THE FERTILE CRESCENT

Wall’s novel follows a chef on the verge of personal and professional reinvention in post-Katrina New Orleans.

Laurent Ladnier, once a culinary prodigy, is now approaching 40 and barely holding together a life filled with deferred dreams. Having given up his ambitions of opening a world-class restaurant to support his widowed mother, drug-addicted aunt, and aging grandmother, he toils under a tyrannical boss at Café Bonhomie. When the owner leaves town and Laurent sees an opening, he seizes the moment to debut his long-nurtured vision of “true world fusion”—a bold reimagining of classic New Orleans fare with East and South Asian influences. From here, Wall builds a layered and often moving narrative that charts Laurent’s efforts to stay true to his culinary vision while navigating the painful pull of family loyalty and the ache of stalled relationships. His dynamic with girlfriend Noelle, a rising jazz singer, underscores his internal conflict: “Noelle, I can’t take tomorrow off. We only close on Tuesdays. And Sunday afternoon.” Much of the novel’s emotional resonance stems from Laurent’s relationship with his grandmother, Mémère, and his Aunt LaFaye, whom he supports financially and emotionally. Their household becomes a microcosm of the book’s central tension between duty and aspiration. Visiting them after his culinary insubordination, Laurent is reminded of the long lineage that shaped him, and the sacrifices he’s made. Haunted by the mysterious death of his father, Claude—a failed chef who fell from a bridge in what may have been a suicide—Laurent finds himself increasingly driven to uncover the truth. Despite its introspective style, the novel maintains a strong narrative drive as Laurent begins to take covert steps toward independence by plotting a secret catering gig, reconnecting with a wealthy patron, and tracing the circumstances around his father’s fall. Each movement feels deliberate, part of a slow burn toward either liberation or collapse.

A vivid, soulful meditation on food, family, and second chances, seasoned with literary flair.