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Summary: Not just a book about a fish
Review: This is not just a book about a fish--the groundfish or cod. It is also and primarily a work of economic history. Each chapter suggests an entire subject. Examples: The role of the Hanseatic League in the development of Atlantic fisheries, and the similar role of the European Union; The role of New England merchants in the slave trade through providing the sustenance for Caribbean slaves; the impact of the Industrial Revolution on the degradation of the Atlantic fisheries; the role of international bodies in the 20th century, both in elevating environmental issues to international prominence and in providing a forum for lesser national interests such as Iceland and Canada. Aside from these issues and their human focus, the book is also about a fish, and the role that such a creature can play in our lives. It is a very interesting book.
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Summary: Fascinating history of a formerly ubiquitous fish
Review: So you thought the spice trade was important in the history of exploration and discovery? It may run a close second to the cod. Kurlansky writes a compelling history of the role that cod has played in everything from the American revolution to European wars between trawlers and coast guard vessels to the 50s Friday evening fishsticks.
At the same time, Kurlansky also uses the cod to describe how our increasingly "efficient" exploitation of fishing resources is rebounding against us. These methods have nearly killed off a tough, prolific breeder that eats almost anything. The days of hunting fish may be behind us; fish farms may be all that we have in our future.
The book is also filled with interesting recipes from the past and the present, including ways of restoring dried, salted cod to succulence. Hammers, lye and slow soaking all make an appearance. On the side of fresh cod, everything from eastern Canadian fishcakes to Daniel Webster's address to Congress on how to make a proper chowder are included.
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Summary: This book will grab you hook, line and sinker.
Review: I don't even like fish, but I thoroughly enjoyed this wide-ranging socio-economic (and gastronomic) study of how one single food source moved people and nations over the centuries. Kurlansky has an engaging style, and combines a sense of humor with a sense of urgency in looking at man's relation to the natural world--or what is left of it. My one quibble is that he looks at evolution in terms of species survival rather than individual survival (might I suggest to Mr. Kurlansky that he dip into The Selfish Gene?). But that is a small quibble. Here is the real history of the exploration and exploitation of the North Atlantic as that greediest of all species spreads its nets ever wider, gobbling up everything in its path
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Summary: I liked this book about.....Cod?
Review: I did. Not many people would write a book about Cod and before I read it, I wouldn't have considered myself one who would read the biography of a fish. But, it's more of a history lesson than a biography and I was surprised at how convincingly the author argued that Cod have, in fact, changed the world
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting and informative , but ...
Review: This book is another interesting and informative, but narrow subject history book of the type this author prefers to write. In some sections it poses as a cookbook. I was irritated by the amount of text actually devoted to Codfish recipes, when what I purchased was a historical type book . The author has a very good writing style. The book covers the early history of some cultures that took advantage of this bottom dwelling fish prized for its unique white meat. The Codfish affected these early cultures as it still does today, where regional and national economies are suffering from the impact of worldwide diminishing Codfish stocks in spite of some sporadic conservation measures.
This reader recommends ignoring the all too frequent codfish recipes interspersed with the good historical information. This book makes for a fine compact interesting history of man's relationship with the Codfish. Ignore the historical section and I suppose it would be a passable Codfish cookbook.
