(no subject)
Have just finished reading The Devil's Picnic by Taras Grescoe.
I found this book on a forgotten shelf in a Waterstones sale ... and it is absolutely stunning.
The basic premise is that the author has spent a year going around the world trying and investigating 'forbidden' things - including moonshine in Norway, cheese made from unpasturised milk, and coca in Bolivia. He explores all kind of culinary taboos and prohibitions. He tells of his adventures in an engaging, sometimes humorous style, meets and interviews many people around the world, and explores the reasons behind the prohibition with the depth of a serious investigative journalist. It covers so much ground, so much history, politics and philosophy.
This is book for anyone that has an interest in civil liberty, freedom of choice, politics, and human nature.
I highly recommend it.
I found this book on a forgotten shelf in a Waterstones sale ... and it is absolutely stunning.
The basic premise is that the author has spent a year going around the world trying and investigating 'forbidden' things - including moonshine in Norway, cheese made from unpasturised milk, and coca in Bolivia. He explores all kind of culinary taboos and prohibitions. He tells of his adventures in an engaging, sometimes humorous style, meets and interviews many people around the world, and explores the reasons behind the prohibition with the depth of a serious investigative journalist. It covers so much ground, so much history, politics and philosophy.
This is book for anyone that has an interest in civil liberty, freedom of choice, politics, and human nature.
I highly recommend it.