Eat Your Words: A Fascinating Look at the Language of Food

by Charlotte Foltz Jones, John O'Brien (Illustrator)

Baked Alaska, melba toast, hush puppies, and coconuts. You'd be surprised at how these food names came to be. And have you ever wondered why we use the expression "selling like hotcakes"? Or how about "spill the beans"? There are many fascinating and funny stories about the language of food--and the food hidden in our language! Charlotte Foltz Jones has compiled a feast of her favorite anecdotes, and John O'Brien's delightfully pun-filled drawings provide the dessert. Bon appetit!

Genres: Nonfiction, Food, Humor, Childrens, History, Cooking, Picture Books

96 pages, Paperback

First published May 11, 1999

Reviews

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading about the origins of food names. Many of them I knew, but there were lots of surprises. This is a fun, funny book.

[Laura Gardner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Exploring the etymology of food-related words, Eat Your Words is written in a conversational style and is a fun book to browse. A random assortment of facts loosely arranged into chapters, this book is best-suited for sharing aloud and browsing rather than reading cover to cover. Fun facts and recipes are included at various intervals. Highlights include a list of "blue laws" that relate to food (it's against the law to put tomatoes in clam chowder in Massachusetts!), superstitions related to food (eating bread crusts will make your hair curly) and fun facts that are listed on illustrations of the food mentioned (bacon facts on images of bacon -- yum). Includes a bibliography and a short index. Overall, this will be a fun book for students and teachers to share aloud and then surprise their family and friends with their interesting knowledge.

The illustrations feel a bit out of date. I also think there is something lacking in terms of tying all the text together. The concluding chapter is about toothpicks used at the end of a meal instead of attempting to tie together the history of words related to food. The book is also extremely brief.

[Mayda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This amusing book may be a quick read but it is chock full interesting food tidbits. Among the several food topics, the origins of some foods and how they were named can be found in these pages. Bread and butter pickles were named for providing the woman who created the recipe with money with which to buy bread and butter, among other staples. It was worth reading the book if only to find out that it took seven whole years before some genius decided to improve on the Milky Way bar (1923) and came up with adding peanuts, giving birth to the Snickers bar (1930). Yes, this book is likely to make you hungry, so grab a candy bar before you start reading it. Entertaining and enlightening.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

As much as most of us enjoy eating good food, there are plenty among us who enjoy learning about how certain dishes got their names as well as the origin of certain food-related sayings that have become commonplace in our vocabulary. Not only do these snippets much for food for thought about some of the language mistakes that resulted in certain names, but they also guarantee that the book's readers will never lack for dinner conversation as they can haul out stories about turkey, food-related festivals, and strange laws associated with food. The accompanying artwork adds to the book's appeal, and even adult readers will enjoy soaking up these facts. I enjoyed learning how long some of my favorite types of candy have been around and trying to wrap my head around the idea of baking a pie filled with blackbirds or musicians as was the custom centuries ago. And finally, the secret of how the ice cream in Baked Alaska manages to not melt unfolds here. This is a light but informative read suitable for browsing.

[Jody Kyburz · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book contains a lot of information about a lot of foods, names of foods, and where we get words in English based on stories about food. Although there is a respectable bibliography at the end, I kept feeling like nothing was nailed down. The author would say, "It could have been because of this story...or because of this story." Worse, sometimes the author would say, "People say it was because of this." And then next I would read, "But that's not true...it was really because of this." I guess I wanted more clear facts and research with evidence rather than "coulda been..."

On the upside, I was just attending a church potluck last night and someone had shared Buffalo Wing Chili. Our table had a conversation about why Buffalo Wings are called Buffalo Wings. Out here in the West, Buffalo conjures up images of 2,000 pound nomadic grazers who live in herds. I piped up and said, "Actually, I was just reading about that and the term Buffalo comes from the city of Buffalo in New York."

[Min · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is classified as a children's book because of its length, and extensive illustrations, yet, any adult will learn many things in this book.
A delightful journey of food names, food expressions, and food history; all for the betterment of answering those odd questions we wonder when we use an old saying we all know, or use the name of a food that has nothing to do with the ingredients- such as Welsh rabbit is neither Welsh, nor rabbit.

