A Bite-Sized History of France: Delicious, Gastronomic Tales of Revolution, War, and Enlightenment by Stephane Henaut

A Bite-Sized History of France: Delicious, Gastronomic Tales of Revolution, War, and Enlightenment Reviews

• 
  The Sassy Bookworm

  
  
  I have been reading this book for a little over a week now. I finally finished it last night, and I enjoyed it quite a lot. It isn't the type of book you sit down and read cover to cover, but it works well as an in between type of read. It was packed full of interesting facts and anecdotes about the history of France and its gastronomy. From Roquefort cheese to the wines of Bordeaux (and everything in between). It was a delightful read and one that made me want to rent a car and take a foodie trip tout suite!
  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  
• 
  Bilal Y.

  İÇİNDEKİLER
  
  Giriş.
  1. Atalarımız Galyalılar
  2. Böbrek Bakiresi .......
  3. Tabaktaki Barbarlar.
  4. Oburluğa Övgü.
  5. Arkada Bırakılanlar: Poitou'nun Keçileri
  6. En Tatlı Kral.............
  7. Denizden Geldiler.
  8. Feodal Yemek
  9. Keşişler ve İnsanlar.
  10. Erik Savaşları.............
  11. Elden Kaçan Şarap....
  12. Vejetaryen Sapkınlık..
  13. Papa Kırmızısı.....
  14. Guérande'ın Beyaz Altını.
  15. Kara Prens Efsanesi
  16. Dört Hırsız Sirkesi .....
  17. İmparatorların ve Deli Kralların Peyniri..
  18. La Dame de Beauté ve Mantarın Gizemi
  19. Rönesans Meyveleri .............
  20. Ana Soslar.
  21. Fetih ve Çikolata .........
  22. Madame Serpent'in Yemek Tarihine Katkıları
  23. Her Tencerede Bir Tavuk.
  27. Hilal Anlaşmazlığı
  28. Savaş ve Bezelye
  29. Şeytanın Şarabı........ .211
  30. Yemeğe Aydınlanmaa Bir Yaklaşım .220
  31. Kafelerdeki Devrim. .225
  32. Pain d'Égalité .233
  33. Patates Propagandası .240
  34. Piramit Provokasyonu .248
  35. Mevsimleri Fesheden Adam. 256
  36. Beşinci Krep. .261
  37. Peynirlerin Kralı .266
  38. Devrim Yaratan Bir Ziyafet .271
  39. İstiridye Ekspresi'nin Sonu ..280
  40. Şişenin İçindeki Vahiy .289
  41. Yeşil Peri'nin Laneti.
  42. Kuşatma Gastronomisi
  43. Fistik Mirası......... .314
  44. Güneş Yolunda Boğazına Düşkün Gezginler .321
  45. Kötü Gün Dostu....... .328
  46. Bir İsyan ve Gülen Bir İnek
  47. "Ekmek, Barış ve Özgürlük": Sosyalist Baget 342
  48. Kuskus: İmparatorluğun Asimilasyonu (ya da Tersi). 349
  49. Unutulan Sebzeler. .360
  50. Rahip Kir Direnişe Katılır. .368
  51. Fransa ve Birleşik Devletler: Özgürlükten Hiddete
• 
  Lama Hussein

  لنتفق على أن الكتاب جيد ومتعوب عليه
  أحببت الإشارة إلى العنصرية ضد المسلمين، وليس هذه فقط بل موضوعية الكتاب بشكل عام وحرصهم على عدم تغطية الأمور السيئة
  مثلا، الشوكولاتة رخيصة بسبب العمالة التي تقترب من حد السخرة
  
  لكن مت من الملل ولا أدري لم
  أعني حين أفكر فيه هو مكتوب جيدا. ربما لأنه كان يميل إلى التأريخ أكثر من الطعام
  يختار أكلة، يبدأ بوصف الظروف التاريخية التي نشأت فيها ويسترسل وكأنه تاريخ عادي مع الإشارة إلى الطعام، أو كأنه نسي موضوع الكتاب. لكن هذا مبرر صحيح؟ لفهم أصول الأكلات.
  لهذا أقول لا أدري لم لم يعجبني
  
