Food in Time and Place - by Paul Freedman & Joyce E Chaplin & Ken Albala

About the Book

"Food and cuisine are important subjects for historians across many areas of study. Food is after all one of the most basic human needs and a foundational part of social and cultural histories. Such topics as famines, food supply, nutrition, and public health are addressed by historians throughout every era and spanning every nation. Food in Time and Place delivers an unprecedented review of the state of historical research on food, endorsed by the American Historical Association, providing readers with geographically, chronologically, and topically broad understanding of food cultures--from ancient Mediterranean and medieval societies to France and its domination of haute cuisine. Teachers, students, and scholars in food history will appreciate coverage of different thematic concerns, such as transfers of crops, conquest, colonization, immigration, and modern forms of globalization."--

Book Synopsis

Food and cuisine are important subjects for historians across many areas of study. Food, after all, is one of the most basic human needs and a foundational part of social and cultural histories. Such topics as famines, food supply, nutrition, and public health are addressed by historians specializing in every era and every nation.

Food in Time and Place delivers an unprecedented review of the state of historical research on food, endorsed by the American Historical Association, providing readers with a geographically, chronologically, and topically broad understanding of food cultures--from ancient Mediterranean and medieval societies to France and its domination of haute cuisine. Teachers, students, and scholars in food history will appreciate coverage of different thematic concerns, such as transfers of crops, conquest, colonization, immigration, and modern forms of globalization.

From the Back Cover

"There is no better introduction to the current vigorous state of food history, no better defense of its interest and intellectual legitimacy, and no better demonstration of how odd it is that the subject needs a defense."--Steven Shapin, Franklin L. Ford Research Professor, History of Science, Harvard University

"This book is a treasure. Its clear and lively chapters on global food history instantly explain why food has become an essential entry point into the most intellectually challenging problems of our time. Any reader interested in the role of food in history, culture, or politics, the production or consumption of food, or the teaching of critical thinking will find this book hard to put down."--Marion Nestle, Professor, New York University, and author of Food Politics

Review Quotes

"Any remaining doubts about the legitimacy of food history are put to rest by this edited volume."--A. B. Audant "CHOICE" (5/1/2015 12:00:00 AM)

About the Author

Paul Freedman is the Chester D. Tripp Professor of History at Yale University. He is the author of Out of the East: Spices and the Medieval Imagination and editor of Food: The History of Taste.

Joyce E. Chaplin is the James Duncan Phillips Professor of Early American History at Harvard University. Her publications include Round about the Earth: Circumnavigation from Magellan to Orbit and Benjamin Franklin's Political Arithmetic: A Materialist View of Humanity.

Ken Albala is Professor of History at the University of the Pacific. He is the author of more than a dozen books, including Eating Right in the Renaissance; Beans: A History; The Banquet; and The Lost Art of Real Cooking.