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538 reviews for:
The Cooking Gene: A Journey Through African-American Culinary History in the Old South
Michael W. Twitty
4.12 AVERAGE
538 reviews for:
The Cooking Gene: A Journey Through African-American Culinary History in the Old South
Michael W. Twitty
4.12 AVERAGE
This book is not for me to review, but please know that it is a highly educational read that all could learn from.
3.5 stars. Really wanted to love this, but it needed better organization and a stronger editorial hand. There were too many long tangents, lists, and genealogical detail presented with no compelling framework or pathway to keep it all together.
Twitty shares the complicated history of African American foodways while including information about his own family history and his journey to understanding the intersections of food, genealogy, and culture. His writing is evocative, and he does not mince words when explaining how slavery birthed Southern food.
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
I won this book as part of a Goodreads giveaway and took way too long to start and finish this book.
Michael W. Twitty states “My aim has been to give a sense of the bric-a-brac mosaic that is the average African American’s experience when he or she attempts to look back to recapture our cultural and culinary identities obscured by the consequences of racial chattel slavery.” This book does exactly that, all while sharing food both through delicious imagery and by providing recipes.
There is so much history; cultural, culinary; and so much about the genealogy process. Michael shows that genetics can fill some gaps in personal history; but not totally, and not without acknowledging the hardships endured by slaves in the name of free labor. I learned so much about slavery and food in America, and how influential African culture has been on American culture, and at such an unspeakable cost.
This book opened my eyes to the history of slavery in America, and the continued hardship African Americans face in our country. I look forward to reading future works by Michael.
Michael W. Twitty states “My aim has been to give a sense of the bric-a-brac mosaic that is the average African American’s experience when he or she attempts to look back to recapture our cultural and culinary identities obscured by the consequences of racial chattel slavery.” This book does exactly that, all while sharing food both through delicious imagery and by providing recipes.
There is so much history; cultural, culinary; and so much about the genealogy process. Michael shows that genetics can fill some gaps in personal history; but not totally, and not without acknowledging the hardships endured by slaves in the name of free labor. I learned so much about slavery and food in America, and how influential African culture has been on American culture, and at such an unspeakable cost.
This book opened my eyes to the history of slavery in America, and the continued hardship African Americans face in our country. I look forward to reading future works by Michael.
If you want a good book about the experience of blackness and slavery and how it relates to southern food, I highly recommend this book. It was so good. Hard, in parts, but good.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
slow-paced
I am still processing this book and I think I’ll need to read it again and again to full absorb all the lessons and knowledge this book contains.
I can’t do justice with a summary but I can tell you that I learned about southern food culture and Black American culture and culinary history in new and fascinating ways. Parts genealogy, history, philosophy and culinary history this book is weightier than its 400 pages.
I can’t do justice with a summary but I can tell you that I learned about southern food culture and Black American culture and culinary history in new and fascinating ways. Parts genealogy, history, philosophy and culinary history this book is weightier than its 400 pages.
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Michael Twitter is a national treasure and a beautiful, heartfelt writer. Unfortunately this book suffers from a lack of structure that is often frustrating.