Mea Culpa of the Culpable Summary

This section introduces the people who collaborated on this work, starting with Robert Shekter. Allende met Shekter in her neighborhood bookstore. Shekter reminded her of her grandfather, which drew her to him. They became friends in the bookstore over morning cups of coffee and croissants. One day, she told him about a dream she'd had, in which she was a plump nymph, running around in a land of very erotic vegetables and meat dishes. While she was speaking, he drew a picture of a nymph and a satyr- character, which later became the drawings that decorate the pages of this book. During this conversation, Shekter and Allende also brainstormed known aphrodisiacs and searched the bookstore for books on them. There was less information available than they expected, so they began the project of writing their...