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The Food of a Younger Land by Mark Kurlansky

The Food of a Younger Land

A portrait of American food from the lost WPA files

A portrait of American food from the lost WPA files

By Mark Kurlansky

By Mark Kurlansky

By Mark Kurlansky

By Mark Kurlansky

Best Seller
Paperback $17.00

Apr 06, 2010 | ISBN 9781594484575

Ebook $4.99

May 14, 2009 | ISBN 9781101057124

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    The Food of a Younger Land by Mark Kurlansky
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    Apr 06, 2010 | ISBN 9781594484575

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    About The Food of a Younger Land

    Recommended by Chef José Andrés on The Drew Barrymore Show!

    A portrait of American food–before the national highway system, before chain restaurants, and before frozen food, when the nation’s food was seasonal, regional, and traditional–from the lost WPA files.


    From the New York Times bestselling author who “powerfully demonstrates the defining role food plays in history and culture” (Atlanta Journal-Constitution).

    In the throes of the Great Depression, a make-work initiative for authors-called “America Eats”-was created by the WPA to chronicle the eating habits, traditions, and struggles of local Americans. Mark Kurlansky, author of Salt and Cod, unearths this forgotten literary treasure, chronicling a bygone era when Americans had never heard of fast food or grocery superstores. Kurlansky brings together the WPA contributions-featuring New York automats and Georgia Coca-Cola parties, Maine lobsters and Montana beaver tails-and brilliantly showcases them with authentic recipes, anecdotes, and photographs.

    About The Food of a Younger Land

    Recommended by Chef José Andrés on The Drew Barrymore Show!

    A remarkable portrait of American food before World War II, presented by the New York Times-bestselling author of Cod and Salt.

    Award-winning New York Times-bestselling author Mark Kurlansky takes us back to the food and eating habits of a younger America: Before the national highway system brought the country closer together; before chain restaurants imposed uniformity and low quality; and before the Frigidaire meant frozen food in mass quantities, the nation’s food was seasonal, regional, and traditional. It helped form the distinct character, attitudes, and customs of those who ate it.

    In the 1930s, with the country gripped by the Great Depression and millions of Americans struggling to get by, FDR created the Federal Writers’ Project under the New Deal as a make-work program for artists and authors. A number of writers, including Zora Neale Hurston, Eudora Welty, and Nelson Algren, were dispatched all across America to chronicle the eating habits, traditions, and struggles of local people. The project, called “America Eats,” was abandoned in the early 1940s because of the World War and never completed.

    The Food of a Younger Land unearths this forgotten literary and historical treasure and brings it to exuberant life. Mark Kurlansky’s brilliant book captures these remarkable stories, and combined with authentic recipes, anecdotes, photos, and his own musings and analysis, evokes a bygone era when Americans had never heard of fast food and the grocery superstore was a thing of the future. Kurlansky serves as a guide to this hearty and poignant look at the country’s roots.

    From New York automats to Georgia Coca-Cola parties, from Arkansas possum-eating clubs to Puget Sound salmon feasts, from Choctaw funerals to South Carolina barbecues, the WPA writers found Americans in their regional niches and eating an enormous diversity of meals. From Mississippi chittlins to Indiana persimmon puddings, Maine lobsters, and Montana beavertails, they recorded the curiosities, commonalities, and communities of American food.

    Also by Mark Kurlansky

    Salmon
    City Beasts
    Frozen in Time
    The Cod's Tale
    The Story of Salt
    See all books by Mark Kurlansky

    Also by Mark Kurlansky

    Salmon
    City Beasts
    Frozen in Time
    The Cod's Tale
    The Story of Salt
    See all books by Mark Kurlansky

    About Mark Kurlansky

    Mark Kurlansky is the New York Times bestselling author of many books, including The Food of a Younger Land; Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World; Salt: A World History; 1968: The Year That Rocked the World; The Big Oyster: History on the… More about Mark Kurlansky

    About Mark Kurlansky

    Mark Kurlansky is the New York Times bestselling author of many books, including The Food of a Younger Land; Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World; Salt: A World History; 1968: The Year That Rocked the World; The Big Oyster: History on the… More about Mark Kurlansky

    Product Details

    Category: Cooking Methods | U.S. History

    Paperback | $17.00
    Published by Riverhead Books
    Apr 06, 2010 | 480 Pages | 5-1/16 x 7-3/4 | ISBN 9781594484575

    Category: Cooking Methods | U.S. History

    Ebook | $4.99
    Published by Riverhead Books
    May 14, 2009 | 480 Pages | ISBN 9781101057124

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