdain， but there are better books out there to start with if you haven’t read about him before。 If you have， you will probably find this interesting but ultimately it doesn’t add much to his overall story。 。。。more
Michelle
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I've been an admirer of Bourdain for years having loved his travel programs， Parts Unknown and No Reservations。 I knew from a distance he had some troubles with alcohol and depression but I've never read any of his books nor had I made any effort into learning more about him。 Until now。 My heart broke in 2018 with news of his suicide and it has now broken again knowing all that I have learned about him。 He was a troubled soul from has far back as his youth。 He never wanted to conform or to follo I've been an admirer of Bourdain for years having loved his travel programs， Parts Unknown and No Reservations。 I knew from a distance he had some troubles with alcohol and depression but I've never read any of his books nor had I made any effort into learning more about him。 Until now。 My heart broke in 2018 with news of his suicide and it has now broken again knowing all that I have learned about him。 He was a troubled soul from has far back as his youth。 He never wanted to conform or to follow any rules。 That was always part of his appeal to me。 He always seemed to be just the right side of bad boy to make him seductive。 His lust for food， travel， and other cultures was indisputable。 "He was the epitome of cool， a sad-smiling Jersey boy who combined supremely high standards with the underappreciated art of not giving a shit in ways that seemed to excite both sexes。"On himself: "I spent most of my waking hours drinking， smoking pot， scheming， and doing my best to amuse， outrage， impress and penetrate anyone silly enough to find me entertaining。"Also on himself: "I was a spoiled， miserable， narcissistic， self-destructive， and thoughtless young lout， badly in need of a good ass kicking。"Something I hadn't realized was that he spent many years in the 80's cooking around NYC addicted to heroin and crack cocaine。 As with most highly intelligent people he was always harder on himself than anyone else。 While he may have been on top of the world， in life， he was at the very bottom。 The alcohol， drugs， and self loathing is the perfect trifecta for the perfect storm in any person。 But it may have been his relationship with Asia Argento that finally pushed him toward the edge。I do not know her nor will I ever but I can tell you that I have a strong dislike for this woman。 Her fiery temper， her aloofness all made Anthony crazy。 She claims that Harvey Weinstein raped her when she was 21 which is terrible but then she continued to have a 5 year sexual relationship with him for money and support。 Again， I don't know her or her mental stability but I'm guessing she has some major issues to work through。 Speaking of issues， she was also accused of sexually assaulting a 17 year old boy， a young up and coming actor， claims which she denies but that have texts and photos that prove otherwise。 Anthony paid this young man $380，000。00 to make it all go away。 This is after Bourdain rallied for her against Weinstein and even leaked information on Mario Batali， one of his closest friends， when he heard of the accusations made toward him。 I think this revelation may have been his final straw。 "By briefly reliving his past， he may have gotten a glimpse of how far he had come。 By experiencing what he had been， he may of seen more clearly what he turned into - a character out of a sordid， slightly deranged James Ellroy novel， a doomed and desperate lover who hired a private detective to soil an obscure kid actor for the sake of a woman who respected him less for each effort he made on her behalf。 The kind of man who had talented， loyal people living in constant fear of being banished from a show for which they worked hard and given up much to make great。 It was an especially horrible thing for Tony to learn about himself， that he had lost his integrity in pursuit of a woman who seemed to spend her life performing for the paparazzi and clowning on Instagram， but perhaps there was some consolation and peace in finally seeing things for what they were。"Anthony Bourdain， you are still missed to this day。 I hope you have found peace amongst the stars。 4 stars！ Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for my complimentary copy。 。。。more
J。G。
，
