What do you get when you combine

• a loud and loving Indian family, 
• a manic chef whose been stuck in the French Alps collecting dust for ages,
• a young boy with impressive culinary talent,
• and the Parisian world of haute cuisine?

A mouthwateringly delicious adventure, Shmoopers, that's what.

The Hundred-Foot Journey is the first novel written by author Richard C. Morais. Despite his rookie status, though, when it was published in 2010, it became an international bestseller, and was even included in the "Editor's Choice" of the New York Times Book Review. While this is certainly impressive, it really isn't that surprising since Morais combines years of experience and travel to create this completely original story that's been compared to Slumdog Millionaire and Ratatouille at the same time. Pretty one-of-a-kind, we'd say.

This is the story of a young Indian boy who—through a series of twists and turns—finds himself training to be a French chef. There are ups and downs along the way, often thanks to prejudice, but since the whole book is seasoned with lush descriptions of food, even the hardest moments take a turn for the delectable. No, really—this book is so tantalizing that you just might want to take the words off the page and eat them.

May we suggest you bring a snack when you sit down to read this one.

How many books can you read where you'll get to journey through a crowded market street in India as well as get the inside scoop on the down and dirty politics of haute cuisine in Paris? We can't think of any ourselves, but this is part of what makes The Hundred-Foot Journey so special: In addition to being a coming of age tale, it's also a drool-inducing food tour of a big chunk of the world.

The Hundred Foot Journey takes us through three generations of food love and obsession as told by Hassan Haji, the narrator and main character of the story. We get to see what it's like behind closed kitchen doors on three different continents: the competition, the burning pots and pans (hopefully nothing else), and most importantly, the passion that makes it all happen. Cooking is like any other art form, and we learn this alongside our narrator, who shares his journey of food, while more or less savoring every moment.