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Anatomy
Food Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of Our Edible World
Get your recommended daily allowance of facts and fun with Food Anatomy, the third book in Julia Rothman’s best-selling Anatomy series. She starts with an illustrated history of food and ends with a global tour of street eats. Along the way, Rothman serves up a hilarious primer on short order egg lingo and a mouthwatering menu of how people around the planet serve fried potatoes — and what we dip them in. Award-winning food journalist Rachel Wharton lends her editorial expertise to this light-hearted exploration of everything food that bursts with little-known facts and delightful drawings. Everyday diners and seasoned foodies alike are sure to eat it up.
224 pages, Paperback
First published November 15, 2016
64 people are currently reading
1720 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 164 reviews
October 21, 2016
This was a super interesting little book. It's one of those books you pick up, read a little, put down, pick up again. It's chocked full of little bits of information covering a wide variety of subjects. Has great colorful handdrawn illustrations and fun font types that give it a bit of a notebook type feel.
-Some of the things covered in this book are the...
-Different ways people/cultures set their tables.
-Different forks and spoons and how to use them.
-How cocoa is harvested and processed.
-Different types of sushi and how it's made.
-Different types of cakes and pastries from around the World.
-The history of fortune cookies and candies.
-A look at stoves and refrigerators through the years.
-And about 1000 more things from veggies to meat to fish and beyond.
There is also a few different recipes sprinkled throughout that added to my overall enjoyment of this one. Just a really fun book that would make an excellent gift for that foodie on your Christmas list!
January 23, 2023
This was so fascinating and so well put together. I feel like I learned so much about international cuisine from all the fun facts!
April 27, 2020
REVIEW OF THE KINDLE EDITION
While I indeed was very much looking forward to Julia Rothman and Rachel Wharton's Food Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of Our Edible World, with my ageing eyes and my from this resulting issues to increasingly have rather massive visual issues with printed cursive writing of whatever size and thickness (and indeed even with hand-written cursive writing, as I increasingly am also having trouble reading and deciphering what I myself have penned) I have totally and utterly NOT been able to read the presented text of Food Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of Our Edible World with any and all kind of ease (and yes, with the majority of Julia Rothman and Rachel Wharton's written words actually and generally escaping me meaning wise, with me having to constantly approximate what in fact most of the words I have encountered in Food Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of Our Edible World mean, what they indeed want to and have to say).
And albeit that what I have actually been able to decipher whilst reading (or rather whilst attempting to read) Food Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of Our Edible World has certainly been interesting, educational and enlightening enough in and of itself (although I personally was definitely also expecting more narrative, more explanatory analysis and less illustrations, since I actually downloaded Food Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of Our Edible World as an informational resource guide on food and was certainly not expecting a picture book), the fact that I ended up with a massive and all encompassing eyestrain induced tension headache and that I was forced to skim, to guess and to continuously be guessing what the impossible to easily read cursive writing font was attempting to present, this has most definitely and lastingly, utterly and totally soured me on this book, has absolutely made me only consider but one star at best for Food Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of Our Edible World (and to not at ALL consider in any manner ever recommending this book for ANYONE with vision or with visual tracking issues).
While I indeed was very much looking forward to Julia Rothman and Rachel Wharton's Food Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of Our Edible World, with my ageing eyes and my from this resulting issues to increasingly have rather massive visual issues with printed cursive writing of whatever size and thickness (and indeed even with hand-written cursive writing, as I increasingly am also having trouble reading and deciphering what I myself have penned) I have totally and utterly NOT been able to read the presented text of Food Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of Our Edible World with any and all kind of ease (and yes, with the majority of Julia Rothman and Rachel Wharton's written words actually and generally escaping me meaning wise, with me having to constantly approximate what in fact most of the words I have encountered in Food Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of Our Edible World mean, what they indeed want to and have to say).
