Sweet Nothings - by Sarah Perry

Book Synopsis

A fun, sophisticated illustrated collection of essays that catalogs the simple and not so simple pleasures of the eclectic world of candy from the award-winning author of After the Eclipse. With illustrations by Forsyth Harmon.

A taxonomy of sweetness, a rhapsody of artificial flavors, and a multi-faceted theory of pleasure, Sweet Nothings is made up of one hundred illustrated micro essays organized by candy color, from the red of Pop Rocks to the purple Jelly Bonbon in the Whitman's Sampler. Each entry is a meditation on taste and texture, a memory unlocked. Everyone's favorites--and least favorites--are carefully considered, including Snickers and Trader Joe's Peanut Butter Cups, as well as the beloved Good n' Plenty and Werther's Originals.

An expert guide and exquisite writer, Sarah Perry asks such pressing questions as: Twizzlers or Red Vines? Why are Mentos eaters so maniacally happy? And in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, how could Edmund sell out his siblings for, of all things, Turkish delight? She rejects the dreaded "What is your favorite candy?" question and counters: Under what circumstances? F The question itself is flawed--favorite under what circumstances? In what weather? On the road, or at home? In what mood? For candy is inextricably tied to the seasons of our lives. Sweet Nothings moves associatively, touching on pop culture, art, culinary history, philosophy, body image, and class-based food moralism. It challenges the very idea of "junk" food and posits taking pleasure seriously as a means of survival.

Sarah Perry's pure love of candy weaves together elegiac glimpses of her 90s childhood--and the loss at its center--with stories of love and desire. Surprisingly smart and frequently funny, Sweet Nothings is a tart and sweet ode to finding small joys where you can. Yes, even in black licorice.

Review Quotes

"Perry and candy have a magnetic relationship, inexorably drawn to each other... While Perry's accounts of candy consumption are sensual, almost tactile, and indescribably delicious, each chapter is also a pathway to deep recollection of the past, not all of it sugarcoated... Perry can tap into the communal candy memory with a fine comedic touch, calling forth many a Yes! moment. With flair and a winning nostalgia, a certified sugar hound of the first order shares her obsessions." -- Kirkus Reviews

"Candies serve as the jumping-off points for these delectable essays from memoirist Perry (After the Eclipse). The evocative prose finds surprising depth in sugary confections. This is one to savor." -- Publishers Weekly

"Though I would read Sarah Perry write about doorknobs, how lucky for us that she turns her precise, searching and funny voice to the subject of candy. What Perry has created here is nothing less than a wholly original exploration of how we eat, love, and experience pleasure now." -- Emma Copley Eisenberg, nationally bestselling author of Housemates

"Sarah Perry's Sweet Nothings is a catalogue of candy that encourages us to see everything from Pop Rocks to Lemonheads with joy and complexity, pleasure and depth. Weaving together memoir and a robust cultural critique of all things sweet, Perry shows the reader how the smallest parts of the world can offer us a profound lens for reflection and wonder." -- Heather Radke, author of Butts: A Backstory

"A confection, a barrel of delights, a feast of delicious, melt-in-your-mouth brilliance. Sarah Perry will make you want to run to the store and stock up on treats, but she also knows the truth: the store closed years ago. This is a book of gummy, twisty toothaches and heartbreaks, a thrilling take on memory and nostalgia, where the real candy is Perry's unfailingly wise and tender prose. Sweet Nothings is actually really something." -- Hilary Leichter, author of Temporary and Terrace Story

"Skillfully uniting strands of memory, culture, and sensory data, Sarah Perry creates a delectable confection of thought and feeling, making the topic of candy as utterly irresistible to the mind as it is to the mouth. -- Alexandra Kleeman, author of Something New Under the Sun

"Perry's accounts of strategic consumption are indescribably delicious, almost tactile. She demonstrates that texture matters, sometimes more than taste... Sweet Nothings is equal parts confessional, ritual and reverie... Perry has a lovely, lilting writing style. But there is an edgy intelligence here, and her book is not all fun and games." -- Post and Courier

"Perry, a true aficionado, is remarkably adept at chronicling the most minute details of candy...Here's hoping that this thoroughly delectable essay collection prompts many readers to (re)discover their own sweet tooth --- and cherish their wild, precious memories." -- Book Reporter