The story of corn /
by Fussell, Betty Harper.frey50
Edition statement:University of New Mexico Press pbk. ed. Published by : University of New Mexico Press, (Albuquerque :) , 2004 Physical details: 356 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm ISBN:0826335926; 9780826335920. ISSN:978082633| Item type | Current location | Call number | Status | Date due | Barcode |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 600 - 699 | Book Cart | 633.150973 Fus (Browse shelf) | Available | 102590 |
Originally published: New York : Knopf, 1992.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
A babel of corn -- Seeds of life -- The language of myth -- The language of science -- The daily round -- The language of the seasons -- The language of the machine -- Flesh and blood -- The language of food -- The language of drink -- The language of commodities -- The sacred round -- The language of ceremony -- The language of carnivals and kings -- Closing the circle.
The Story of Corn is a unique compendium, drawing upon history and mythology, science and art, anecdote and image, personal narrative and epic to tell the extraordinary story of the grain that built the New World. Corn transformed the way the entire world eats, providing a hardy, inexpensive alternative to rice or wheat and cheap fodder for livestock and finding its way into everything from explosives to embalming fluid. Betty Fussell has given us a true American saga, interweaving the histories of the indigenous peoples who first cultivated the grain and the European conquerors who appropriated and propagated it around the globe. She explores corn's roles as food, fetish, crop, and commodity to those who have planted, consumed, worshiped, processed, and profited from it for seven centuries.--COVER.