The powerful, long-neglected testimony of former slaves places African American slave foods and foodways at the center of the complex social dynamics of the plantation South.
Preface Acknowledgments 1. The WPA Narratives and Slave Diets 2. Slave Nutrition 3. African Roots and Food Traditions 4. Slave Cooking and Meals 5. Vegetables 6. Meat 7. Wild Game and Fish 8. Dairy 9. Grains, Cereals, and Baked Goods 10. Fruits, Nuts, and Coffee 11. Celebrations, Special Occasions, and the War 12. Closing Observations APPENDICES: FOODS IDENTIFIED IN THE WPA NARRATIVES Appendix A: Vegetables Appendix B: Meats Appendix C: Wild Game: Birds Appendix D: Wild Game: Fish/Shellfish Appendix E: Wild Game: Reptiles and Amphibians Appendix F: Wild Game: Mammals Appendix G: Dairy Appendix H: Grains Appendix I: Baked Goods Appendix J: Fruit Appendix K: Nuts Appendix L: Sugar/Molasses/Spices Appendix M: Beverages Appendix N: General or Unclear Bibliography Index
Herbert C. Covey is the author of African American Slave Medicine: Herbal and Non-Herbal Treatments (2007) as well as of numerous books and articles on juvenile gangs and on drug addiction. He has been Vice Chair of the Colorado State Juvenile Parole Board since 1994 and Field Administrator for the Colorado Department of Human Services since 1999. Dwight Eisnach is an independent scholar and editor. He began his career as an investigative reporter and later served the Colorado Department of Human Services for some 25 years, successively as Legislative Liaison, Public Information Officer, and Administrator of the Colorado Juvenile Parole Board.
This fascinating anthropological documentary excavates 1930s
WPA-funded interviews to find the testimony of former slaves on the
subject of food's role in daily life. In 12 absorbing, essay-style
chapters, Covey (African American Slave Medicine) and independent
scholar Eisnach explore how food was used to reinforce power
relationships, how slave recipes gradually entered plantation
kitchens, and how the Civil War changed entrenched traditions.
Fourteen appendixes, categorized by food type, list specific
ingredients mentioned by interview subjects and indicate the
subject's home state, a record that facilitates awareness of
regional customs.'
*Library Journal*
This book is among the first to explore the diet and cooking
behaviors of American slaves through the use of first-person
narratives as opposed to archaeological evidence such as slave ship
logs, plantation rationing logs and manuals on the treatment of
slaves. Covey, an author and Vice Chair of the Colorado State
Juvenile Parole Board, has teamed with Eisnach, and independent
scholar and editor, to collect oral histories handed down from
generation to generation and compiled by a WPA narrative project.
The authors discuss African traditions and roots that influenced
food consumption and break down the slaves' diet according to food
category.
*Reference & Research Book News*
…contribute greatly to our knowledge of African-American diet and
cuisine, a subject often clouded by myth, misinformation and
ignorance. …This book helps us understand the use of food as a
control mechanism, through rationing, denial and timing of the
supply as well as the effect of these issues on nutrition and
health. Researchers tell the story of how the people they enslaved
repurposed what was available to create new cuisines, often
supplementing meager supplies by farming, fishing and hunting. Many
recipes are included, and appendices list more than 300 foods or
dishes found as researchers examined all 2,200 narratives recorded
by the WPA.
*Diverse: Issues in Higher Education*
Highly recommended for high school, community college, college and
public libraries.
*Catholic Library World*
This fascinating anthropological documentary excavates 1930s
WPA-funded interviews to find the testimony of former slaves on the
subject of food's role in daily life. In 12 absorbing, essay-style
chapters, Covey (African American Slave Medicine) and independent
scholar Eisnach explore how food was used to reinforce power
relationships, how slave recipes gradually entered plantation
kitchens, and how the Civil War changed entrenched traditions.
Fourteen appendixes, categorized by food type, list specific
ingredients mentioned by interview subjects and indicate the
subject's home state, a record that facilitates awareness of
regional customs.' * Library Journal *
This book is among the first to explore the diet and cooking
behaviors of American slaves through the use of first-person
narratives as opposed to archaeological evidence such as slave ship
logs, plantation rationing logs and manuals on the treatment of
slaves. Covey, an author and Vice Chair of the Colorado State
Juvenile Parole Board, has teamed with Eisnach, and independent
scholar and editor, to collect oral histories handed down from
generation to generation and compiled by a WPA narrative project.
The authors discuss African traditions and roots that influenced
food consumption and break down the slaves' diet according to food
category. * Reference & Research Book News *
...contribute greatly to our knowledge of African-American diet and
cuisine, a subject often clouded by myth, misinformation and
ignorance. ...This book helps us understand the use of food as a
control mechanism, through rationing, denial and timing of the
supply as well as the effect of these issues on nutrition and
health. Researchers tell the story of how the people they enslaved
repurposed what was available to create new cuisines, often
supplementing meager supplies by farming, fishing and hunting. Many
recipes are included, and appendices list more than 300 foods or
dishes found as researchers examined all 2,200 narratives recorded
by the WPA. * Diverse: Issues in Higher Education *
Highly recommended for high school, community college, college and
public libraries. * Catholic Library World *
 |
Ask a Question About this Product More... |
|
