This book leaves no stone unturned when it comes to explaining how the American oyster was harvested, shucked, eaten, consumed until nearly extinct, and finally, cultivated and grown. The story begins in pre-colonial New York, where the Hudson Bay was teeming with oysters growing in their beds and were harvested by Native Americans who threw the shells into piles called "middens," which are still being discovered to this day. I was utterly fascinated by the chapters on 19th century New York and its famed oyster shuckers. By a strange coincidence, I shucked oysters myself this year for the first time, and now I know why rapid fire oyster shucking is such a true test of dexterity.
Like most of these "explore the topic to the finest detail" books, they contain tidbits that contradict what you thought you knew about the topic all your life. I wasn't experienced on oysters at all before I read this book, but I was surprised to find that nobody else seems to know what they're talking about, either. Kurlansky did some serious debunking.
Not every one of his books is as riveting as this one, but I blame the topics, not the author's ability. For some reason, this book just hooked me from page one and I couldn't put it down. If you decide to pick it up, I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I did.
Check it out! I enjoyed it.
✌✌✌
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