Bite by Bite: American History through Feasts, Foods, and Side Dishes

by Marc Aronson, Toni D. Chambers (Illustrator), Paul Freedman

Explore the fascinating history of America as told through the lens of food in this illustrated nonfiction middle grade book that lays out the diverse cultures that have combined to create the rich and delicious tapestry of the American country and cuisine.

As American as apple pie. It’s a familiar saying, yet gumbo and chop suey are also American! What we eat tells us who we where we’re from, how we move from place to place, and how we express our cultures and living traditions.

In twelve dishes that take readers from thousands of years ago through today, this book explores the diverse peoples and foodways that make up the United States. From First Salmon Feasts of the Umatilla and Cayuse tribes in the Pacific Northwest to fish fries celebrated by formerly enslaved African Americans, from “red sauce” Italian restaurants popular with young bohemians in the East to Cantonese restaurants enjoyed by rebellious young eaters in the West, this is the true story of the many Americas—laid out bite by bite.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Food, Middle Grade, Cultural, Cooking, Food History

175 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 28, 2024

About the author

Aronson has won many awards for his books for young readers and has a doctorate in American history. His lectures cover educational topics such as mysteries and controversies in American history, teenagers and their reading, the literary passions of boys, and always leave audiences asking for more.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/marcar...

Reviews

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

"What we eat tells us where we live, how we move from place to place, how we grow our foods, and which advertisements we see. If we look carefully at how different Americans have gathered ingredients and then cooked and shared meals, we really can see many of the key stories in American history - laid out for us bite by bite." -- from the author's introduction

Although that subtitle bites off a bit more than it can chew, the undemanding 125 pages of Bite by Bite gives a whirlwind and brief tour of the multicultural sustenance that graces the American dinner tables. The expected sections - Italian and Chinese entrees becoming commonplace during the 20th century, especially from an explosion of family-run dining establishments moving from the urban areas out to the suburbs - stand alongside some intriguing portions on German cuisine ('the invisible immigrants') and the proliferation of Howard Johnson's restaurants (remember those?) that once dotted highway / interstate systems. I did like the 'side dish' segments that concluded each chapter, which featured some fun trivia on fare like breakfast cereals, pretzels, and General Tso's chicken.

[Caroline]

Very compelling premise, but less engaging execution. I was excited about this book, but felt the writing was a little dry. And, especially for a book for young readers, the formatting doesn't feel very accessible. I might come back if this ever comes out as an audiobook.

[Aubrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love reading about food history, and this had some unique cultures and insights that I hadn’t encountered anywhere else. The “side dish” sections were some of my favorites, and I think they would work well as short non-fiction selections for the classroom (the nacho section in particular). The writing tends to be a little more complex and dry than most books for middle grade audiences, which was a bit disappointing given how interesting the content is.

[Megan Millard · Rating 3 out of 5]

The good thing about this book is that it is extensively researched and includes a lot of information about groups of Americans who are typically shunted to the side. However, I agree with other readers about the reading. Writing compelling historical nonfiction is not something that many people can do easily and having multiple authors makes it difficult to allow the writing to flow. Some sections were much more engaging than others.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this book up from the children's section at the library. The concept reminded me of Tom Standage's "A History of the World in 6 Glasses", which I really enjoyed. I also have his second book, "An Edible History of Humanity" and Mark Kurlanski's "Salt: A World History" on my TBR list. So I was excited to see a similar style book that had fewer pages. This book was alright, but I'm not sure why it's marketed as a children's book. As a junior high teacher, I can't think of any students that would enjoy this... and I think there were several biases throughout.

[Becky B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Aronson, Freedman and their associates give readers a brief history of continental America through the foods that became popular and entered mainstream meals in each time period starting with the very earliest settlers who came through the Bering Strait.