  وربما لأنه لم يثر شهيتي، وهذا أكبر فشل لكتاب عن الأكل حتى ولو كان في التاريخ
• 
  Rosemary Standeven

  I love French food (actually I love food full-stop), I love visiting France, and I am really interested in history, so this book was made for me. It is a staggering tour de force covering 2500 years of French history from the pre-Roman Gauls to the present day, showing the influence historical events had on the eating habits and cuisine of the time, and how they in turn influenced history. The authors’ aim is to show “how ludicrous it actually is to claim there is a “pure” and unchanging French cuisine”, and they spend a lot of time pointing out how crude, bigoted and plain wrong groups like the Front Nationale are claiming that there exists quintessential French Food and eating habits, unsullied by foreign hands. “Many elements believed to be ineffably French—the wines and liqueurs, the pastries and chocolates, the flavors of Provence—are not native to France but arrived upon its shores over the centuries and were gradually absorbed”.
  There is so much information in this book, and so many interesting facts to note down, but it never gets boring. The narrative style is very readable and witty, so you don’t feel weighed down by it all, and keep wanting to read more and more.
  There are introductions to great French leaders such as Charlemagne (responsible for the concept of Europe, and the proliferation of French honeymaking), Henry IV, Louis XIV, Napoleon and Charles de Gaulle, and how they used food to define their eras.
  Over the centuries food became a signifier of differences in class (“Food became more than just a marker of class—it was also used to justify the rule of one class over another. As certain foods became imbued with a sense of nobility and good health, others came to be seen as base and unhealthy, and it seemed only natural that those who consumed the former should enjoy an exalted position over the latter”); in religion (“the eating of forbidden foods was a sure marker of religious deviance”); in philosophy; in politics and as a flag of patriotism and nationalism.
  The book charts the change as “the spicy-acidic flavors of the medieval era were supplanted by the cream, butter, and herb triumvirate associated with modern French cuisine”, through the gourmet (gourmand) culinary revolution to nouvelle cuisine and McDonalds.
  It deals with the advent of restaurants (as the Middle Ages food guild sales privileges were curtailed), cafés (with their social as well as culinary functions) and bistros, and the rise of the ubiquitous baguette (actually only popular since the 1920s!).
  Scientific breakthroughs are discussed that leading to increased food preservation and availability, such as Appert’s bottling (precursor of canning), and Louis Pasteur’s work on improving wine production, that lead to huge leaps forward in the field of human health.
  Banquets were employed to support French diplomacy: “Talleyrand’s elegant dinners were intended to make his counterparts more receptive to his suggestions, but he also used them as a sort of culinary espionage tool. Knowing that fancy food and wine often loosened tongues, he instructed his service staff to listen in on his guests’ conversations and report details back to him”, and later to foment revolution as “the most effective way for critics of the regime to legally meet and sustain their cause”.
  The importance of cheeses (especially Camembert and Brie), of regional wines and champagne, to the French identity cannot be underemphasised. Other alcoholic drinks such as brandy, cognac, calvados, absinthe and Kir also have their part and historical imprint.
  France’s food has been moulded by slavery, colonialism and war. The slave and sugar trades were predominantly routed through Nantes. The warping of Senegalese agriculture to provide peanut oil to France, used in soap manufacture and “supplanting olive oil in dressings and driving a new taste for fried foods”. The North Africans and Pied Noirs brought couscous, now a French staple.
  I have travelled a lot in France, and tried so many local regional dishes, but this book shows that I have barely scratched the surface. I now have a huge list of places to visit, things to eat – enough to keep me busy and very well entertained for many years to come. I read this book on my Kindle, but loved it so much that I have bought two hard copies – one for myself, and one for my mother-in-law (another Francophile). I would recommend this book to anyone who likes food and/or history and/or travel and/or France. Something for everyone.
  I received this copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
  
• 
  Camelia Rose

  The well-known phrase “you are what you eat” first appeared in a book called Physiologie du Gout, ou Medetations de Gastronomie Transcendante (translation: Physiology of Taste, or Meditations of Transcendent Gastronomy), in which French author Anthelme Brillat-Savarin wrote: “tell me what you eat and I will tell you what your are.”
  
