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Salt: A World History, by Mark Kurlansky
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Homer called salt a divine substance. Plato described it as especially dear to the gods. Today we take salt for granted, a common, inexpensive substance that seasons food or clears ice from roads, a word used casually in expressions ("salt of the earth," take it with a grain of salt") without appreciating their deeper meaning. However, as Mark Kurlansky so brilliantly relates in his world- encompassing new book, salt―the only rock we eat―has shaped civilization from the very beginning. Its story is a glittering, often surprising part of the history of mankind.
Until about 100 years ago, when modern chemistry and geology revealed how prevalent it is, salt was one of the most sought-after commodities, and no wonder, for without it humans and animals could not live. Salt has often been considered so valuable that it served as currency, and it is still exchanged as such in places today. Demand for salt established the earliest trade routes, across unknown oceans and the remotest of deserts: the city of Jericho was founded almost 10,000 years ago as a salt trading center. Because of its worth, salt has provoked and financed some wars, and been a strategic element in others, such as the American Revolution and the Civil War. Salt taxes secured empires across Europe and Asia and have also inspired revolution (Gandhi's salt march in 1930 began the overthrow of British rule in India); indeed, salt has been central to the age-old debate about the rights of government to tax and control economies.
The story of salt encompasses fields as disparate as engineering, religion, and food, all of which Kurlansky richly explores. Few endeavors have inspired more ingenuity than salt making, from the natural gas furnaces of ancient China to the drilling techniques that led to the age of petroleum, and salt revenues have funded some of the greatest public works in history, including the Erie Canal, and even cities (Syracuse, New York). Salt's ability to preserve and to sustain life has made it a metaphorical symbol in all religions. Just as significantly, salt has shaped the history of foods like cheese, sauerkraut, olives, and more, and Kurlansky, an award-winning food writer, conveys how they have in turn molded civilization and eating habits the world over.
Salt is veined with colorful characters, from Li Bing, the Chinese bureaucrat who built the world's first dam in 250 BC, to Pattillo Higgins and Anthony Lucas who, ignoring the advice of geologists, drilled an east Texas salt dome in 1901 and discovered an oil reserve so large it gave birth to the age of petroleum. From the sinking salt towns of Cheshire in England to the celebrated salt mine on Avery Island in Louisiana; from the remotest islands in the Caribbean where roads are made of salt to rural Sichaun province, where the last home-made soya sauce is made, Mark Kurlansky has produced a kaleidoscope of history, a multi-layered masterpiece that blends economic, scientific, political, religious, and culinary records into a rich and memorable tale.
- Sales Rank: #128801 in Books
- Brand: Brand: Walker n Company
- Published on: 2002-01-01
- Released on: 2002-01-01
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: .33" h x 1.65" w x 5.86" l,
- Binding: Hardcover
- 484 pages
- Used Book in Good Condition
From Publishers Weekly
Only Kurlansky, winner of the James Beard Award for Excellence in Food Writing for Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World, could woo readers toward such an off-beat topic. Yet salt, Kurlansky asserts, has "shaped civilization." Although now taken for granted, these square crystals are not only of practical use, but over the ages have symbolized fertility (it is, after all, the root of the word "salacious") and lasting covenants, and have been used in magical charms. Called a "divine substance" by Homer, salt is an essential part of the human body, was one of the first international commodities and was often used as currency throughout the developing world. Kurlansky traces the history of salt's influences from prehistoric China and ancient Africa (in Egypt they made mummies using salt) to Europe (in 12th-century Provence, France, salt merchants built "a system of solar evaporation ponds") and the Americas, through chapters with intriguing titles like "A Discourse on Salt, Cadavers and Pungent Sauces." The book is populated with characters as diverse as frozen-food giant Clarence Birdseye; Gandhi, who broke the British salt law that forbade salt production in India because it outdid the British salt trade; and New York City's sturgeon king, Barney Greengrass. Throughout his engaging, well-researched history, Kurlansky sprinkles witty asides and amusing anecdotes. A piquant blend of the historic, political, commercial, scientific and culinary, the book is sure to entertain as well as educate. Pierre Laszlo's Salt: Grain of Life (Forecasts, Aug. 6) got to the finish line first but doesn't compare to this artful narrative. 15 recipes, 4o illus., 7 maps.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
In his latest work, Kurlansky (Cod, The Basque History of the World) is in command of every facet of his topic, and he conveys his knowledge in a readable, easy style. Deftly leading readers around the world and across cultures and centuries, he takes an inexpensive, mundane item and shows how it has influenced and affected wars, cultures, governments, religions, societies, economies, cooking (there are a few recipes), and foods. In addition, he provides information on the chemistry, geology, mining, refining, and production of salt, again across cultures, continents, and time periods. The 26 chapters flow in chronological order, and the cast of characters includes fishermen, kings, Native Americans, and even Gandhi. An entertaining, informative read, this is highly recommended for all collections. [For another book on the topic, see Pierre Laszlo's more esoteric Salt: Grain of Life, LJ 7/01; other recent micro-histories include Joseph Amato's Dust, Mort Rosenblum's Olive, and Tom Vanderbilt's The Sneaker Book. Ed.] Michael D. Cramer, Raleigh, N.