This is a shorter book so the history is by no means exhaustive, they just touch on the most prominent additions to normal meal time in each time period. They give ample credit to those who were commonly left out of history books and their impact on flavorings, like how the African slaves who cooked the food so many people ate influenced dishes. The only section I was a bit disappointed in was the Chinese food chapter, they talked about how mooncakes have entered common culture in America and only credited it to Chinese celebrations of the mid-Autumn festival when numerous Asian cultures have mid-Autumn festivals and eat mooncakes. Overall, though, I felt this was short, succinct, and well-researched. I liked that the authors had consultants from many of the prominent cultures featured and explained exactly how they helped with the book and impacted the writing process.

Notes on content:
Language: None
Sexual content: None
Violence: Wars and conflicts are mentioned briefly as they occurred in different time periods.
Ethnic diversity: Native tribes from many different regions are mentioned, Mexican and Spanish people are mentioned, Western and Eastern Europeans are mentioned (Italians and Germans get specific chapters), Africans and African Americans are mentioned, Creole and Acadians are mentioned, and Chinese are mentioned (very few other Asians).
LGBTQ+ content: There are 3 or 4 very quick mentions of people in passing related to food who worked for rights of LGBTQ+, or areas where diverse populations including LGBTQ+ people lived.
Other: Historical racism and prejudice are mentioned in many of the chapters against various cultures.

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Today's nonfiction post is on Bite by Bite: American History through Feasts, Foods, and Side Dishes by Marc Aronson, Toni D. Chambers (Illustrator), et al. It is 176 pages long and is published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers. The cover is light blue with different foods like corn on the cob and spaghetti with meatballs. The intended reader is someone who is interested in the history of American food. There is no foul language, no sex, and no violence in this book. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the dust jacket- Explore the fascinating history of America as told through the lens of food in this illustrated nonfiction middle grade book that lays out the diverse cultures that have combined to create the rich and delicious tapestry of the American country and cuisine.
As American as apple pie. It’s a familiar saying, yet gumbo and chop suey are also American! What we eat tells us who we where we’re from, how we move from place to place, and how we express our cultures and living traditions.
In twelve dishes that take readers from thousands of years ago through today, this book explores the diverse peoples and food that make up the United States. From First Salmon Feasts of the Umatilla and Cayuse tribes in the Pacific Northwest to fish fries celebrated by formerly enslaved African Americans, from “red sauce” Italian restaurants popular with young bohemians in the East to Cantonese restaurants enjoyed by rebellious young eaters in the West, this is the true story of the many Americas—laid out bite by bite.

Review- A well written, interesting book about food and how life in America shaped it. The book starts with the beginning of people living on the American continent and moves all the way to current time. The author also invited speical guests to add in their speical knowledge about foods and the cultures that created them. The writing is good just challenging enough so that a young read will not be bored but an older like myself will still be engaged. If you have child with an interest in food this would a fun read for them.

I give this book a Five out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I borrowed this book from my local library.

[Ms. Yingling · Rating 3 out of 5]

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

If you liked Elliott' s Tasty and Yummy or Zachmans' There's No Ham in Hamburger or there's no There's No Cream in Cream Soda: Facts and Folklore About Our Favorite Drinks, you'll want to pick up this new food related title from Aronson, who also took a deep dive into food history in Sugar Changed the World: The Story of Magic, Spice, Slavery, Freedom and Science.

This book also includes a lot of issues about how racial discrimination and poverty affect the kind of food available to groups of people, and is truly innovative in the foods the book covers. Ranging in history from the Indigenous Celilo Falls First Salmon Feast to the 21st century fads like almond milk, this also discusses huckleberries, corn, gumbo, fish fries, English foods, soda fountains, maraschino cherries, Italian and Chinese food, and Howard Johnson's. I didn't even know that Ho Jo's was gone entirely; I guess I'll never get to try the fried clams my mother loved so much.

This would be a great book for research or for readers who want to take a deep dive in how ordinary food took its place in history.

[Erin Buhr · Rating 4 out of 5]

History has always been one of my favorite subjects and who doesn’t love a delicious meal, so I was so excited to read this middle grade nonfiction. This is a walk through American History unlike any you’ve probably seen before. It is a relatively short chapter book, landing around 150 pages, but the content and complexity of information is definitely best of middle schoolers or super history fans that are a little younger.

