The Story of Sushi: An Unlikely Saga of Raw Fish and Rice

by Trevor Corson

Everything you never knew about its surprising origins, the colorful lives of its chefs, and the bizarre behavior of the creatures that compose it. Trevor Corson takes us behind the scenes at America's first sushi-chef training academy, as eager novices strive to master the elusive art of cooking without cooking. He delves into the biology and natural history of the edible creatures of the sea, and tells the fascinating story of an Indo-Chinese meal reinvented in 19th-century Tokyo as a cheap fast food. He reveals the pioneers who brought sushi to the United States and explores how this unlikely meal is exploding into the American heartland just as the long-term future of sushi may be unraveling.

The Story of Sushi is at once a compelling tale of human determination and a delectable smorgasbord of surprising food science, intrepid reporting, and provocative cultural history.

Genres: History, Food, Nonfiction

Paperback

Published September 2, 2008

Reviews

[Chapter Chasers Book Club · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Story of Sushi tries to serve up a full omakase of history, culture, and science, but sometimes it feels more like waiting too long between courses. There are fascinating bites—how sushi chefs train, the global fish trade, the quirky details of rice and wasabi—but the pacing drags enough that I found myself wishing for takeout instead of a tasting menu.

Three stars—interesting, a little chewy, but not always fresh enough to keep me hooked.

[Laurence · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book! Corson doesn’t just write about sushi—he shows you how it traveled, transformed, and embedded itself into global culture. If you’ve ever closed your eyes on a perfect bite of uni and thought, how did this miracle make its way to my plate?—this book answers that. Corson deep dives into sushi’s history and evolution while following students training to become sushi chefs (equal parts inspiring and mildly terrifying). He makes the backstory of raw fish not just digestible but downright addictive. A great blend of history, culture, and kitchen grit.

[Shirley Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

I put off for years to read this book. To my amazement it was quite an interesting book and very entertaining I still don't want to eat the "stuff" however. I am not ready to begin eating raw fish at this point in my life. Some of it is really gross. The story is, however, quite compelling and I would recommend to my friends.

[Anais Ning-Driscoll · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is like Kitchen Confidential but for a sushi academy. The book intersperses history, technique and lore about sushi with entertaining snippets of a 19 week program at the California Sushi Academy. Very well written and entertaining! You probably won’t learn a lot if you’re already a frequent flyer at high-end sushi restaurants but the book is a nice refresher on sushi knowledge.

[Lisa Wada · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative and actually entertaining.

[Stephie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love sushi so I needed to read this book. The book is very informative as well as entertaining. I highly recommend it!

[MG · Rating 5 out of 5]

alright ig. :) helped me in an interview

[Beelzefuzz · Rating 4 out of 5]

The history is very interesting. I did not care much for the framing device of the people at sushi school, distracting from the history dumps.