Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World - Hardcover

Mark Kurlansky

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0224051040 ISBN 13: 9780224051040

Publisher: Jonathan Cape Ltd, 1998

Synopsis

The Cod. Wars have been fought over it, revolutions have been triggered by it, national diets have been based on it, economies and livelihoods have depended on it. To the millions it has sustained, it has been a treasure more precious that gold. This book spans 1,000 years and four continents. From the Vikings to Clarence Birdseye, Mark Kurlansky introduces the explorers, merchants, writers, chefs and fisherman, whose lives have been interwoven with this prolific fish. He chronicles the cod wars of the 16th and 20th centuries. He blends in recipes and lore from the Middle Ages to the present. In a story that brings world history and human passions into captivating focus, he shows how the most profitable fish in history is today faced with extinction.

About this title

Review

You probably enjoy eating codfish, but reading about them? Mark Kurlansky has written a fabulous book--well worth your time--about a fish that probably has mattered more in human history than any other. The cod helped inspire the discovery and exploration of North America. It had a profound impact upon the economic development of New England and eastern Canada from the earliest times. Today, however, overfishing is a constant threat. Kurlansky sprinkles his well-written and occasionally humorous history with interesting asides on the possible origin of the word codpiece and dozens of fish recipes. Sometimes a book on an offbeat or neglected subject really makes the grade. This is one of them.

About the Author

Mark Kurlansky is the author of The Basque History of the World; the New York Times bestseller Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World; A Chosen Few: The Resurrection of European Jewry; and A Continent of Islands: Searching for the Caribbean Destiny. During the past twenty years he has spent a great deal of time in the Caribbean, including seven years as the Caribbean correspondent for the Chicago Tribune, and has written numerous works of short fiction and journalism about the region. He lives in New York City.

Richard M. Davidson is Chair of the Old Testament Department at Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary at Andrews University in Berrien Springs, MI and J.N. Andrews Professor of Old Testament Interpretation.

Edition details

• Publisher: Jonathan Cape Ltd
• Publication date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0224051040
• ISBN 13: 9780224051040
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 304