  Can you tell the history of an entire country by food eaten by its many groups of people throughout the ages? The author Stephane Henaut certainly thinks so. What we eat can reveal not only a great deal of our shared history, but also the division and inequality that fractures our society.
  
  The book consists of 52 “bites”, each “bite” is a small chapter about a certain food in a certain time and place. A lot of anecdotes. What is the link between crepes and Napoleon’s doomed invasion of Russia? Is couscous French? Why are French fries French fries? I get to know the origin of cooking in butter, Roquefort cheese, Cognac, Kir cocktail, Burgundy wine, and many many more.
  
  The book is an easy, fun read. It has doubled the length of my already long list of French dishes to try and places to visit.
  
  A painting of Antoine-Augustin Parmentier, the 18th century French pharmacist who persuaded French people to eat potato:
  
  
• 
  David

  “Stepping out on your other book, eh?” was the response of the Long-Suffering Wife (LSW) when I told her that I was taking a summertime break from my
  difficult and serious Important Modern Novel to have a reading fling with this sweet young thing from France.
  
  It's not what it looks like, I swear.
  
  My relationship will this celebration of Gallic gustatory delights and historical quirks was very cerebral and purely platonic. Really. For example, this book made much clearer who Eleanor of Aquitaine was and why I should care, and also made clear why being a vegetarian and a heretic at the same time is an unfortunate set of lifestyle choices. Loads of practical information, see?
  
  The authors, American wife and French husband, do a charming in-person presentation about this book. If you are fortunate enough to live in a place where they appear, swing around to your local independent bookstore (
  as I did on Bastille Day 2018) and give a listen. It will likely be both the most cheerful and the most educational thing you will do that week. She is a historian, he is a fancy chef and cheese expert. They live in France now. He talks first about the joint life experience that led to the book. She then does the heavy lifting on the history. If you possess poorly-suppressed
  Tom Ripley-like tendencies, you may fantasize about you and your LSW stealing the authors' enviable lives. Or so I've heard.
  
  If you cannot see them in person, get a 98-second taste (see what I did there?) of the husband talking French bread via YouTube
  here.
  
  If you were converting this book into a recipe, you might say it is two parts history to one part gastronomy, which is pretty close to my definition of a perfect read, but your milage may vary. It proceeds chronologically from pre-Roman times. Each chapter is an era. Each era is associated with a food, and the food and the era are associated with a historical figure. Sometimes the chapter starts with a description of the accepted canned myth surrounding the era/figure/food/region, which is then exploded and replaced with a better-research version of the story. As is often the case, the real story is more interesting than the accepted myth.
  
  I think this book will be more enjoyable if you can remember French and European history in broad outline, but you do not need to be an expert.
  
  The book begins and ends with a dressing down of the French political movement until recently called the National Front, and especially its attempts to use food as a political symbol and weapon. While doing this, the authors, I feel, make an unspoken nod of recognition to Marxist historian Eric Hobsbawm and like-minded individuals, who have successfully (in my sight) labored to show that the great symbols of modern nationhood – which are being appropriated and misused by the repulsive nationalists all over the globe today – are not actually great dignified traditions of ancient lineage, but relatively new practices, often cribbed from other cultures.
  
  In summary, reading this book is a deeply enjoyable affair, even if, in the end, you must abandon your summer fantasy of throwing over your dreary Important Modern Novel and taking off for France, where you will improve your disposition by ignoring politics completely and reading exclusively about cheese.
• 
  Lady Alexandrine

  The more I read this book the more hungry I got :) Also, it was impossible to read this book without a glass of French wine.
  
  
  via Wikimedia commons
  
  I have a confession to make: while I read this book I ate unprecedented amounts of French cheeses: Brie, Camembert and a variety of blue cheeses. The temptation was too great. Fortunately, I wasn’t on a diet, but if you are on a diet or plan one you should stay away from this book!
  
  This is a history of France told from the point of view of a total gourmand especially passionate about French cheeses. It is obvious that it is destined for American audience. There are some parts describing the history of France and of the world that are known well to every pupil at primary school in Europe, but there are also not so very well-known historical events and historical figures described. For example, I haven’t heard before about Claude, who was the first wife of king of France Francis I and a plum was named after her. There are also some interesting anecdotes, which may or may not be true, some of them are really charming stories. I will never look the same at the laughing cow on the label. I learned from this book of the origins of brandy and cognac.
  
