The United States of Arugula

May's Foodie Book Club book was The United States of Arugula.

This book was a bit different than the previous selections in that it was more of a history book. The last two were very current and this book gets there eventually but starts at the roots of the foodie movement and goes all the way up to today, discussing Thomas Keller and Rachael Ray. I will admit I haven't finished it yet, but so far I've found it very fascinating. It traces the roots of 'foodie' culture back to the very beginning, discussing its founders such as James Beard and Julia Child. Maybe it is just that I am fairly new to the foodie scene, but I'd never thought much about where it came from, so reading about the very early history has been very interesting. It seems like a lot of pieces about foodie-ism seem nostalgic towards the "good old days" but I was surprised to find a lot of similarities between the public's ideas about food then and now. Even James Beard and the other first foodies were more outcasts than representatives of popular opinion.

Unfortunately, I don't have much more to say at the moment. It was a busy month with finals and wedding planning, but I do plan on finishing it as soon as I get a chance. Perhaps I will write up a better review then. I have this month's book already and am looking forward to reading it, so I promise to at least have a better review next time!