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Cod
  • Published: 5 February 1999
  • ISBN: 9780099268703
  • Imprint: Vintage
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 304
  • RRP: $26.99
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Cod

Formats & editions
Paperback
5 Feb 1999
EBook
28 Feb 2011
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Charting the waves a mere fish can send through history, Kurlansky has fashioned an epic masterpiece out of a seemingly small subject.

'Who would ever think that a book on cod would make a compulsive read? And yet this is precisely what Kurlansky has done' Express on Sunday

The Cod. Wars have been fought over it, revolutions have been triggered by it, national diets have been based on it, economies and livelihoods have depended on it. To the millions it has sustained, it has been a treasure more precious that gold. This book spans 1,000 years and four continents. From the Vikings to Clarence Birdseye, Mark Kurlansky introduces the explorers, merchants, writers, chefs and fisherman, whose lives have been interwoven with this prolific fish. He chronicles the cod wars of the 16th and 20th centuries. He blends in recipes and lore from the Middle Ages to the present. In a story that brings world history and human passions into captivating focus, he shows how the most profitable fish in history is today faced with extinction.
  • Published: 5 February 1999
  • ISBN: 9780099268703
  • Imprint: Vintage
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 304
  • RRP: $26.99
Categories:

About the author

Mark Kurlansky

Mark Kurlansky is the New York Times bestselling author of many books, including The Food of a Younger Land; Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World; Salt: A World History; 1968: The Year That Rocked the World; The Big Oyster: History on the Half Shell; and Paper: Paging Through History. He lives in New York City.
portrait photo of Mark Kurlansky

Also by Mark Kurlansky

Salmon
City Beasts
Ready for a Brand New Beat
Birdseye
Las Estrellas Orientales
The Last Fish Tale
The Eastern Stars
See all

Praise for Cod

A must-have book for anyone who loves fish. Kurlansky was innovative (and is now much imitated) in writing a book about how a commodity shaped history.

The Week

This is an extraordinary little book, unputdownable, written in the most lyrical, flowing style which paints vivid pictures and, at the same time, punches into place hard facts that stop you dead in your tracks. Who would ever think that a book on cod would make a compulsive read? And yet this is precisely what Kurlansky has done

Sir Roy Strong, Express on Sunday

An engrossing and timely little epic

Scotsman

To go out and buy a book on the subject (of cod) is to invite glances of suspicion. While a few eccentrics might think this is a good reason to purchase several copies, for the rest of us it requires a certain leap of faith. Cod...amply rewards such a leap. It is compact and beautifully produced

Mail on Sunday

Refreshing and invigorating, full of fascinating facts

Independent on Sunday