Foods that Changed History

October 1, 2015
Learning about foods and their importance in history offers insight into topics as varied as religious movements, literature, economics, technology, and the human condition. This volume addresses the myriad ways in which foods have shaped the world we inhabit, from prehistory to the present. Nearly 100 entries cover all manner of foodstuffs, from both natural sources (think corn, eggs, peanuts) and products of the industrial age (such as Spam and Coca-Cola). But the entries do not merely describe a food; they cover history and culture: how the potato changed lives in northern Europe, particularly Ireland; and how the potato famine led to the foundation of the science of plant pathology. One entry documents how the consumption of tea and spices fostered global exploration, and another how citrus fruits led to the prevention of scurvy. Perhaps most important, this book enables readers to grasp the connections between the history of foods and the Columbian Exchange, the widespread transfer of animals, plants, culture, human populations, technology, and ideas between the American and Afro-Eurasian hemispheres in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, related to European colonization and trade. With broad, easy-to-read coverage, this well-written resource is recommended for high-school students and undergraduates as well as the general public interested in the relationship of the history of food to culture.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)