What I’m reading while I sit in jury duty for two days: Steven Almond’s Candyfreak: A Journey Through the Chocolate Underbelly of America. The author, an admitted “freak” for everything chocolatey, sugary, and nutty (although, oddly, not almonds), goes on a journey across America to document the efforts of regional candymakers before they fall victim to the monopoly of the “Big Three.”

Between the World Wars, candy manufacturing exploded in America, with thousands of boutique confectioners springing up in every state. Gradually, however, the three “majors” (Hershey’s, Nestle, and Mars - later renamed Masterfoods) took over, and the smaller manufacturers were slowly driven out of business. Almond travels from Boston, where he meets with the foremost expert in the candy business, Ray Broekel, to Nashville, where he discovers the wonder that is the Goo Goo Cluster (I can vouch for this one), all the while including searingly funny anecdotes and a healthy dose of awareness that this is all, really, quite weird.

This is the second time I’ve read the book, and it’s even better this time around. There are echoes of Sedaris, and even Philip Roth…and for someone who adores both food writing and Portnoy’s Complaint, this book is just about perfect.