As i read this, I felt compelled to share what i learned with friends. I will share for many years to come.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A perfect family read during a road trip due to the universal appeal of the topic, food. The book enlightens readers to the etymology behind the names of foods as well as interesting stories tied to food. From the timeless tale of the toll house cookie to the origin of the eggplant, these stories will provide some laughs for readers spanning the generations.

[Abby Stopka · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed all the history of food that she offered in the this book. It is definitely not a book that you would read cover to cover. It's more of facts you would read aloud or if there something you wanted to know about. But I read this cover to cover and it was just a fun short read.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good little book combining two of my loves: food and etymology. I'd love to see (or write!) an updated version!

Most of the information was not new to me, but it would be great for its target audience, which I would say is 10-14 trivia buffs.

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, but not really captivating.

[Abraham Ray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read about food! It’s got a LOT of fun facts about food & how various foods got there names! It includes some recipes fyi.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining small stories about words. Not a fan of the illustration style and found it a bit creepy and off putting. The word info is nice to read in bits at the coffee table.

[Abby Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny and interesting.

[Sarah Brooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun, playful approach to the origin and history of our language with food. Includes fun-facts, idioms, and tales about the origin of food and our food language.

Graphic novel, grades 4+

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick read that offers an interesting history of both food and language. (Though the pictures are a little creepy... If you stare at the eyes too long they eat your soul...)

[Danette · Rating 2 out of 5]

A little book of food trivia.

[Siyka · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting information.

[Keshia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a pretty interesting read! Very quick as well.

[L.M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting stories!

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read a few of the entries to my kids. This would be a good one to revisit in a few years. The history of food is fascinating.

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The etymology of gastronomic terms is fascinating to those who are prepared to be fascinated by such things. In the preface, it says "this book is about the history of food-related words and phrases" and so it is. This book is not as comprehensive as Martha Barnette's "Ladyfingers and Nun’s Tummies" nor Steven Gilbar's "Chicken A La King And The Buffalo Wing: Food Names And The People And Places That Inspired Them." It is not as dense as Mark Morton's "Cupboard Lore: A Dictionary of Culinary Curiosities." Its simplicity is calculated to hook younger readers with interesting stories about how foods got their names. From this text, one may learn the origin of food names such as graham crackers, hot dogs, bologna, horseradish, marmalade and pumpernickel. The cartoons of John O'Brien, with which the book is liberally illustrated, are reminiscent of the drawings of Edward Gorey. This book would be the perfect gift for an intelligent child with an interest in food.

[Salsabrarian]

An enjoyable, often funny, and readable account of how food terms have become part of the lexicon, how dishes were named, and various fun historical facts. The Graham of graham cracker was a fanatic of healthy eating; the Salisbury of Salisbury steak also had his own views on diet (beef three times a day). The Melba of peach and toast was a famous opera singer. Bringing home the bacon and other terms are included. Fun!

[Kaye · Rating 3 out of 5]

Light-weight fun on food-related expressions in English. Most interesting were words I hadn't realized or thought about as food-related, e.g., carnival (carne vale = farewell to meat) and company/companion (com+panis = with bread). And these: Lord was hlafweard (hlaf=loaf|bread, weard=ward|keeper) -> hlaford -> lord. Lady was hlaefdige (hlaef=loaf|bread, dige=knead) -> ladah -> lady.

[Jared · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book about the language of food. Contains some interesting anecdotes and a few amusing apocryphal legends about the origin of food-related foods and phrases.

One of the best sections is about food laws. For example, in Lexington, Kentucky it was once illegal to carry an ice cream come in your pocket.

[HeavyReader · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn’t realize when I bought this book for ten cents at a thrift store that it’s really intended for children. I read it anyway and was amused by it. Some of the word origins were vaguely interesting.

I knew this book was meant for children when I read the entry for graham crackers and found reference to Sylvester Graham with no mention of his anti-masturbation crusade.

[Ryan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a shorty, silly collection of old wives' tales and obscure trivia. There were some interesting anectdotes, but it was clear that it had been far from comprehensively researched and that this was meant more as a comic book or a random collection of tales.

[Matt Mazenauer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Etymology be damned, there are only 5 interesting-ish tibits in the whole of this book.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's interesting to learn about how certain phrases or names for things came about and how they have changed over time.

This was a cute, quick, and informative read.

[Jean · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the humorous writing and illustrations. Not sure why there is a typewriter on the front.

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's "Welsh Rarebit" not Welsh Rabbit!!!