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Summary: Perfect For Detail Junkies
Review: Cod is not for every reader, reflecting as it does the author's deep interest in history, and how individual foods relate to history. What the book gives to thoughtful readers is true context along with its detail. Kurlansky drives home a real point: you cannot separate the fish from the men who risk and lose their lives to extract it from the sea, nor can the food be divorced from the dollars it represents. In culinary terms, I was inspired to start cooking with dried cod; it's the kind of thing you don't notice in your supermarket until something--this book in my case--sticks it into your consciousness with no going back. As a real "foodie" and an incurable history buff, I am thankful that writers like Kurlansky go to the trouble of applying their talents to subjects like this.Food writer Elliot Essman's other reviews and food articles are available at www.stylegourmet.com
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Summary: A bitter ecological tale for our time
Review: This is a fascinating book. It's also very sad, because it illustrates the ability of modern people to almost unconsciously wipe out the natural resources of our planet. Codfish were once the "buffalo" of the oceans -- big, fat, useful and dumb. As one early explorer wrote, to catch cod all you need do is lower and bucket into the water and haul it back up full of fish. Sorta like buffalo in the days when passengers could shoot them from the windows of passing trains as a harmless sport intended solely to break the boredom of the trip. Yes, this book is a bitter ecological tale for our time. It is also a wonderful history of a marvelous fish. Kurlansky obviously had fun writing it, and his love of cod shows in the comfortable style of his writing. He delves into word origins for the different ways used to describe cod, and he plays with the history of a dozen or so nations to illustrate the impact one fish had on entire peoples. Plus, he includes dozens of recipes by which cod was cooked for generations. But he also explains why such an international treasure has almost vanished. "Whatever steps are taken, one of the greatest obstacles to restoring cod stocks off Newfoundland is an almost pathological collective denial of what has happened," Kurlansky writes near the end of the book. "Newfoundlanders seem prepared to believe anything other than they have killed off nature's bounty." What happened? Kurlansky writes that "One Canadian journalist published an article pointing out that the cod disappeared from Newfoundland at about the same time that stocks started rebuilding in Norway. "Clearly the northern stock had packed up and migrated to Norway," he adds. If this is the Canadian attitude, in one of the self-proclaimed best educated and wealthiest of nations, it's not hard to understand why and how Third World nations have environmental problems. My personal experience with a similar depletion is in the Sea of Cortez, where Mexican fishermen have taken about 20 years to just about exterminate the sharks. Shrimp boats, based in Puerto Penasco, have likewise decimated the shrimp. Who's to blame? The United States, of course, because the Americans built dams on the Colorado River which prevents the river water from reaching the sea. There's always someone else to blame. As I said earlier, it's a sad book. Yet, it is an excellent one and perhaps one of the most appropriate to read in terms of what is fast happening to our marine life. Cod are invisible, not like cute furry little baby seals which so excited Europeans a few years ago when they saw how Canadians clubbed them to death to avoid marking the fur. If the future of our world depends on cute pictures on TV, then our future is truly in deplorable shape. But, the fact this book exists and is written with elegance, style, wit and great insight, may persuade thick-headed politicians that even "invisible" wildlife deserves protection from our greed and ignorance. If not, and having known many politicians for many years I'm not optimistic, it is a beautiful elegy to a noble fish. What happens when a native species disappears? Well, two centuries ago the US Southwest had some of the world's finest grasslands. Then came the Russian Thistle, an almost useless weed that choked out the grass. Now we celebrate this import in song, "See them tumbling along . . . . . the tumbling tumbleweeds." It happens.
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Summary: hungry for a lost fish
Review: A purse-sized history of the cod fishery, from the Basques & vikings to the fishes' modern decimation by large scale bottom-dragging. The social & historical ramifications spawned (no pun intended) by the international quest for this fish are incredible. Kurlansky's book weaves historical accounts in choronological order with hundreds of years of recipes for preparing cod. Though the book was well-written, concise, and highly interesting, I found it oddly incongruous to read about the vast decimation of this species yet find myself hungry for the very same fish after reading the next page's recipe for it.
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Summary: The fish that changed the world.
Review: Cod is a story for the ages.Not only was it the way of life for many, it was a major reason European's set sail across the atlantic to reach America. Mark Kurlansky, the author of the book "COD", worked for many years on commercial fishing boats so he had a backround of fish before writting the book. Kurlansky's use of words in the book not only explains to you in detail the way of life of ancient Basque fisherman, but he makes you feel as if you were in the times of when Basque fishing was an uprising prominent respected job. The book is so intruiging the way Kurlansky sums up the history of cod, and describes it as an adventure of the century. To read this book would broden ones horizon of the history of our past and would enlighten the reader that cod not only changed the world but made it what it is today.
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Summary: A Cod piece
Review: Overall, I thought Cod to be an "ok" read. It's strongest points were the inclusion of historic references to cod, images, and recipes - a novel approach for a non-fiction work. I also found the stories of contemporary cod fishermen (who aren't allowed to fish!) quite compassionate and the history of Basque fishers-of-cod both enlightening and surprising. However, Kurlansky was often repetitive with his cod anecdotes, and I found his writing style to be a bit cumbersome and slow. I'm a big fan of John McPhee's work, which exemplifies the essay as poetry, and I had hoped that Kurlansky might offer a new, strong voice in the non-fiction, natural history essay. I was a bit disappointed that the central text read much like an undergrad research paper. I do plan to read his recent book Salt because I find the subject premise intriguing. If you like eating fish or fishing, are interested in how natural and human history intertwine, or are simply a fan of nature writing, I would recommend giving Cod a try.
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