Nonfiction Review: Food Fight: A Mouthwater History of Who Ate What and Why Through the Ages by Tanya Steel

Title: Food Fight: A Mouthwatering History of Who Ate What and Why Through the Ages
Author: Tanya Steel
Copy Obtained: From publisher

About the Book from Goodreads
Grab your knife and fork and get ready to dig into human history through the lens of food and the struggle to acquire it with award-winning celebrity food editor and author Tanya Steel. This book includes 30 kid-tested and approved recipes inside!

Did you know that Christopher Columbus set out on his most famous voyage in search not of the new world, but cinnamon? Or that rich people in the Middle Ages served flaming peacocks and spun sugar castles to their lucky dinner party guests? Did you ever wonder why M&Ms were invented? (Hint: That candy coating isn't just for decoration!) The quest for food has inspired all kinds of adventures and misadventures around the world, and this book explores the wildest and wackiest of them all, from prehistoric times through modern day.

Hungry readers can go on a finger-licking romp through the ages to discover the origins of today's common foods, yucky habits of yore, marvelous inventions that changed the way we ate and cooked, and the weirdest menus on record. Amazing stats and fast food facts are featured throughout, along with 30 original recipes, each specific to a particular time and place. So, if you are curious about how food shaped global history and culture, put this book on the menu.

One sentence review: Food.  Fights.  History.  Great recipe (yes, yes I did!)

Best for readers who: Love nonfiction and love learning about the unique parts of history. 

Best Stick-with-You Image: Some of the descriptions of historical food.  So different from now! 

Library Thoughts: I already have in the library and kids wanted it before it was even ready to go! 

National Geographic for Kids always does a good job with the books they put out.  This one is no exception.  From the color graphics to interesting facts, it's a book that teaches kids a part of history we don't always think about.  The organization is great and easy to follow, and the pictures just add to the understanding and fun.  I've had several kids already check this book out, and we haven't had it for long.  Our FACS teacher has also checked it out to look at and share as they start to move into their Foods unit.  As I continue to build a nonfiction section that is filled with high-interest books, this book is at the top of the list.  I know it's one that will be checked out a lot! But not just checked out and looked at - also learned from.  And that is what I appreciate - books that pull kids in AND teach them something.  Well done!