I love Michel Roux's books. Not because they are good (they are), or because I use them a lot (like most chef's books, I don't), but because Roux's writing is so sidesplittingly funny. Remember the introduction to Desserts, where Roux talked about his passion: "Ours is a faithful relationship, pure and bottomless, which cannot easily be expressed in words. It has deepened over many years through the senses; touch, sight, smell and even hearing. I rarely speak to her, but communicate only by vague movements of my lips, almost like the first outline of a kiss".
Phew! Get a load of that. And all he's probably done there is make a bread and butter pudding.
Happily, this nonsense is confined to the introduction, and after that the book is a brilliant series of ideas, with outstanding - and useful - photography by Martin Brigdale.
Sauces, by Michel Roux (Quadrille £12.99 in the UK)