Olive Odyssey

July 7, 2014
Guaranteed to move readers from casual consumers of olive products to enthusiastic aficionados, Angus's book, which sparkles with the sights, smells, tastes and stories of the Mediterranean olive, is as informative as it is infectious. Supported by a National Geographic expedition grant, the author sets out to gather convincing evidence that ancient Phoenicians, from her homeland of Syria, were responsible for spreading the passion for olives that has existed in the Mediterranean region for many millennia. Aboard their 28-foot sailboat, Angus, her husband, and their 10-month old son journey to major olive oil-producing regions in the Mediterranean, in search of the evidence. This fascinating, well-written book blends travel with culture, history, geography, archeology, economics, politics, and medicinal and plant science, and provides important consumer information. From Spain, to France, the Italian Riviera, Greece, Crete, Sardinia and the Middle East, Angus interviews growers, producers, scientists, and local people, usually while enjoying scrumptious olive-oil laced meals. She scours remote locations for ancient olive trees from which she extracts samples for DNA testing to determine genetic links between species gathered from different locations. While test results support Angus's theory, other olive secrets revealed are just as intriguing, and equally noteworthy.

May 15, 2014

After visiting relatives in Syria, Angus dreamed of an idyllic adventure hunting the origins of the olive (see Mort Rosenblum's Olives for a similar quest). As in her earlier work, Rowboat in a Hurricane (2009), the author chose to travel on water. She wasn't able to return to her family's olives in Syria, her original final stop, but she does make a fascinating journey from Spain to the Palestinian West Bank. The book is an engaging mix of history, food travelog, and botany lesson. Not only does Angus taste olives and olive oil, she also takes samples from ancient olive trees and tracks what ancient peoples could have spread the trees around the Mediterranean Sea. As in the real trip, there are bumps encountered, as when Angus gets caught up in extolling the health benefits of olive oil. And her observations on Palestine seem to have less energy than the other places in her narrative. VERDICT There is much to enjoy here, especially for foodies and armchair historians.--Ginny Wolter, Toledo-Lucas Cty. P.L.

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