And albeit that what I have actually been able to decipher whilst reading (or rather whilst attempting to read) Food Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of Our Edible World has certainly been interesting, educational and enlightening enough in and of itself (although I personally was definitely also expecting more narrative, more explanatory analysis and less illustrations, since I actually downloaded Food Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of Our Edible World as an informational resource guide on food and was certainly not expecting a picture book), the fact that I ended up with a massive and all encompassing eyestrain induced tension headache and that I was forced to skim, to guess and to continuously be guessing what the impossible to easily read cursive writing font was attempting to present, this has most definitely and lastingly, utterly and totally soured me on this book, has absolutely made me only consider but one star at best for Food Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of Our Edible World (and to not at ALL consider in any manner ever recommending this book for ANYONE with vision or with visual tracking issues).
October 30, 2016
Julia Rothman dishes up a beautifully illustrated guide to the basics of food and food preparation in her new installment Food Anatomy, the third in her Anatomy series. She covers a broad scope of topics, from food groups to spices to desserts and alcohol. The guide is not designed to be comprehensive but instead to introduce food basics such as appropriate terminology, how various cultures use the food item, and little known facts.
My favorite part of Food Anatomy was the trivia Rothman includes in each section. She provides details such as a flounder’s eyes start on each side of the fish but one eye migrates as the flounder ages so that both eyes end up on the same side. There are over 40,000 varieties of rice, and it is grown on every continent except Antarctica. Botanists believe that all citrus plants derive from four ancient wild plants. Rothman also explains the origin of the pretzel as well as that of the fortune cookie and describes how to tell whether fish and eggs are fresh or too old for consumption. The particulars regarding the way different cultures prepare various foods such as chicken, sandwiches, pastries, pizza and hot dogs were very informative, and the illustrations help the reader visualize the many food options the world offers. The other part I truly loved about Food Anatomy was the illustrations. Rothman’s drawings really add to the text and create a one-of-a-kind book.
At the end of this amazing book, the author includes a note stating that it took more than a year to create Food Anatomy. The time and effort it took Rothman and those helping her to bring this book to fruition is very evident. She traveled to various parts of the world to ensure numerous cultures were represented and then painstakingly (and stunningly) illustrated each and every topic. The result is a huge success that will appeal to a wide range of readers. I plan to order my own hard copy to keep on display in my kitchen for both reference and to just enjoy perusing from time to time.
I highly recommend this book. Food Anatomy would make a great gift for anyone, young or old. I would recommend buying it as a hard copy versus the Kindle edition so that the illustrations can truly be appreciated. Thanks to Storey Publishing and NetGalley for the chance to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
My favorite part of Food Anatomy was the trivia Rothman includes in each section. She provides details such as a flounder’s eyes start on each side of the fish but one eye migrates as the flounder ages so that both eyes end up on the same side. There are over 40,000 varieties of rice, and it is grown on every continent except Antarctica. Botanists believe that all citrus plants derive from four ancient wild plants. Rothman also explains the origin of the pretzel as well as that of the fortune cookie and describes how to tell whether fish and eggs are fresh or too old for consumption. The particulars regarding the way different cultures prepare various foods such as chicken, sandwiches, pastries, pizza and hot dogs were very informative, and the illustrations help the reader visualize the many food options the world offers. The other part I truly loved about Food Anatomy was the illustrations. Rothman’s drawings really add to the text and create a one-of-a-kind book.
At the end of this amazing book, the author includes a note stating that it took more than a year to create Food Anatomy. The time and effort it took Rothman and those helping her to bring this book to fruition is very evident. She traveled to various parts of the world to ensure numerous cultures were represented and then painstakingly (and stunningly) illustrated each and every topic. The result is a huge success that will appeal to a wide range of readers. I plan to order my own hard copy to keep on display in my kitchen for both reference and to just enjoy perusing from time to time.
I highly recommend this book. Food Anatomy would make a great gift for anyone, young or old. I would recommend buying it as a hard copy versus the Kindle edition so that the illustrations can truly be appreciated. Thanks to Storey Publishing and NetGalley for the chance to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
April 4, 2017
A delightful visual tour through international cuisine, giving an insight into cultures without being overwhelming with information, and making it an enjoyable reading and learning experience. This is one of those books that you have on your coffee table, and pick up to read a little before putting it down for another time, so read in small doses. It's full of food basics and information from cuisines around the world, told through a charming and colorful illustrated glossary with little facts.
December 21, 2016
Made expressly for those people who, like me, love reading posters with pictures of plant varieties on them.
