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kairosdreaming's review
5.0
I've had this book on my to-read list for awhile now; and the recent Netflix special just further encouraged me to move it to the head of the list. And I'm very glad that I did. What isn't chock full of food history is chock full of regular history, a lot of it that I didn't know.
Harris uses this book to take you through time and the origins of African and Black American cooking. This includes the food types and methods of cooking that traveled with the slave ships and persisted in America on plantations. The raising of crops that originated in Africa (okra, etc.) on these plantations and subsisting with the meager rations given most slaves. It moves on through time through the Civil War and the westward transition of newly freed slaves. To the catering halls in Philadelphia, and to the new immigrants coming in with their own food sources and culture that blend in. And more.
While it seems like I might have given the book away by describing everything in it; I haven't. There is so much to this book and so much detail and history, there's a lot to explore. I really appreciate that there were things in this book I got to learn; it wasn't the rehash of the civil war and history that was taught in school (spoiler alert: it was always centered on the war and how great it was that slaves were freed, it went into nothing of the struggles that happened after or even culture). Catering especially, I never knew the origins of and found that part of the book especially informative.
The tone of the book was conversational; not too academic, but containing enough detail to give the information needed. It's history that should be taught and definitely a must read for anyone studying food history.
Review by M. Reynard 2021
Harris uses this book to take you through time and the origins of African and Black American cooking. This includes the food types and methods of cooking that traveled with the slave ships and persisted in America on plantations. The raising of crops that originated in Africa (okra, etc.) on these plantations and subsisting with the meager rations given most slaves. It moves on through time through the Civil War and the westward transition of newly freed slaves. To the catering halls in Philadelphia, and to the new immigrants coming in with their own food sources and culture that blend in. And more.
While it seems like I might have given the book away by describing everything in it; I haven't. There is so much to this book and so much detail and history, there's a lot to explore. I really appreciate that there were things in this book I got to learn; it wasn't the rehash of the civil war and history that was taught in school (spoiler alert: it was always centered on the war and how great it was that slaves were freed, it went into nothing of the struggles that happened after or even culture). Catering especially, I never knew the origins of and found that part of the book especially informative.
The tone of the book was conversational; not too academic, but containing enough detail to give the information needed. It's history that should be taught and definitely a must read for anyone studying food history.
Review by M. Reynard 2021
fluffdragon's review
4.0
An interesting journey through history and food, and in how those two things are related.
charlesjudson's review
3.0
This leaned a little too far into the academic for what I was expecting and was craving (pun intended). While I appreciate the historical context, I really wanted a deeper dive into the foods and recipes.
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