  There are interesting facts about times when different foreign products were introduced to French cuisine and their initial reception. For example, chocolate and potatoes at the beginning were a total fail and no one wanted to consume them. Chocolate was too bitter in its original form. Potatoes on the other hand were thought to be poisonous and only suitable for animals’ feed.
  The authors visited some famous places in France with delicious local dishes and recommended them to readers. Surely, I would like to visit some of these places and try the local specialties! I think, there could be more photographs in the book. More pictures of places and dishes would make the experience of reading even better.
  
  I am a bit disappointed that there was nothing about dishes with snails and frogs in this book. French cuisine with no mention of frogs and snails? How is that even possible ;) But anyway... I gave this book four stars for this reason and also because I think that the conclusion in this book was redundant. It made it look a little like a PhD thesis. Also the political commentary seemed unnecessary and intrusive. Every reader can reach his own conclusions, when given the historical facts.
  
  I received "A Bite-Sized History of France" from the publisher via NetGalley. I would like to thank the authors and the publisher for providing me with the advance reader copy of the book.
• 
  Caplayn

  Fransa tarihi ile ilgileniyorsanız memnun kalacağınız, fransız mutfağı ile ilgileniyorsanız sizi pek tatmin etmeyecek kitap. Yine de her şeye rağmen başarılı bir kitap.
• 
  Terry ~ Huntress of Erudition

  A fascinating way to learn about France and Paris in particular, is through it's culinary history.
  I really enjoyed the easy, conversational narrative this book has - it was never dry or full. Full of insightful commentary about pertinent events involving food and history. Highly recommended!
• 
  Randal White

  A fantastic way to learn history! Rather than another boring list of dates, people, and events, the authors take a completely different route. Use the deliciously wonderful foods of France to explain history!
  Why did the Romans consider the Germanic tribes barbarians? One big reason was because they cooked their food with butter, rather than olive oil! They also drank beer instead of wine. How uncouth!
  Did you know why soldiers called the Germans krauts? Because of their association with sauerkraut!
  Potatoes, honey, champagne, crepes....it's all in here, and tied to historical events.
  I only wish that I would have had this book when I was a student. How much more interesting history classes would have been!
• 
  Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance

  Travel back to the beginning and into present day with the history of France through its foods; this is the definitive book. Every chapter is a close look at a key event in French history along with the foodie consequences/side effects/highlights. It's absolutely fascinating. Of course, there are lots of chapters about wines and liquors, including Bordeaux, Chateauneuf-du-Pape, cognac, champagne ("the devil's wine"), and absinthe ("the curse of the green fairy"), as well as many of France's wonderful cheeses, plus all of France's iconic foods, but there are also intriguing chapters about salt, honey, peanuts, and sugar.
  
  If you have any interest in France and/or French foods and drinks, this is a must-read.
• 
  Margaret Sankey

  This is a fun book with short chapters digging in to the culinary history of France--linking the Muslim invasion of the 8th century with goat cheese, Louis Xiv and his fondness for oranges (not Dutch people, oranges), the French Revolution and bread riots, the olive oil/butter and chocolate/coffee lines of demarcation in early modern Europe, the mother sauces and Julia Child's friend Simca and her dynastic connection to making Benedictine (and her use of this knowledge to aid her family's WWII survival).
• 
  Emma

  After reading "A Bite-Sized History of France," I've decided all history books should be centered around gastronomy. The book is written in truly digestible chunks; each chapter is only around 3-5 pages long, each based around some aspect of French gastronomy - from the essential wines and cheeses to more obscure culinary staples and oddities from across France. In the process, it covers everything from the early Gauls and the arrival of the Romans to the present day in a mere 286 pages.
  
  "A Bite-Sized History of France" is also frank about the darker parts of French history, including colonialism, the slave trade, and the Crusades, and unabashedly stands up to the politicians who would use French gastronomy as a tool of their xenophobia.
  