September 9, 2016
This is an amazing reference book that I really enjoyed. I really appreciated the “few tasty words to know” – I’m always trying to expand my vocabulary and when it comes to food, I can’t know enough words to describe it! The illustrations of place settings around the world is amazing. I like that the “formal American” is right above the Chinese place setting – there’s an amazing difference between the two! I also wasn’t aware of so many different kinds of forks (asparagus has a fork?!) and spoons. This book also has illustration of different cooking methods around the world which I thought was brilliant to have all in one book. It’s definitely a book I’ll have to revisit often because there’s no way my brain can fit all of the info at once. It’s a great gift. The only “down” side is that sometimes the illustrations were too busy to focus on the information itself, but I understand the need for illustrations because there’ just so much great info!
December 24, 2024
I bought this book for our third son a few years back as a Christmas gift. (He’s a curious little cook/baker.) He loved it and I often find it tucked away in his bed (he’s now 12). I have flipped through it many times, but I finally sat down to read it all the way through, and I’m glad I did! It’s a delightful, wide-scope look at the world of food with illustrations on every page for everything (making it a great gift for curious children and a beautiful coffee table book or book to display on a counter). It covers so much but not with too much depth—inviting the reader to deeper exploration on their own, if they want. And again, a perfect introduction to food for kids. Highly recommend!
December 5, 2024
I've read this book so many times and I love it every time!
April 26, 2018
DNF @ page 116, though I skimmed through some of the later pages.
Maybe you can consider this just an extension of my reading slump, maybe I'm just in a bad mood, but I can definitively say, again, (though I know I am not the target audience for these books Julia Rothman does, clearly) that I am on the whole, underwhelmed.
It has come to my attention that your friendly neighborhood botanist (me) should not even attempt to read these books anymore, even when I get them out of the library, as was the case here. I keep spotting factual inaccuracies (albeit small ones that no one cares about except for me, probably) in these books, especially where the plants/fruits/veg are concerned. I know that I am probably one of a few who took Economic Botany for fun in college, but that class took some of the potential fun out of this for me.
I also cannot get past the "typos" (some of which are done in that horrendous cursive which does no favors to my understanding of the names of the foods from around the world) that are so glaringly obvious to me in aforementioned horrendous cursive which additionally slows the pace of my reading because IT'S NOT A GOOD FONT TO USE (and, I think as I have said last time, that's saying something, considering I read my husband's awful cursive [Sorry, Bryce] and the horrendous handwriting of children on the reg).
I thought this would at least offer something of interest for me, as someone who considers herself a terrible but budding cook, but this didn't really offer me any new information beyond some other names for fruits that are common in other languages, and specifics on where my cuts of meat come from (which I honestly could've googled just as easily if I ate enough meat to care).
I think these books (admittedly though I've only read part of this and Nature Anatomy) would be incredibly fascinating to children, or at least they would've been to me as a child and several children I know. Hence, my two-star rating. Once again, on the whole, I'm disappointed and underwhelmed as an adult, even though the illustrations are BEAUTIFUL.
Maybe you can consider this just an extension of my reading slump, maybe I'm just in a bad mood, but I can definitively say, again, (though I know I am not the target audience for these books Julia Rothman does, clearly) that I am on the whole, underwhelmed.
It has come to my attention that your friendly neighborhood botanist (me) should not even attempt to read these books anymore, even when I get them out of the library, as was the case here. I keep spotting factual inaccuracies (albeit small ones that no one cares about except for me, probably) in these books, especially where the plants/fruits/veg are concerned. I know that I am probably one of a few who took Economic Botany for fun in college, but that class took some of the potential fun out of this for me.
I also cannot get past the "typos" (some of which are done in that horrendous cursive which does no favors to my understanding of the names of the foods from around the world) that are so glaringly obvious to me in aforementioned horrendous cursive which additionally slows the pace of my reading because IT'S NOT A GOOD FONT TO USE (and, I think as I have said last time, that's saying something, considering I read my husband's awful cursive [Sorry, Bryce] and the horrendous handwriting of children on the reg).
