The Cooking Gene: A Journey Through African American Culinary History in the Old South by Michael W. Twitty

The Cooking Gene: A Journey Through African American Culinary History in the Old South by Michael W. Twitty
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

5.0 stars - This is a deep, thick, meaty book. One that takes days, even weeks to properly digest. The author self-describes himself as a black, white, Jewish, gay, overweight food historian, whose life mission is to understand and share the story of his family, his ancestors, through the food that ate, where it came from, and where they came from. He interprets life of enslaved people, through their food, on southern plantations. In this book, he shares his genealogical research of many years, tracing, with the help of professionals, his ancestral roots to Senegal and Gambia, Sierra Leone, and Ghana, along with the 28% European genes, passed down through slaveholders who fathered children upon their female slaves. He also discusses the various crops, corn, rice, and tobacco, and the roles that those played in the lives of the enslaved and the food that they ate. This is really a three theme book, the crops, the food, and the various bloodlines all tied together.
This book is filled with food for thought, and in addition to his history, it makes me think of my own history, so much unknown. What brought my ancestors here, what food did they make? How would a journey such as he undertook change my life? This is a book that will linger in my mind for a long time.

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