The book captures the essence of Tony Bourdain， a beloved character in the foodie world。 Each sentence is packed with details （and a lot of words） about Tony Bourdain， showing the incredible amount of research that has gone into the writing of this book。 However， the book is not written in linear time and is more in the style of the Frank-Sinatra-has a-cold-genre。 It is not a neat and tidy depiction of a complex man， and in that regard， the writing style reflects the intensity and contradictions The book captures the essence of Tony Bourdain， a beloved character in the foodie world。 Each sentence is packed with details （and a lot of words） about Tony Bourdain， showing the incredible amount of research that has gone into the writing of this book。 However， the book is not written in linear time and is more in the style of the Frank-Sinatra-has a-cold-genre。 It is not a neat and tidy depiction of a complex man， and in that regard， the writing style reflects the intensity and contradictions and empathy in the subject。 I enjoyed reading the direct quotes from Tony Bourdain， because they show the empathy and perception of a very human man。 。。。more
Elisabeth
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I stopped reading this half way through。 As with many， I was deeply touched by Bourdain's death。 I remember him in a certain way。 I know he was a man with flaws。 I didn't like the direction of this book。 I may be missing out but my choice is to live with the thoughts and memories I have about Anthony Bourdain。 When Eric Ripert writes a biography I will happily read it cover to cover。 I stopped reading this half way through。 As with many， I was deeply touched by Bourdain's death。 I remember him in a certain way。 I know he was a man with flaws。 I didn't like the direction of this book。 I may be missing out but my choice is to live with the thoughts and memories I have about Anthony Bourdain。 When Eric Ripert writes a biography I will happily read it cover to cover。 。。。more
LIsa Noell "Rocking the Chutzpah！"
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My thanks to Simon and Schuster， Charles Leerhshen and Netgalley。 For me， this may just be a case of too much， too soon。 I really thought that I was ready。 But， I'm not。 You know， I loved Bourdain。 He tucked into a few places that I'd want to visit。 Not because of some weird food，"or even good food！ " But because the locales and people were intriguing。 Who else would want to visit Romania because of their graveyards！ Anthony was amazing at what he did。 This book？ I expect that I'll finish it som My thanks to Simon and Schuster， Charles Leerhshen and Netgalley。 For me， this may just be a case of too much， too soon。 I really thought that I was ready。 But， I'm not。 You know， I loved Bourdain。 He tucked into a few places that I'd want to visit。 Not because of some weird food，"or even good food！ " But because the locales and people were intriguing。 Who else would want to visit Romania because of their graveyards！ Anthony was amazing at what he did。 This book？ I expect that I'll finish it someday。 This will not be that day。 Possibly not even the year！ There have been a few favorite people over the years that have killed themselves。 I've never yet been able to read， nor watch anything with it about them。 Robin Williams？ Nope。 My favorite band was INXS。 I still mourn Michael's death。 Suicide messes with fans too。 If it's this hard for us， then it has to be majorly messed up for the family。 I never came close to finishing this book， so I can't in all fairness leave a rating。 Best wishes for this author！ Whoops！ Without stars， I can't leave a review！ Fine。 4* 。。。more
Michael Hassel Shearer
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Down and Out in Paradise: The Life of Anthony Bourdain by Charles LeerhsenThis was an interesting book to read and the first about Anthony Bourdain I have read。 I have read his book: Kitchen Confidential after he committed suicide in 8 June 2018。 Like many， I was shocked by his death and only knew him as someone whom I enjoyed his love of life， food， alcohol and people from all over the world。 So， this book by Mr。 Leerhsen added some background to my understanding of who was Tony。 Needless to sa Down and Out in Paradise: The Life of Anthony Bourdain by Charles LeerhsenThis was an interesting book to read and the first about Anthony Bourdain I have read。 I have read his book: Kitchen Confidential after he committed suicide in 8 June 2018。 Like many， I was shocked by his death and only knew him as someone whom I enjoyed his love of life， food， alcohol and people from all over the world。 So， this book by Mr。 Leerhsen added some background to my understanding of who was Tony。 Needless to say， as I read， I kept thinking no Tony no but obviously to no avail。 His personality was beyond obsessive whether it was food， comics or testing himself with alcohol and drugs。 He knew he was not a great chef but he was a verbal poet。 I think his writing when spoken on the food/travel shows was incredible and clearly it was from the center of his heart and soul。 For this he was a cursed genius。 I know there are other books available on Anthony Bourdain’s life but I do recommend this one。 。。。more
Cindy
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