I thought this would at least offer something of interest for me, as someone who considers herself a terrible but budding cook, but this didn't really offer me any new information beyond some other names for fruits that are common in other languages, and specifics on where my cuts of meat come from (which I honestly could've googled just as easily if I ate enough meat to care).
I think these books (admittedly though I've only read part of this and Nature Anatomy) would be incredibly fascinating to children, or at least they would've been to me as a child and several children I know. Hence, my two-star rating. Once again, on the whole, I'm disappointed and underwhelmed as an adult, even though the illustrations are BEAUTIFUL.
November 25, 2024
This is basically a heavily illustrated food miscellany. I came across it while trying to find food-focused artbooks. It covers lots of random information, touching on foods from all over the world (although you'll probably find yourself thinking of a particular food that could have been mentioned that isn't - one of the drawbacks of a work that tries to cover as much ground as this one).
There are illustrations for everything from place settings (formal American, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Korean, Indian/Nepalese) to different kinds of spoons and forks (but not, for some reason, knives, except as butchery tools later in the meat chapter), and more. I enjoyed some parts more than others. For example, the "parents of produce" section, in which the author looked at the fruits and vegetables that were selectively bred in order to make the edible varieties we see today, was interesting. The sandwiches section made my mouth water, even when I had no idea what the sandwich fillings might taste like.
There were some really random things, like the section on short order egg lingo, the anatomy of a food truck, and brief info about fortune cookies. It was interesting stuff, although I have no idea how the author decided which things to include and which not.
There are only a few recipes: noodle pudding (which might be better called a casserole), buttermilk pancakes, maple mocha pudding (which intrigues me just enough that I might actually try to make it), a drink called shikanjvi, and homemade butterscotch sauce. There are also instructions on how to make various things like tofu, butter, and vinegar.
I enjoyed this, but it was pretty much inevitable that it would end up skimming over things I'd have liked to read more about.
(Original review posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.)
There are illustrations for everything from place settings (formal American, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Korean, Indian/Nepalese) to different kinds of spoons and forks (but not, for some reason, knives, except as butchery tools later in the meat chapter), and more. I enjoyed some parts more than others. For example, the "parents of produce" section, in which the author looked at the fruits and vegetables that were selectively bred in order to make the edible varieties we see today, was interesting. The sandwiches section made my mouth water, even when I had no idea what the sandwich fillings might taste like.
There were some really random things, like the section on short order egg lingo, the anatomy of a food truck, and brief info about fortune cookies. It was interesting stuff, although I have no idea how the author decided which things to include and which not.
There are only a few recipes: noodle pudding (which might be better called a casserole), buttermilk pancakes, maple mocha pudding (which intrigues me just enough that I might actually try to make it), a drink called shikanjvi, and homemade butterscotch sauce. There are also instructions on how to make various things like tofu, butter, and vinegar.
I enjoyed this, but it was pretty much inevitable that it would end up skimming over things I'd have liked to read more about.
(Original review posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.)
May 24, 2022
i love reading about food history so this was perfect for me. and the illustrations made it all the more engaging. i do wish it had an index, however. a couple times i wanted to confirm i had remembered something correctly but could not find what i was looking for when i flipped back.
but overall, an absolute delight. my favorite chapter, of course, was the one on sweets. i've already bought a copy for my stepson who has shown interest in cooking. :)
but overall, an absolute delight. my favorite chapter, of course, was the one on sweets. i've already bought a copy for my stepson who has shown interest in cooking. :)
May 4, 2024
I read every word of this. I loved it.
June 19, 2023
If this book had a thousand pages I would read every single one.
March 27, 2025
Zelo zanimiva knjiga s čudovitimi ilustracijami, prav tako sem se veliko naučila. Veliko je ameriških običajev in hrane, in pa espresso kava je napisana kot kava ekspres 😱
May 3, 2021
Book 120 of 2021
3.5 ✨
3.5 ✨
April 26, 2017
A digitized ARC of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Review WIP
To me, Food Anatomy is a book a bit hard to describe, as in, I actually have quite a mix feeling towards it; it was SO GOOD, in a sense that it covered a broad range of odd and fascinating pieces of factual information on just about anything, but also a little too good, good enough to make me wish it were MORE in-dephth on all the subjects.... Does that make any sense?