  Francophiles, gastronomers, and activists alike will enjoy this history of France. Anyone's enjoyment will be greatly enhanced with a glass of French wine in hand.
• 
  Christina Dudley

  This was a fun book for history- and food-lovers alike. The French-and-American author couple go from pre-Roman times right up to the present, regaling us with lots of mini food histories, collisions of culture, and who-knew? moments.
  
  Food often served as class markers, nobles disdaining root vegetables in the Middle Ages, for instance, since that's what the peasants had to eat. At least they could plant a variety of root vegetables. By the 18th century, the poorest classes might get 95% of their daily calories from whole-grain bread--hence their furor when bread ran short.
  
  The Crusades introduced sugar to Europe. Louis XIV was autopsied at death and found to have a stomach "three times larger than that of a normal adult," into which he had shoveled astounding amounts of food. "J'ai la patate!" ("I've got the potato!") might be said by a French person feeling fine. Alternately, if he thought something only so-so, it might be "half fig, half grape" (mi-figue, mi-raisin).
  
  If you're looking for a book to give your French teacher or family Francophile, this would be a great choice.
  
  
• 
  Terry ~ Huntress of Erudition

  A fascinating way to learn about France and Paris in particular, is through it's culinary history.
  I really enjoyed the easy, conversational narrative this book has - it was never dry or full. Full of insightful commentary about pertinent events involving food and history. Highly recommended!
• 
  Shiloah

  So much great history and how it relates to French culture and food. I also learned a lot about the wines which I knew nothing about.
• 
  mish

  I loved this overview of french history!
  The conversational style of writing made it a very fun read and I now have so many recommendations of French towns to visit!
  
  It's been a good concurrent read with my French sociology class and I have much more of an appreciation for the nuance of French history - definitely not as homogenous as I expected it to be.
• 
  Tracy Rowan

  This is the sort of book that will get you up out of your chair to root around in the refrigerator for something really tasty to eat. It deals with bread, and cheese, and wine, of course. How could it not? But it also gives the reader an insight into how the potato came to be so loved in France, or what fruit excites the most anticipation in the summer (It's the plum. Who knew?)
  
  It is a history of France, seen through the lens of its culinary interests and obsessions.  We learn, for example, that Roquefort cheese is something very specific to France, and the chances of finding it in the US is slim.  Ditto French brie, which is apparently nothing like the brie we eat in the states. Much has to do with food regulations, some put in place out of (a sometimes mistaken) sense of public welfare, and others as punitive.
  
  The Iraq war "freedom fries" kerfuffle (definitely not our finest hour) is mentioned along with the information that since frites are actually Belgian, the French didn't really much care if we changed the name out of pique. No skin off their potatoes.  And in fairness, they're not immune to rebranding themselves. During the revolution, bakers were forced to create something known as pain d'egalite, or equality bread, which was to be eaten by both high and low alike.
  
  While not exhaustive, some of the later chapters failed to hold my full attention, suggesting that perhaps the historical survey of French eating habits might have been better served if it had been a course or two shorter.  Still, it's an amusing and informative book that will probably make you hungry.  Well worth a look.
• 
  Ayca Adenli

  Lezzetli Fransa Tarihi'ni çok severek okudum. Fransızların yemek kültürüne verdiği önemi neredeyse bir peynirin dahi olsa AOC standartlarında üretilmesi gerektiğini anlatan bir yapıt.
  Bir Fransız ile aynı masaya oturduğunuzda kestiğiniz peynir için bile sizi barbarlıkla suçlayabileceğini anlatan bir kitap. Bence Fransa'yı ziyaret etmeden her insanın okuması gereken eğlenceli tarihi güzel bir eser.
  İlgilenenlere tavsiye ederim.
• 
  Adrienne

  A week ago I listened to a podcast episode of "Stuff You Missed In History Class" on Marie-Antoine Carême, the first 'Celebrity Chef'. I learned so much about the history of cooking in France in the 30 minute episode and was wondering whether there was a book out there on this very topic. Fortuitously, I came across this book on Netgalley and devoured it in just a couple of days. I was not disappointed and I learned so much more about the history of France. The links between the political circumstances and gastronomy were well drawn by the authors and was fascinating reading.
  
