This book is both unusual and entertaining. It’s a very easy read but if you have any interest in food and even minor internet in folklore, I think you’ll find the content absolutely fascinating. It’s divided into short sections which consider different foods or food related subjects and then looks at the origins of legend associated with that food. I didn’t know that parsley had association with the devil and although it’s not always easy to attribute origins of some myths and folklore, it’s fascinating to read and consider the likely reasons. A cracking book to dip into and I’ve learned a lot. It would make a great gift fir a foodie.

I’ve read a lot of books about the history of food, and written one, but l wasn’t impressed. This reads like a string of anecdotes pulled together without any context or depth. Very little or no awareness of how food and class are inseparable. Did not finish.

This book was such a fun ride. I learned such a broad variety of food folklore, some which felt reasonable and others that were very bizarre indeed. I liked that the present day was consistently included with references to festivals and traditional events that happen today that celebrate the food myths.

It was really well structured, as it took you through each food/ingredient and went through common superstitions or illnesses that the ingredient was used to treat which was eye opening. It did get a bit repetitive and some of the folklore I personally felt wasn't that interesting - personally I would've preferred if it was organised by classic superstitions or myths rather than the ingredients because it did start to feel slightly monotonous.

Other than that, loved the concept of the book and it did teach me some interesting facts (who knew carrots don't actually help you see in the dark, it was a myth created in WW2 so civilians didn't know about cutting edge tech to see in the dark the military had?!)

Last year I read a few pretty heavy non-fiction books because I was in the headspace for it. But this year, I've read mostly fiction. I still want to learn new things but I also want to think good things about humanity. This lovely food and folklore history was just what I needed, especially coming into Halloween which is the time I think most about tradition and superstitions.

I love reading about the stories we tell ourselves to make sense of human experience.

Reading this book I couldn't believe how many cures for warts and whooping cough. Similarly, I was charmed by the number of foods we used to divine who we would marry or when. There are also some interesting portents of death and ill omens.

There's the stuff we already may be familiar with, but don't know the origins of - like why we get oranges at Christmas or never disposing of eggshells in a fire. And then there are stories I had never heard before about rabbits and lampreys and pies that blackbirds actually flew out of.

The superstitions in this book are sometimes ridiculous and sometime heart-warming but always fascinating. And the author's writing style is human and accessible, as well as funny.

I just have to remember to bake a cake next time I lose my keys!

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I enjoy folklore in all forms and I love food. One of my favourite academics is Richard Tellström, so this book fit me like a glove. The texts are easy to follow and very well structured.

This is more of a book you keep at hand to reference different folklore about food than to read from cover to cover but, oh, what a nice book it is for that purpose.

You don’t need to be a chef to enjoy this volume. Combining history and food, this is a look into superstitions and traditions from the beginning of time. It is limited to Britain, as extending it all over the world would require millions of pages. As it is, it shows a lot of fun beliefs through the ages. I don’t cook, but knowledge of the culinary art is not required, as some of the concoctions discussed involve dung, dirt or ashes. It is amusing to see how much we’ve changed - or maybe how little? The historical part was especially fascinating, setting all these superstitions in context. There was one thing that I didn’t like at all, and it’s all the casual animal cruelty. We now laugh at how people could possibly think those practices could do anything but torture a living creature but, for an extreme animal lover like me, it was painful to read. I did love the author’s sense of humor and the rest of the content.
I chose to read this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. Thank you, NetGalley/Unbound.

This book was not what i thought it would be, i thought it would delve more into folklore but really its anecdotes about food history that touches on folklore. I feel like it could have been edited better as it broke up by the food item and a lot of the items have similar folklore so maybe it would have been best to organise by the history than the particular item. Im sure people will love this as it is fun but just wasnt for me

I certainly liked the idea of delving into origins of various foodie habits - tossing salt over the left shoulder type things. The book was separated by the foods - onions, turnips, beef and so on. The author has clearly done a lot of research and I found the references at the back to be the most interesting part. It's not just that many of the folkloric events are quite familiar to those of us of a certain older generation but the lack of much detail as to why they might have developed was disappointing. Quite a few tales seemed rather superficial I'm afraid. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy.

