Tapestry Press
Cod
|
Tapestry Press
Cod
|
|
|
Cod, a biography of the fish that changed the world by Mark Kurlansky 1997, Penguin Books, 294p. This surprising small paperback book presents the history of a remarkable fish, the cod. In the fifteenth century the Basques of northern Spain had secret fishing grounds for the cod they sold to the European market. When Christopher Columbus reached America in 1492 there were 1000 Basque fishing vessels in the waters off the East coast fishing for cod. The Basque fishermen came ashore to split the fish, dry and salt them to preserve them for the return trip to Europe. Omnivorous cod swim with mouths open and eat anything they catch. With delicious white flesh, cod grow to large sizes. An unverified legend from that time says that cod were so abundant that baskets could be lowered over the side of a boat to scoop them up. The book features photos of men holding huge 3-5 ft. fish and numerous recipes for cooking cod. Overfishing has dramatically reduced cod populations and forced the closing of the Grand Banks fisheries off the Newfoundland coast. Authorities disagree on the chances of this cod fishery recovering. The subtitle, “The fish that changed the world”, can be justified by this account. The New York Public Library rated this as one of the 25 best books of the year. The Los Angeles Times critic summarized it as “A charming fish tale and a pretty gift for your favorite seafood cook or fishing monomaniac. But in the last analysis, it’s a bitter ecological fable for our time.” Review written May 2002 Back to Book Reviews
|
|
|