  I highly recommend this book for history buffs and foodies - just try not to read it on an empty stomach. Maybe have a baguette, wine and cheese on hand.
• 
  Literary Redhead

  I love France, food and history, so A BITE-SIZED HISTORY OF FRANCE was a perfect read! Left my tummy hungry for French gastric delights but satiated by a great historical review. 5/5
  
  Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the review copy. Opinions are mine.
• 
  Ginger Hopper

  A really fascinating history of French foods and drinks. This book should be really slowly, with a glass of champagne and some fine French cheeses by your side. Salut!
• 
  Sarah Sinclair

  I would read this again; it is educational and fun. I now have a list of places in France I want to visit on a big food tour, as a ‘gastronomad’, a concept inspired by the Michelin tire company. Route nationale 7, or the modern roads which replaced it, here I come.
  
  The early chapters, covering later history, include origin stories of wines, cheeses, dishes etc. and are bite-sized histories, as the title implies. The second half of the book, covering more recent history, focuses more on political history than gastronomy, although ultimately weaves the two together. The role of revolution, war and colonialism in shaping diet is central.
  
  “War and conquest have always shaped the human diet” p115
  
  On France and the United States: “We alternately admire and despise each other; we celebrate our shared history of revolution and democracy while competing to best represent that tradition to the world. Each country is infused with the cultural by-products of the other, even as fear of contamination - whether by French bacteria or American consumerism - pollutes gastronomic exchange.” p282
  
  Some random notes I took, for my own future reference:
  -the Gauls invented the wooden barrel
  -balsamic vinegar ages in wooden barrels for months to years prior to consumption
  -French love pork “dans le couchon tout est bon”
  -Venantius Fortunatus : patron saint of male chefs & gourmands
  -Saint Radegund : patron saint of female chefs; friends in the 6th century
  -miel de sarrasin : buckwheat honey of darkest brown, specialty of Brittany
  -the Vikings brought the plant angelica from Scandinavia to Normandy
  -Benedictine : herbal liquor supposedly based on an old monastic recipe, includes spices from around the world
  -Ban des Vendanges: day local administration decides grape harvest can begin
  -quenelle de brochet: local speciality in Lyon; a type of fish dumpling made with pike from the Dombes plateau
  -papeton d’aubergines: sort of flan made with flesh of eggplants, originally shaped like the papal hat; thought to have originated during Avignon papacy
  -Il se prend pour le moutardier du pape: expression to describe someone who is rather stupid but thinks highly of himself
  -fleur de sel: “white gold of Guérande”
  -Roquefort is matured in mountain caves around tiny village of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon in south of France; 1411 Charles VI: seen as earliest historical effort at an AOC-style geographical delimitation
  -French pharmacists are trained to identify poisonous mushrooms, can bring mushrooms found during la chasse aux champignons to find out whether they are safe to eat
  -champignons de Paris= button or portobello mushrooms; most popular mushroom variety in the world
  -Reine-Claude plums are named after Francis I’s first wife
  -Cotignac d’Orléans: sweet jam made of quince
  -piment d’Espelette: only spice to have received French AOC; from village of Espelette in Pays Basque
  -Bayonne: home to finest artisanal chocolate made in France
  -avoir un coeur d’artichaut: saying for people who fall in love quickly and indiscriminately
  -chestnut trees grow well in the terraced mountainsides of the Cévennes
  -Parmentier: metro station in Paris named after him; the potato propagandist
  -2 AOC protected varieties of Brie: Brie de Meaux and Brie de Melun
  -Cancale: oyster capital of Brittany
  -la Fée Verte (green fairy): absinthe
  
