The Potato: How the Humble Spud Rescued the Western WorldThe Potato tells the story of how a humble vegetable, once regarded as trash food, had as revolutionary an impact on Western history as the railroad or the automobile. Using Ireland, England, France, and the United States as examples, Larry Zuckerman shows how daily life from the 1770s until World War I would have been unrecognizable-perhaps impossible-without the potato, which functioned as fast food, famine insurance, fuel and labor saver, budget stretcher, and bank loan, as well as delicacy. Drawing on personal diaries, contemporaneous newspaper accounts, and other primary sources, this is popular social history at its liveliest and most illuminating. |
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agricultural American animals appeared baked become better bread called cause century classes common cook corn couldn't crop death didn't diet disease early England English especially existed failed famine farm farmers field fish followed France French fuel grain grow hands happened hard harvest ibid important improved included Ireland Irish keep kitchen knew labor lack land landlords late later least leaving less lived London looked marriage matter meal means meant meat milk Moreover mortality needed never noted observers offered once peasant percent perhaps pigs plant poor Poor Inquiry population potato practice probably raised relief remarked rent reported root rural social Society sometimes soup suggests supply tenants thought tuber turned vegetables wages wanted wasn't women workers wrote Young