The Big Oyster: History on the Half Shell - Mark Kurlansky

\nPart treatise, part miscellany, unfailingly entertaining. \n-The New York Times \nA small pearl of a book . . . a great tale of the growth of a modern city as seen through the rise and fall of the lowly oyster. \n-Rocky Mountain News \n \nAward-winning author Mark Kurlansky tells the remarkable story of New York by following the trajectory of one of its most fascinating inhabitants-the oyster. \nFor centuries New York was famous for this particular shellfish, which until the early 1900s played such a dominant a role in the city's life that the abundant bivalves were Gotham's most celebrated export, a staple food for all classes, and a natural filtration system for the city's congested waterways. \n \nFilled with cultural, historical, and culinary insight-along with historic recipes, maps, drawings, and photos-this dynamic narrative sweeps readers from the seventeenth-century founding of New York to the death of its oyster beds and the rise of America's environmentalist movement, from the oyster cellars of the rough-and-tumble Five Points slums to Manhattan's Gilded Age dining chambers. With The Big Oyster, Mark Kurlansky serves up history at its most engrossing, entertaining, and delicious. \n \nSuffused with Kurlansky's] pleasure in exploring the city across ground that hasn't already been covered with other writers' footprints. \n-Los Angeles Times Book Review \n \nFascinating stuff . . . Kurlansky] has a keen eye for odd facts and natural detail. \n-The Wall Street Journal \n \nKurlansky packs his breezy book with terrific anecdotes. \n-Entertainment Weekly \n \nMagnificent . . . a towering accomplishment. \n-Associated Press \n\n