Books by Michael Daswick

From the filthy streets of Brooklyn to the glam of Beverly Hills, 13 year old chef extraordinaire Zin Mignon serves a parade of royalty, celebrities and supermodels. What can you possibly make with pickled pigs' feet, an unreadable long lost note, the lurking Mustard Monks, dry rump roast and Poor Mrs. Piddle’s smelly kitchen?That’s easy, if you're 13-year old chef extraordinaire Zin Mignon;The trouble is the forgetful Mrs. Pirogi – his sole link to a long-lost family legacy – can’t quite remember much about Zin’s cryptic ancestry. So with that on his mind, as the sizzling sensation of the Sunset Strip, why is he cooking for the homeless on skid row?His rivals try anything to take him down: the burnout hotdog salesman across the street sabotages with elephant laxative, while evil restaurant critic Brandy Bitterwine roasts Zin with… zero stars!With the help of Avalina, the brilliant 22-year old business manager, and his swim-teammate Jenny, Zin must fight to learn his family history that may not be entirely appetizing. Is it related to the secret of his incredible Russian Rye? While his fans rave, the vile scoundrels are closing in.Zin’s fragile artistic temperament is pushed to the boiling point until Jenny has a brilliant idea, but will it work? Little do they know they’ll face the ultimate challenge which could shut down Zin’s kitchen forever.The second in the series, RIDDLE of the RUSSIAN RYE mixes food, fame and family, and twists its way to an emotionally tasty – or distasteful – ending.

With the extraordinary events of Book #2 and the Secret of the Russian Rye behind him, Zin Mignon's quest turns to his shadowy family history. The 14 year-old phenom Chef reaches the squalid peasants' orphanages in the hinterlands of Russia. But with his pal Jenny, all they find are skinny kids and crushing conditions. Ah, but Zin has fame. And an appetite to help. Thus, he cooks up a daring charitable scheme to feed the planet's poorest kids. In the globetrotting Book 3, Zin does his finest cooking ever. Blindsided by one revelation after another, join Zin as he moves ever closer to the astonishing secrets baked into his mysterious past. MICHAEL DASWICK is the award-winning author of the Zin Mignon series and Chip Rock and the Fat Old Fart,

1 year old genius Chef Zin Mignon is in a horrific pickle. He's been kidnapped from Le Cordon Bleu cooking school in Paris by the mysterious Mustard Monks and spirited away to their ultra-remote mountaintop abbey. In time, he'll be able to take their daunting Test. If he passes, he may join their secret Order and achieve the culinary success he's always dreamed of. If he fails….The tale of Zin Mignon begins at the bottom of a jar of pickled pigs' feet in his father's pathetic Brooklyn deli. A secret note sets him on a world-spinning adventure that takes him through the alleys of the homeless to the tables of billionaires, to discover who he really is and the greatness for which he is destined. As he sets the culinary world on fire, a mix of treacherous rivals feasts on the chance to make his dreams go up in smoke.In the wildly appetizing first book of the Zin Mignon series, with the help of his family and friends, Zin is off to honor the solemn promise he made to his dad and to learn the incredible secret of his family legacy. With humor, amazing exploits and heartfelt compassion, Zin uses food and his kitchen to build a recipe that will lead him to his true identity. Can he cut the mustard, or is it all just pie in the sky?

The importance of the Outsider. Chip Rock has just aged out of the pathetic orphanage known as Boys Hall, in the (fictional) crumbling little SoCal beach town of No Palms. Low on luck and opportunity, Chip sets out to find a meaningful place in the world. It's no ordinary journey. Aimless and quick with bad choices, Chip wanders into a rich tapestry of characters: the grumps at the No Palms Women's Club; the nagging neighbor Rosita right across the street; the Old Town Dog, luckless fishermen, and the pretty new girl at the bank. Never shy, Chip meets an outcast butcher named Deacon O'Dell, seemingly the embodiment of all Chip's lousy luck, rolled into one person. Nonetheless, sparks set off an unlikely bond and an adventure of stunning hardships, but with a remote chance for rejuvenation. CHIP ROCK and the FAT OLD FART tells the story of the comic and poignant friendship between 23 year old Chip and 55 year old Deacon, and explores the glue which bind together imperfect families and flawed friendships. Author Michael Daswick is the winner of the two greatest literary awards from Columbia University. His inspiring work tackles epic themes of guilt, redemption, loss, struggle, friendship and fatherhood. Rich yet quirky, always mixing humor with drama, Michael writes at the crossroads of sophistication and the idiosyncratic. Fat Old Fart constantly mixes striking settings, and noble decisions that lead to unexpected results. It's a coming-of-age saga about Chip -- and a coming-of-old-age awakening for Deacon, who strives to learn the true meaning of fatherhood. A spree of events teaches the orphan Chip how families are born not only by blood, but also through friendship, workplace, and neighborhoods. Families beget entire communities. From No Palms to Mexico, their adventure and struggle brings together a vastly different collection of people, building into a desperate and very emotional ending which none of them expect. Fat Old Fart grew out of several linked short stories, always portraying the Underdog, from which author Michael Daswick won both of Columbia's prestigious literary awards: The Bennett Cerf Memorial Prize for Fiction and The Cornell Woolrich Fellowship for Creative Writing. He lives in Scottsdale with his wife Kim and family. Fat Old Fart is the first in the Chip Rock Series. The sequel is CHIP ROCK and the CATALINA KID. Chip's early years at Boys Hall are chronicled in the award-winning short story collection, HALLBOYS.