Bird tales

‘This American Life’ this week is about food

By Kim Carlson

November 26, 2007

Jonathan Gold discussing a chicken he kept on top of his refrigerator — sounds wacky, right? But if you stick with his story on "This American Life" (actually an interview with Ira Glass), Gold unfolds an elegant tale of knowing your food — or at least getting closer to understanding what it is to eat another life.

Act Two of the same program (the show’s called “The Poultry Slam”) describes François Mitterand’s last meal, in which he ate ortolan, the tiny songbird that’s considered a delicacy — albeit an illegal one — in France. Michael Paterniti travels to France to recreate the French president’s last meal, right down to the bird.