• 
  Amy

  If you are at all interested in food, France, or history, then Stephane Henaut and Jeni Miller's book "A Bite-Sized History of France: Delicious, Gastronomic Tales of Revolution, War, and Enlightenment" is for you. It is delectable. While it's cutesy title suggests a book of apocryphal anecdotes about the French and food, it is a serious book about French history stemming from its ancient beginnings with the Roman conquest through monarchy, revolution, the World Wars to today's globalization. However, true to its title, each chapter is a short exploration of how the French foods that we know (or want to know) and love intersect with its history, and it is fascinating. Everything from the rise of cafés and bistros, absinthe and calvados, brie and camembert, croissants and baguettes, oysters and sel de mer, and peanuts and more are discussed. It is engaging and witty, but does not shy away from the ugliness of French history, imperialism, and racism. For someone like me, who only knows random bits of French history (a product of being raised on American presidents and English monarchy), this book helps put a lot of events in place. If you have plans on traveling to France, then this is a must read before you go because this knowledge will enliven your experience and even provide you with some destinations you may not have thought of originally. By far my favorite part of this book, besides showing how we have more in common with the French than we thought, is how the authors use their book to undermine and ridicule the National Front's aims at promoting and preserving a "pure French culture". French food is an amalgamation of many cultures throughout time. The foods that make France French were often introduced by other cultures and are not "pure" to France at all. Nationalist movements want to put forth a simplistic and incorrect history to exclude the diversity that made the country what it is in the first place. So to Henaut and Miller, I say "à votre santé!" (cheers!).
  
  I highly, highly recommend this book and it will pair nicely with Ina Caro's "Paris to the Past: Traveling Through French History by Train".
• 
  Stephanie Dagg

  This book is deliciously fascinating. What better way to learn about a country’s history than by being introduced to it around a certain food item, such as artichokes, wine or cheese. The author explains how politics, economics and culture link with food in ‘foodways’, which reveal a great deal about a country. We discover many such foodways in this book.
  The book is like a plate of nibbles – bite-sized chunks of history and food at a time. We learn about Gauls as the same time as wine, Barbarians and table manners, The Battles of Tours and Poitiers and goat cheese, Charlemagne and honey, Viking invasions and Bénédictine liqueur, feudalism and diet, the Crusades and plums, Eleanor of Aquitaine and claret, Cathars and vegetarianism, taxes and seasalt, the Black Prince and cassoulet, the plague and vinegar, Charles the Mad and Roquefort, the Renaissance and oranges, colonisation and chocolate, sugar, forks and Catherine de Medici, chickens and King Henry iV… and that’s just for starters! Many other snippets of info are sprinkled like condiments over the main ingredients to pique our appetite. This really is a feast of a book.
  Just as it’s hard to relinquish a plate a plate of moreish food, it’s very hard to put down the book once you’ve started reading. The author’s style is thoroughly engaging and enjoyable. He’s witty as well as wise, and you learn so much without realising it. He communicates so passionately and knowledgeably it’s hard not to be won over.
  Like your favourite restaurant, this book is absolutely to be recommended.
  I have voluntarily reviewed this book, which I received from NetGalley.
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  Deirdre

  Very interesting bits of history that I didn't know, and not all them about food.
  
  Worst complaint? The font size made it very difficult for me to read without tiring my eyes and making me drift off to sleep many times. Way too small.
  
  The other complaint I have is - there are no recipes! Definitely this book needs a companion book of recipes. Poulet Marengo, mentioned in this book, doesn't appear in French cookbooks anymore, and when I made it for my father when I was sixteen, I remember how we both enjoyed it. I have since lost the recipe many moons ago. Writing about how potatoes were finally accepted by the French, but no famous and delicious recipes that have been invented for them by French chefs. Bread is rather skipped over. There are certainly more breads than just the baguette. Personally, I prefer a Pain de Compaigne (country bread), which I find essential for making a good Croque Monsieur or Croque Madame with lovely, never to be substituted Gruyere cheese and a bit of Mornay sauce. Good for other sandwiches too and makes great toast.
  
  I suggest this be read while enjoying a wine of your choice with some marvelous cheeses, and if not some bread, then some fruit.
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  thefourthvine

  This book is 50% history, 30% food, and 20% travel brochure, and although that was not the ratio I was hoping for, it turned out to work pretty well for me. I suspect that the history would work best for people who (like me) know very little about French history, because when we got to the areas I did already know about, I spent a lot of time going, “But what about...?”
  
  The thing I liked best about this is — okay. Most books written for an American audience about France are written in what I could best describe as “precious expat” style. The authors focus on French pianos or the food of Provence or whatever, but they don’t place their subject within the context of modern France, because they don’t know anything about modern France beyond the few French people they interact with. These authors actually do seem to know about, for example, the political context of their writing, possibly because one of them is actually French. It makes a huge difference. This is France presented as a real country instead of a charming little pocket of history.