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A great oyster book-Surprisingly informative! Aug 25, 2009
My husband & I are fascinated with experiencing the pleasures of eating oysters. We were seeking a book to give us basic knowledge. This book is what we were looking for & more. This book is packed with very useful information. We plan to test our knowledge, as we set out to visit oyster farms & oyster fests, noted in the book.
Awesome fun book Must read!! May 24, 2009
Growing up on an island in Washington State and visiting relatives on Hoods Canal who had oysters outside their front door, I grew up loving oysters raw, in stew, bread and pan fried, and in casseroles.
So when I discovered this gem of a book I was overjoyed. Anyone who loves oysters or simply food history should love this book as well. Cannot recommend it enough.
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
Delicious Reading Feb 18, 2009
Rowan Jacobsen writes about oysters in beautifully descriptive language, with offbeat humor thrown in. I've recommended this book even to those who won't eat a raw oyster, but love great writing and have a curious mind. If you are an oyster aficionado, then you simply must read this book! But, be warned, you'll then be on a mission to try as many of them as possible, immediately.
"At some level, it isn't about taste or smell at all. Because an oyster, like a lover, first captures you by bewitching your mind." -Rowan Jacobsen
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
A Geography of Oysters: The Connoisseur's Guide to Oyster Eating in North America Feb 15, 2009
I love this book. I bought three for friends. I had no idea there were so many different speices of oysters. And so close to home, many of them. The book explains the tastes and textures to expect. The history of each from State to State. How they are harvested, recipes, and locations where to eat the best. If you enjoy oysters, you will really like this book.
7 of 7 found the following review helpful:
Love Oysters but a Little Perplexed by Them? The Answers Are Here. Jun 18, 2008
"A Geography of Oysters" is the guide that I've been looking for. I love raw oysters, but they have a mind-boggling number of names and farming methods that I never could sort out. The people selling them are of limited help. I've read books about oysters, but they said little about particular species or origins. Now Rowan Jacobsen has made sense of it all in this practical guide to oyster eating in North America. Like European wines or single malt whiskies, oysters taste like the place they come from, so Jacobsen takes us all over North America to learn how and where 132 common oysters are farmed. Although there are some recipes in the back, "A Geography of Oysters" is primarily dedicated to raw oysters, so this is for those of us who like to slurp the slimy things out of their shells.
The guide has three parts. The first, "Mastering the Oyster", tells us about the 5 species of oyster that are cultivated in North America, explains the life cycle of an oyster, oyster harvesting, farming, and hatcheries, how different methods of cultivation affect texture, taste, and shelf life, how and why season and place affects taste, and how modern aquaculture has created an environmentally beneficial, diverse oyster industry. It's a solid introduction to oysters. The meat of the book is the second part, "The Oyster Appellations of North America". This is where we get an ostreaphilic tour of the continent. For each region, state, or province, Jacobsen provides a history of oysters in that region, followed by how, where, and other particulars for the major oysters in that area.
The final section, "Everything You Wanted to Know about Oysters but Were Afraid to Ask", gives advice on how to choose an oyster, storing oysters, shucking oysters, serving oysters, wines that go well with oysters and those that do not. Jacobsen prefers his oysters raw but offers 21 recipes -which will presumably be reserved for those unfortunate occasional bland oysters. There are several recipes for mignonette to top your oysters, oyster stew, and oysters roasted, baked, fried, pickled, and even drunk. That's followed by notes about safety, nutrition, and a helpful list of oyster bars, festivals, and growers that ship direct. As the man says, we don't eat oysters because we are hungry. We eat them to experience them. "A Geography of Oysters" will help you experience more oysters.
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