This was such an interesting and fascinating read and it has caused me many bouts of the giggles. It was very interesting to see some of the traditions that have been lost and those that still exist today. Being a doubting Thomas I did check some of the events and discoverd that yes they do still happen today and now I have made a list of those that I want to go and see.
I reached the end and then saw that I still had 1 hr to go and the acknowledgements and cross reference sections were just as interesting as the book itself. Ben has done a lot of research from many sources and presented the facts in a wonderful manner.
I am ordering copies of this book as Christmas gifts for some of my family as it is a pick up andread a bit book which is suitable for a coffee table to encourage additional conversation from guests.

*This book was received as an advanced reviewer's copy from NetGalley.

One of my favorite genres is food history. So naturally when it's about bizarre history, even better. I can't say that I found most of this bizarre, but it was certainly interesting, and there were definitely a few characters thrown in.

Gazur takes us through British food stories, in sections denoted by type of food (produce, meats, etc.) and the local folklore or tales that may have incorporated them. From not eating with fairies (well, depending on where you are), to believing that witches really love milk, there is a wide variety of topics.

I found the writing mostly good, with quips of humor interspersed among the facts. While it could get a bit repetitive and dry at times, it isn't nearly as bad as an actual textbook on the work and definitely a book more for personal consumption. That being said, if you're not into food or folklore, this probably isn't high up on your reading list (but really, those are great topics and they should be). I definitely think for your average food-obsessed person though, this is one you don't want to miss.

Review by M. Reynard 2024

Thanks to Netgalley, Unbound, and Ben Gazur for this E-ARC.

The combination of history, food, superstition, and culture made for an easy, enjoyable reading experience. This book is witty, informative, and overall a lot of fun. I enjoyed sharing some of the more odd facts and origin tales with my partner while reading. I think this book would make a great gift for a wide variety of people (I actually have a person in mind I'm going to pick up a copy for). This is a book you can pick up more than once rather than reading it once and never picking it up again.
I love the cover design, and after reading, I think it fits the books perfectly. If you are intrigued by the cover and title, you'll like the content as well. My one issue is with the formatting on my kindle. It was a bit choppy with widows and orphans and some strange line breaks. I did not dock any stars for this issue as this may be cleaned up before final release and only an issue on the E-ARC copies.

An entertaining collection of bits of British folklore and beliefs surrounding food and drink.

Organized by subject (vegetables, fruit, fish, milk, bread, etc.) Gazur then gives us local beliefs connected to the food or drink. I was amazed at the number of 'cures' for warts and whooping coughs that went with each food- some of them truly disgusting. Almost none of these stories can be traced back to a specific time or place so are just listed, making the few that can be traced or explained more exciting and memorable. Finally- an explanation for why we think carrots let you see in the dark!

Gazut has a sense of humor while writing and this is the kind of book that can be easily picked up and put down in small bites, as well as shared with plenty of other people. You don't necessarily need to be a chef or a history lover to find this an entertaining and interesting read. A good gift book for food lovers!

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

This was so much fun. As a little bit of a foodie there was some seriously fascinating information in this book. It was a joy to read, it had all this information but it didn't read like a dry textbook. This was a very engaging read, anyone who loves food will love this!

What a fascinating book, although I think my family may be fed up with me sharing so many snippets.
I liked the writer's style which was informative and amusing and the book flowed nicely. I was surprised by the origins of some superstitions and quite how much seemed to be celebrated by throwing different food at people! This is definitely a volume to dip into and I look forward to sharing it with others - possibly in their Christmas stockings.
Thank you to netgalley and Unbound for an advance copy of this book

This book is an absolute delight. I love food factoids and this book was filled with wonderful explanations for behind certain food rituals - some that I knew and some that were new to me. This is the kind of book I will dip into for years and definitely one that will take pride of place on my reference shelf. A Feast of Folklore is well written, well researched and utterly entertaining. I would highly recommend to all foodies and food geeks out there as well as anyone who is interested in folklore and the mad, bad and and wonderful superstitions, rituals and customs we have developed around food! After reading the ARC, I have already pre-ordered a copy that I can keep.

Thank you so much to the publishers, and Net Galley for the advance copy.

I'll add links to Good Reads and my blog once they are written.

A Feast of Folklore by Ben Gazur is an engaging exploration of the strange and fascinating food traditions that have shaped British culture. Gazur’s writing is as flavorful as the folklore he examines, offering a mix of historical insight and personal reflection that draws the reader in from the very first page. The book opens with a thoughtful musing on the origins of superstitions, like the practice of throwing salt over one’s shoulder, illustrating how deeply rooted—and often mysterious—these rituals are in our everyday lives.

Gazur’s approach is refreshingly down-to-earth, acknowledging the complexity and sometimes contradictory nature of folklore. He doesn’t pretend to have all the answers but instead invites readers to ponder the same questions that inspired him to write the book. The charm of A Feast of Folklore lies in its ability to make us see the magic in the mundane, turning ordinary kitchen items into keys to the past.

