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  • Published: 7 October 2026
  • ISBN: 9798217140718
  • Imprint: Penguin Workshop
  • Format: Hardback
  • Pages: 256
  • RRP: $49.99

A Taste of Somewhere Else



For fans of Darius the Great Is Not Okay comes an escapist and emotional YA coming-of-age novel following a father-son road trip across Spain, with a dash of mystery.

Junior year was supposed to be Miles’s escape plan—survive one year in Cleveland with Jake, the dad he barely knows, then get back to his real life in New York. 

But that was before he got suspended. Before his mom died and left a hole nothing can fill. Before Jake’s art house theater started facing closure—and before Jake dragged him on a half-baked quest across Spain to track down a film director who may or may not want to be found. 

Between wrong turns and cryptic clues through Madrid, Toledo, and Seville, they find themselves at wobbly tables in tapas bars, sharing plates of jamon and squid, talking in ways they never have before. Something unexpected happens over bocadillos and café con leche: Miles stops seeing Jake as the dad who left, and starts seeing him as the person who stayed. 

James Beard Award–winning author Michael Ruhlman delivers a story about grief, second chances, and discovering that home might not be a place you left behind—but a person you’re just getting to know, one meal at a time.

  • Published: 7 October 2026
  • ISBN: 9798217140718
  • Imprint: Penguin Workshop
  • Format: Hardback
  • Pages: 256
  • RRP: $49.99

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Praise for A Taste of Somewhere Else


Praise for Taste of Somewhere Else
*"An engaging novel that explores grief, family relationships, and friendship. Highly recommended for library collections looking for realistic travel fiction."—School Library Journal, starred review

"Be swept along by the protagonist’s intense, even sensuous, responses to what he sees and especially tastes during this salutary, refreshingly offbeat odyssey...Dishes up a good dose of healing along with Spanish culinary delicacies."—Kirkus Reviews


Praise for If You Can't Take the Heat:

*"Food writer Ruhlman employs exacting verisimilitude to bring the heat of the kitchen and sensory details of the dishes to life in this vivacious debut."—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"This human story is the book’s real strength, as is the care given to detailing the operations inside a restaurant kitchen, lending power and authenticity."—Booklist

"A refreshingly different take on the romance genre, written from the male perspective, and a great purchase for all libraries."—School Library Journal

"Ruhlman’s writing is at its best when Theo is in the kitchen. The hustle and passion that flow during service drop readers squarely in the middle of the action....The well-realized foodie elements are the highlight."—Kirkus Reviews