A very interesting book, full of tales and myths surrounding food throughout the ages. Well researched and documented.

A very interesting read discussing the myths and strange traditions passed down in British food culture. I was throughly entertained and you will be too. Highly recommend

I enjoyed reading this book. I liked the way it was organized and the incorporation of a few pictures. I did think that this book would be a bit more whimsical than it is. It is definitely more of a history of food folklore in England rather than a collection of folklore stories about food. Because of this it seems like the kind of book you would flip through and read a few sections of at a time rather than reading it from cover to cover.

This is a very solid book by Ben Gazur on the way food intersects with culture and folklore history. I was so intrigued by the idea, and generally the concept stuck well, though the execution was not exactly what I may have hoped for.

The writing itself was more short snippets of facts or quick anecdotes rather than more drawn out prose. It almost read more as a book of facts and fun information than a storytelling book. Sections often ran together and the delineation of sections and chapters was not clear. This could have been a factor of my advanced copy and may be cleared up, along with quite a bit of formatting difficulties in my kindle copy.

Overall I enjoyed the book, and would love a follow up version digging a bit more into the history, culture, and impacts of food and folklore with fewer and more in-depth stories. Which I suppose means I’m hungry for more!

Special thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for the ARC!

A Feast of Folklore is an in-depth cultural exploration of many foodstuffs, from how eating cakes impacted lives to the superstitions of fruit. It's written really well, and with the occasional illustration popping up now and then, it's set in a cohesive way that's easy to digest (get it? Haha). It's actually such a fun and interesting read, getting this little insight to the minds of the past--an almost different world to today--yet the many customs and superstitions that still exist give a little bit of relatability to the notion that things connect us more than it seems. I really enjoyed reading it.

A Feast of Folklore by Ben Gazur would make a perfect gift for any foodie or history fan who appreciates quirky facts.

My thanks to NetGalley and Unbound for a copy of “A Feast Of Folklore” for an honest review.

This book was just the right combination of informative and entertaining.
It is an ideal book to keep dipping into and to learn something new.Really interesting to find out how some of the traditions related to food originated, although I did have to skim through some of the facts about meat !
Highly recommended

This book was much more entertaining than I had expected it to be. I found myself reading passages out loud to the family and enjoying the stories and information within each chapter. It took me three days to read it, the time would have been much shorter if family members had not picked up my kindle to read this book every time I put it down. A great but for historians and kitchen folk alike.

What a fun read! I loved learning about all the different rituals/superstitions regarding food and I'm glad Christmas games like "Snap-dragon" aren't the norm anymore!

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of A Feast of Folklore.

This book was definitely right up my alley.

I'm the sort of person who wonders where we get follow/perform certain rituals and superstitions? Where did they come from? How did they evolve?

It's clear the author did his research; it was hilarious and odd and strange for all the right reasons.

At the same time, it was too folklore heavy. I wished the author had delved into the nuances of some of the superstitions.

Did some communities' beliefs from their homeland influence their rituals and how did it get passed down and incorporated into their adopted country?

Overall, a fascinating and eye-opening read into why we believe the things we do, almost always for the wrong reasons. But we still keep doing it!

thanks to NetGalley for the eARC

⭐️=3.75? 4? | 😘=2.5 | 🤬=3 | ⚔️=3 | 15+

summary: what it says on the tin! weird folklore about British food

thoughts: fun! weird! funny! a good time overall, though not the most polished prose. very quirky and strange.

A treat, in more ways than one!

As someone who grew up cooking in an Italian family, there were always small traditions that snuck into our routines without even realizing. Ben Gazur takes us on a journey of the who/what/where/when/and why of all of these food related traditions, patterns, and practices. This is such a fun and informative book that everyone who spends any time in a kitchen should pick up!