For a book titled "Food Anatomy", this book did a decent job with the book length it has, because the word "food" just has too much under its big umbrella to begin with. See this as something fairly close to an encyclopedia specifically about food. There's a total of 9 chapters (sans the introduction) that are all supremely well done. When I said "encyclopedia", I mean it, literally, because this book fits this particular description: "compendium holding a comprehensive summary of information". To me though, it was so good that I'm borderline not satisfied to be only getting the summary of information; I wanted the info with all its nitty-gritty details without it being concise. I'll try to elaborate what I mean.
Review WIP
Review WIP
To me, Food Anatomy is a book a bit hard to describe, as in, I actually have quite a mix feeling towards it; it was SO GOOD, in a sense that it covered a broad range of odd and fascinating pieces of factual information on just about anything, but also a little too good, good enough to make me wish it were MORE in-dephth on all the subjects.... Does that make any sense?
For a book titled "Food Anatomy", this book did a decent job with the book length it has, because the word "food" just has too much under its big umbrella to begin with. See this as something fairly close to an encyclopedia specifically about food. There's a total of 9 chapters (sans the introduction) that are all supremely well done. When I said "encyclopedia", I mean it, literally, because this book fits this particular description: "compendium holding a comprehensive summary of information". To me though, it was so good that I'm borderline not satisfied to be only getting the summary of information; I wanted the info with all its nitty-gritty details without it being concise. I'll try to elaborate what I mean.
Review WIP
May 31, 2018
This book is fantastic. It would be a great gift to any foodie you know - whether they prefer to cook or go out.
I learned:
• Rum is made of sugar cane & molasses, Tequila is made of agave, Vodka is made of potatoes, etc. Never realized that regional drinks are made of regional crops - who knew?!
• Brown sugar is refined sugar + molasses
• The bread in Ethiopian dishes is a fermented bread
• The name of what I thought was a secret sauce from a beloved restaurant (now I have the recipe!)
• Plenty of food facts that will make me seem like the knowledgeable foodie I pretend to be
I learned:
• Rum is made of sugar cane & molasses, Tequila is made of agave, Vodka is made of potatoes, etc. Never realized that regional drinks are made of regional crops - who knew?!
• Brown sugar is refined sugar + molasses
• The bread in Ethiopian dishes is a fermented bread
• The name of what I thought was a secret sauce from a beloved restaurant (now I have the recipe!)
• Plenty of food facts that will make me seem like the knowledgeable foodie I pretend to be
January 12, 2017
The art is so great that I'm probably giving this book a higher rating than the content merits. The information is fun but very surface level. It needs a lot more depth and detail to be truly interesting.
January 28, 2017
This was a Christmas present from my daughter, who knew of my love of cooking and interest in various foods and processes. it's cute - some useful bits, pretty to look at, fun to flip through with her - but not anything substantial. It's the book to buy the foodie who has everything.
November 7, 2020
My son had so many questions about grains and other kinds of food that we cook and eat. This book had it all. Very educative for kids. Love all the books written by this author.
April 11, 2022
I meandered through this book over several months. Fun to look at the illustrations and learn about various foods around the world. Quite enjoyable!
September 11, 2023
Awesome illustrations of everything you never knew about food and eating (what all the different forks are for, types of wild and hybrid citrus, and what the heck is clotted cream?).
January 9, 2025
Beautifully illustrated.
February 12, 2017
Cool drawings on all kinds of food from all over the world.
October 11, 2017
Such a beautiful and fun "read"/mostly picture book! Great book to keep for a coffee table. And some recipes that I will actually try too!
February 6, 2018
A nice, short read about food?
SIGN ME UP!
SIGN ME UP!
April 13, 2021
Quick, informative read in a fun illustrated format. Left me wanting a bit more depth on some of the topics though.
April 15, 2022
What a fun book. What anyone would want to know about food, prep, origins, history, plants, serving, silverware…….
Full of illustrations!
Full of illustrations!
February 13, 2020
Delightful—truly a "palette for your palate."
My only criticism is the often hard-to-read handwriting-style fonts throughout.
My only criticism is the often hard-to-read handwriting-style fonts throughout.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 164 reviews