Need to Read: Corked

Kathryn Borel was 21 years old when she crashed into and killed a man who was jaywalking. Eight years after the accident, Borel, a journalist now armed with a deep-seated sense of mortality, decided to get to know her temperamental French father before it was too late. In her debut memoir, Corked, Borel unpacks a tragicomic father-daughter drinkfest through the finest French vineyards.

MC: Why the Sideways trip?

KB: After the accident, my brother would get on his bike or my parents would get in their car, and I'd think, They're going to be killed. After a lot of therapy, the feeling of looming death dissipated, but when my father hurt himself a couple of years later, the fear came rushing back. A few weeks later, I was in his wine cellar and realized his enormous collection would all be bequeathed to me. And yet, I never really understood his passion for it. So I thought if I tried to understand him through wine, I'd gain some insight.