For anyone interested in the quirks of history and the peculiarities of human behavior, this book is a delightful read that’s sure to leave you with a new appreciation for the stories behind the foods we eat.

Thank you to @netgalley and the publisher for the eARC in return for an honest review.

This is a non-fiction book about the origins our food habits which have been passed down through generations of folklore.

This a great book for reading passages out loud to the family.

I thoroughly enjoying the stories and information within each chapter.

A great book for everyone interested historians and kitchen folk alike.

Gazur’s writing style easy to follow and not over complicated

I will read this book again and I highly recommend it to those who are looking for a good read on a bizarre topic.

This was a fun read on history and folklore in relation to food. It was well researched and concise, everything I could want in a book like this. Looking forward to getting a physical copy when it releases.

A real treat packed full of facts relating to two of my favourite subjects, food and history, so a winner from the start really.
There were plenty of morsels that I didn’t already know plus a few that I did but it was all presented in a fascinating way and in bite sized sections which made it easy to dip in and out of (I promise I’ll stop the food puns at some point, couldn’t resist)
It seems we are a really superstitious lot and paranoid about the things that are most important to us, notably staying well enough fed and also finding love so there are plenty of rituals that involve either or both of those topics. There were also some brilliant snippets of local history which I didn’t already know including about my adopted home county of Hertfordshire.
I can see this book having wide appeal and I wish it all the success it obviously deserves.

I got this as an arc on Netgalley and it will come out this month. This was a light and interesting read for those interested in random folklore and history. I enjoyed reading this.

[ARC Review]

A Feast of Folklore definitely made me hungry when reading it!

I really enjoyed this piece of non-fiction. I rarely read non-fiction so when I requested this one, I hoped it would not bore me as other forms of non-fiction have done so in the past, and I was greatly surprised.

Gazur writes about everything food imaginable, including even fairy food! His writing was very extensive, showing a lot of research and love was put into this book to make it informative as well as enjoyable. He effortlessly makes big paragraphs of text not boring but making funny little one-liners that made me chuckle and want to read more. I especially loved reading about pancake lore and how for many years there was an annual pancake tossing competition somewhere in the UK.

This book has helped me appreciate the tradition behind certain foods that I have eaten in my life, and how traditions are for everyone,

My only qualm is that one or two sections are dragged a little too long, but they were still interesting regardless.

And as Gazur put it "Long may folklore continue to be generated. It adds a little bit of spice both to our meals and to our lives."

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with this e-arc in exchange for a free, honest review.

Well researched book on the folklore of different foods, specifically. A little bit of history and interesting facts. Liked the cover!

I would like NetGalley and Unbound for the ARC.

Charming compilation of historical facts about foods passed down though the ages in the folk tradition. Great to dip into for entertaining stories about everyday food items.

3.75

If you are interested in folklore and superstitions regarding food and wonder where they came from and their history, this is absolutely the book for you!

Although it focuses mostly on the UK’s perspective on history and folklore, a lot of the beliefs and sayings are international so no matter where you’re from, you’ll recognize quite a few. As someone from Portugal, I was already quite familiar with some of them, by hearing about them from movies or online, but also by having contact with the translated version of it in my own language. But others were new to me and quite interesting to figure out the historical context where such beliefs were born.

It’s witty, it’s interesting, it will teach you about the world of food throughout history. I will be recommending this book to quite a few people.


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Review will be posted on Instagram and on Amazon in the near future.

3.25 stars. An interesting and well researched book looking at the many and varied folklore stories that relate to food and drink. There are some truly weird and not too wonderful examples, and you do wonder at some of our ancestors, for example thinking that putting some of a particular cake under their pillow, then walking backwards to bed saying a rhyme would show them who they’d marry. You see how some stories are widespread (maybe with minor variations), but also there are some very regional food items or folklore.

I received a free ARC copy of this via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review.

It was an easy and fun read, just what I needed. I am not a Brit, but it was fun to know that some of the 'recipes' for diseases are the same as the ones we have in the other end of Europe. I got it as a ARC on Kindle, but I plan to buy a physical copy as well, just so I can have easy access to the different lore and stories

Weird and Wonderful, A Feast of Folklore is an evocative look at food traditions and the fabled roots that they have derived from. Culinary enthusiast will enjoy this fresh take on food history. Written in a quirky and fun cadence readers will be delighted and sometimes appalled ( in a good way!)

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

I do love a book that takes you back in time and when it involves food I love it even more. This is such a fun and interesting read and I enjoyed it and was definitely entertained by it. It is so much fun and is a book you can read again and again finding things you may have missed the first time. It is a fun way to learn as it is very informative yet it is full of humour and light-heartedness.

Folklore, ancient remedies, superstitions, customs of the times and so much more. A well presented and well researched book, a great read and if you love food and history, stories and tales from the past you will love this book. I did!

Thank you NetGalley and Unbound for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.