Caroline Eden finds comfort away from the road in her basement Edinburgh kitchen. In her latest book she cooks recipes from her travels, reflects on past adventures and contemplates the kitchen’s ability to tell human stories.
The first book I remember reading:
As soon as I was old enough to read on my own I collected the Choose Your Own Adventure paperbacks which were huge in the 1980s. I remember being obsessed by them: the idea of entering a world, and then selecting the role of say climber or hiker and then progressing through the book by choosing between two or three options, each of which then led to further adventures and ultimately your ‘own’ conclusion. Of course it is formulaic, it is supposed to be, but to me it was so exciting. And with titles such as Mystery of the Maya and Mountain Survival I wonder if they helped stoke some early wanderlust.
A book I recommend to everyone:
Jigsaw by Sybille Bedford. It was recommended to me by my friend the food writer Diana Henry about five years ago and it introduced me to Bedford’s work. Jigsaw is a partly autobiographical novel, shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 1989, and it takes us into European worlds – mainly French Riviera – which now no longer exist. She was such a sensory writer and evokes meals beautifully.
The best three books I have read in the last year:
Volcanic: Vesuvius in the Age of Revolutions by John Brewer, which is a big book, momentous and spellbinding, that focuses on the mid-eighteenth to the mid-nineteenth centuries, and those who travelled to the famous volcano. Tourists by Lucy Lethbridge which digs into the history of British tourists, where they went, what they got up to, and who inspired or facilitated their trips. Fascinating, grim and funny. And High Caucasus by Tom Parfitt, the best travel book published in years, traversing a part of Russia, the North Caucasus, which is very much off-limits now.
A book I didn’t finish:
The Eighth Life by Nino Haratischwili published in 2014. It’s not that I didn’t find this epic tale, set in Georgia in the South Caucasus, absorbing, I did, especially the first half, but I just couldn’t finish it. The saga goes on over 900 pages and it was like a marathon I couldn’t complete. For me it was just too long.
An author who has inspired me:
Carla Grissmann, and specifically her book Dinner of Herbs: Village Life in Turkey in the 1960s. Carla was an exceptional traveller and writer. She was brave, trusted in the road, was open-minded and forever curious. More people should know of her.
My favourite place to read:
On a quiet train, going anywhere, ideally with a big flask of good strong coffee. Most often, in reality, it is the LNER service travelling between Edinburgh Waverley and Kings Cross (and an overpriced latte). 
Journalist and author Caroline Eden lives in Edinburgh. Her work has appeared in The Guardian, The Times Literary Supplement, Daily Telegraph, Financial Times. Her latest book, Cold Kitchen, is published by Bloomsbury and can be bought here.
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