Paradox of Plenty or Families of the Vine

Paradox of Plenty: A Social History of Eating in Modern America (California Studies in Food and Culture)

Author: Harvey Levenstein

In this sweeping history of food and eating in modern America, Harvey Levenstein explores the social, economic, and political factors that have shaped the American diet since 1930.

Table of Contents:

	Prologue : depression paradoxes	3
1	Depression dieting and the vitamin gold rush	9
2	The great regression : the new woman goes home	24
3	From Burgoo to Howard Johnson's : eating out in depression America	40
4	One-third of a nation ill nourished?	53
5	Oh what a healthy war : nutrition for national defense	64
6	Food shortages for the people of plenty	80
7	The golden age of food processing : miracle whip uber Alles	101
8	The best-fed people the world has ever seen?	119
9	Cracks in the facade : 1958-1965	131
10	The politics of hunger	144
11	Nutritional terrorism	160
12	The politics of food	178
13	Natural foods and negative nutrition	195
14	Darling, where did you put the cardamom?	213
15	Fast foods and quick bucks	227
16	Paradoxes of plenty	237

Book review: Il capo del servizio (la serie del Ken Blanchard): Cinque azioni potenti che trasformeranno la vostra squadra, il vostro commercio e la vostra Comunit�

Families of the Vine: Seasons among the Winemakers of Southwest France

Author: Michael S Sanders

Author Michael Sanders spent two years in the vineyards of southwest France with three families whose destinies are determined each year, every year, by the soil, the weather, and the quality of the grape, and shared with them the hopes of spring, the anguish of summer drought, and the mad rush of the fall harvest. In Families of the Vine, he offers a vivid, heartfelt portrait of these authentic winemakers in a fascinating, intensely human saga of strength, dedication, and savoir faire. Though their wines may differ, they all share a powerful, uncompromising passion for the timeless craft that defines them.

Library Journal

To the south of the more familiar Bordeaux region lie the vineyards of Cahors (pronounced CAH-or) that have also produced robust wines for over 1000 years. Sanders (From Here, You Can't See Paris) turns his talents to following several families there during the ups and downs of the winemaking year. Through conversations, a bit of history, and vivid descriptions of occurrences outside the vintners' control (e.g., the devastating 2003 drought), the author aptly illustrates how family traditions, French regulations, climate, business skills, and the winemaker's expertise contribute to each year's production. Like William Echikson's Noble Rot: A Bordeaux Wine Revolution, Sanders's book brings contemporary winemaking in France to life. The text concludes with a brief guide on where to stay, where to dine, and sample wines in the Cahors appellation. Absorbing and informative; for larger public libraries and special collections.-Andrea R. Dietze, Orange Cty. P.L., Santa Ana, CA Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews

With great respect and admiration, Sanders (From Here, You Can't See Paris, 2002, etc.) pores over the convivial and welcoming wines of southern France. As he chronicles a year among three of the region's producers, Sanders depicts French wine shorn of pretense, as a part of everyday life more than a commodity. The text focuses on vin de Cahors, a local petit vin grown in the valleys and hills of the Lot River. Sanders describes the elegance and specific geology of this ancient wine-producing region, which can trace its heritage back 2,000 years. He concentrates on three growers, delineating their various approaches and the little finesses they bring to their work. Winemaking here is in touch with its roots: coopers continue to make the barrels; no filtration subtracts from the wine's character; butterflies are looked upon warily as harbingers of blight. The narrative voice is as companionable as the subject-and bell clear, which readers might not be after a few glasses of dark, meaty Cahors wine, characterized by the author as an ordinary, unthreatening, but very tasteful drink. Recounting the education of a sommelier becomes the reader's education too. (How to get the right bottle for the meal? Ask!) Sanders salutes the local makers' iconoclasm. On the one hand, they are happy that vin de Cahors has been elevated to the status of an appellation controlee (certification of a certain level of quality), yet they also happily plant grapes outside the prescribed varietals, devoting an acre to cabernet franc or sauvignon blanc. As one grower said, "We make the white and the rose for our own amusement, because it makes a change, a little something different." A refreshing portrait of wine notas an elite mystery, but as a product wrung from the earth by honest labor.