If you’ve heard of M. F. K. Fisher, it’s probably because (like me) you love reading mouth-watering writing about food. Fisher in many ways popularized the genre of food writing that now crowds bookstore and library shelves. She has become well known (at least in certain circles) for her observant, often humorous and beautifully written books like THE GASTRONOMICAL ME and HOW TO COOK A WOLF,as well as her brilliant translation of Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin’s THE PHYSIOLOGY OF TASTE. But even if you (like me) feel like you’ve come to know Fisher through her gastronomical writings, you almost certainly don’t know the whole story of her life and varied passions.

"If people turn to THE ARRANGEMENT for drama or outrageous secrets or surprises, they are likely to be disappointed. However, if they’re reading it for insight into the early career of one of the 20th century’s most accomplished writers, they will find much to savor."

Ashley Warlick sets out to change all that in her latest novel, THE ARRANGEMENT, about a particularly tumultuous time in M. F. K. (Mary Frances) Fisher’s life, when her romantic entanglements demanded nearly as much attention as her burgeoning writing career. We first meet Mary Frances in 1934 in Hollywood, California, where she lives with her husband, Al. The two are somewhat uncomfortably settling into domestic life in the U.S., buoyed mostly by fond memories of their courtship and early marriage in France. But the realities of married life don’t quite live up to either’s ideals. Al, a struggling poet and ambivalent (at best) teacher, has grown jealous of Mary Frances’ writing successes. They have little money, and both are dealing with rapidly aging parents. To make matters worse, Al’s depression and emotional distance mean that he can’t satisfy Mary Frances’ sexual desires.

Enter painter Tim Parrish and his much younger wife, Gigi, an aspiring dancer and film actress. They’ve become friends with the Fishers, but Tim and Mary Frances’ relationship grows increasingly intense just as Tim and Gigi’s marriage begins to fall apart and Mary Frances feels more alienated than ever from Al. In the face of his impending divorce, Tim concocts a plan to help salvage Gigi’s reputation --- but the arrangement may wind up destroying more than one couple.

Warlick’s narrative alternates --- sometimes seamlessly, other times with more formal breaks --- between the events in Fisher’s life in the late 1930s and vignettes of her much later life, as she is assisted by her sister, Norah, in packing up her personal papers (and destroying some of them) before donating her archives to Harvard. What’s evident throughout Fisher’s life story is her hunger --- not only for delicious food but also for passion of all kinds, for a life full of sensations and experiences --- as well as her compelling desire to narrate her own experiences, even when doing so might tarnish her own reputation.

Perhaps it’s a sign of the times, or maybe I’m just jaded, because the supposedly scandalous content of Fisher’s life (and, by extension, of Warlick’s novel) doesn’t actually seem that shocking or salacious. If people turn to THE ARRANGEMENT for drama or outrageous secrets or surprises, they are likely to be disappointed. However, if they’re reading it for insight into the early career of one of the 20th century’s most accomplished writers, they will find much to savor.