- Michael D. Cramer, Raleigh, NC
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
*Starred Review* Kurlansky thinks big. First, there was Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World (1997), then The Basque History of the World (1999), and now, the world history of a subject bigger than one of the most important food commodities in the West, bigger than the oldest extant European culture--that culinary sine qua non, salt. Of course, salt is necessary for life itself; living bodies eliminate it, and without replenishment by ingestion, humans and other animals soon die, which is why animal trails lead to salt licks, and the first human paths did, too. Moreover, salt is a dandy preservative of meat, vegetables, and, as the ancient Egyptians knew, corpses. Homo faber figured out how to get salt out of brine, a discovery that increased the number of places people could prosper. Still, though salt is a very common substance, it is not always easily accessible, and weather and climate can make extraction from brine impractical. Hence, salt became the basis of wealth for communities, principalities, and empires, even after the invention of refrigeration and the diagnosis of hypertension. This is the big story Kurlansky unfolds in chapters that proceed from time immemorial to the present and cover such specific topics as "Salt's Salad Days" in ancient Rome; the "Nordic Dream" of enough salt for all Scandinavia's herring, not to mention lakrits (salted licorice); how, just as oil won the Big One, salt largely won the War between the States; and why, when Gandhi really got down to persuading the British out of India, he started with a "salt march." Tasty, very tasty! Ray Olson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Most helpful customer reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful.
incredibly slow read
By Wyn
I picked this book up thinking it would be along the lines of The Edible History of Humanity or The History of the World in 6 Glasses, both by Tom Standage. I couldn't have been more wrong. Where those two books had a clear timeline, this book seemed to jump in ways that seem random. The first section examines salt production in the old world of the China, Egypt and Africa and Ancient Rome. It logically pairs the salt production with its use in food preservation. The second section is the new world of Europe, North America (evidently there isn't salt in South America) and Scandinavia. The third section is devoted towards modern production (think Industrial Revolution and forward). In this third section the geography is more varied than before. It also highlights modern production of salt including the addition of Iodine to commercial salt.
In all three sections, there is a tendency to lose momentum repeatedly in the same chapter. The text is punctuated with recipes involving salts. One or two of these interludes per section might have been interesting; one or two per chapter is somewhat annoying. I also felt that the in depth but somewhat (at times) confusing descriptions of salt production methods were more distracting than helpful.
The book does try to encompass major events, such as the French Revolution and British colonialism in India and China, through what I like to call the salt filter. How did taxation or the availability of salt affect events? The book brings a broader perspective on the French revolution even to the politics of the Indian independence movement. I felt that this salt filter was sometimes applied a little too heavily and discounted other driving factors behind unrest, revolution and how a society functioned.
The author tended to get caught in trends of salt use and then expanded upon them ad nauseum. It was interesting to learn about the fishery industry that until recently was heavily interdependent on the salt trade. I sometimes felt I was reading a history of fishing more than salt, especially during the second section.
There was only a cursory mention of the chemical nature of salt. It felt more like the author felt he had to include something and did some quick research without actually understanding the chemistry behind the formation of salt. The author briefly mentions that scientists aren't exactly sure what caused salt formations to appear as they did but never offered any of the current theories. This might be my scientific background speaking, but I really wasn't impressed with how little chemical explanation was found in this book. I also feel that the author could have gone into why salt is an important mineral in the human diet. He often noted this without any explanation.
Despite my very pointed criticisms, I still feel that this was a book that was worth reading. The writing style was mediocre at best, but you felt the author had an unhealthy obsession with salt. I think that this obsession both hurt and aided the finished book. There were details in there that no other human would think to research which resulted in both interesting and terribly boring passages. This is far from light reading even by my twisted standards (I read biographies and science texts for fun.)
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
EXCELLENT!
By Fredrick Upchurch
One of my neices in college recommeded this book. I've read it twice as I usually do when the book is as good as this one.
If you like wide-ranging and well-written books such as those written by Jared Diamond, you'll love this book. I've enjoyed reading, especially history all my life, and this book is the reason why: I learned a lot I didn't know.
I certainly never realized that salt has been critical to human existence for thousands of years. From prehistoric times, the easily obtainable salt supply was far more limited than now, and salt sources were often the basis of human settlements word-wide throughout history until only recently.
The book is never tedious or boring. Reading the book showed me (once again) that a well-written history book can be a fascinating enjoyment.
FEU
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
Highly recommended. I have already ordered out another Mark Kurlansky book. Can't wait.
By Andy McKinney
With so many other reviews I will keep this short......Who in the world could make such a dry subject so interesting, entertaining and informative? Only Mark Kurlansky. Kurlansky has a natural, easy and fluid flow to his words that make him a joy to read. This work spans the years from the very first know salt works to the modern day efforts of Leslie and Morton. He spends a lot of time with the makers of Tabasco on Avery Island La. because that story is so darn interesting-and the product is familiar to us all. It turns out that the hot sauce maker is co-located with an underground pillar of salt that might be 40,000 feet deep. And don't let me get started on the complexities of Chinese cooking, not to say the inventiveness of Chinese salt manufacturers.
This is an excellent story from a top flight writer.
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