Rent The Big Oyster: History on the Half Shell

Synopsis

As he did previously in COD: A BIOGRAPHY OF THE FISH THAT CHANGED THE WORLD and in SALT: A WORLD HISTORY, historian Mark Kurlansky takes a unique, and rewarding, entry-point into the past, this time relating the rich social history of New York City through its once-plentiful denizen of the deep, the oyster. Manhattan's harbor was once ideal for spawning oysters, and the Indians included them in their diet as did the settlers who came later. Kurlansky has done extensive research, and he spins tales of both rich and poor, as well as the famous (including, among others, Charles Dickens). Local saloons and exclusive restaurants--Delmonico's and Grand Central Station's Oyster Bar, for example--provided oysters in large quantities and in a variety of dishes. In THE BIG OYSTER Kurlansky captures New York City in its heyday, before the pollution of the Hudson River ended the reign of the mollusk.

View descriptions at Amazon.com