It starts at the very beginning, in the Pacific Northwest where people first migrated across a narrow land bridge into North American and feasted on salmon. From the origins of Gumbo in New Orleans and fish fries to Howard Johnson and General Tso’s Chicken the breadth and depth of this book is impressive. Some of my favorite sections were the “SIDE DISH” afterwards to each chapter that touch on related and familiar foods such as the origin of nachos or potato chips.

Overall, this is an engaging topic and unique lens through which to view American history. Food is vital to any civilization and thinking about how it shapes and is shaped by the world around it is fascinating.

[Mary Smrek · Rating 5 out of 5]

I greatly appreciated this informational challenge on what is American food. It was so fascinating to read about those fan favorites and how they got here. Additionally, it was so refreshing to have a perspective that laid out all the history not just starting from when America was colonized. This book’s focus is on food but truly history and culture are inevitably tied to food that you are learning a great deal more than just what people are eating. Lastly, I want to comment on the chapter setups. They are so appropriately done with the main dish and side dish. Truly, I recommend this book to anyone interested in history.

Thank you to NetGalley.

[Theresa Jehlik · Rating 3 out of 5]

Written for grade schoolers, this is a fast and furious trip through American food history. Starting with indigenous peoples and ending with 21st-century food fads, the authors give a taste of the major groups and trends that influenced our food history. Each chapter ends with "Side Dishes" which explores foods like pretzels, General Tso's chicken, and potato chips. The format of the book was disappointing for the intended audience. The few illustrations were black-and-white drawings and many of the chapters were too wordy.

[Gabrielle Stoller · Rating 2 out of 5]

You would think I'd be all over a historical food text, and it started out far more promising than it ended up. I loved all of the representation (especially regarding the Indigenous people and discussion of huckleberries and salmon and the importance to history).

But the writing was less than stellar and occasionally things fell flat. I wanted more than what I got

[Jeni Enjaian · Rating 3 out of 5]

One image per chapter does not make this an illustrated narrative. I expected a lot more, especially since each chapter held so much potential. Additional illustrations might have saved this book by breaking up the fairly dry narrative. If I, an adult who reads a lot of nonfiction, found myself bored, this would likely not work for a middle school reader.

[Christine Barth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely some interesting stories and facts about "American" food intertwined with what else was going on in the country. I already knew much from other sources... and it definitely could have been longer. Not sure how much interest a kid would have in it, but it's certainly written in a readable way.

[Marge · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most interesting way to absorb American social history. With each wave of immigrants and each generational decade came a new food adventure that effected our history. The book is written for young adults however an adult will find it interesting and informative.

[Deidra Chamberlain · Rating 3 out of 5]

Especially liked reading about how many snack foods came out of the Chicago world fair. That was a special time. I didn’t realize that nutrition is still such a young field, but it makes sense. Some more recipes would have been fun.

[Katie Nelson]

This had a strong start but fizzled out. Unfortunately some chapters are a bit dry and lack the fascinating historical context that others have. The most interesting chapters are contributed by Dr. Frederick Douglass Opie.

[A. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting concept but writing was incredibly choppy -- maybe too many cooks in this kitchen?

[Rebecca Prinster-Caloca · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a quick read with lots of interesting information. It read like a museum exhibit.

[Phil · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eh, heavy on the racial injustice and political correctness spectrum. I did fact check behind these authors. There's some exaggeration here.

[Nat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perfect read while I was in Boston. Pretty sure I annoyed my friends by saying, “Oh! This reminds me of the book I’m reading!” every fifteen minutes.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting history!!

[Kenna Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not what I expected. Good book. Some parts were more interesting than others.would recommend reading.

[Sesana · Rating 3 out of 5]

YA food history. Not comprehensive, nor is it really intended to be. The subjects chosen are generally interesting and varied. The writing can get a little dry sometimes.

[Heather Beaty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of interesting information, but sometimes it was too much.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Five grade, first trimester.