Mark Kurlansky

JAMES BEARD AWARD WINNER * INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER

"History filtered through the gills of the fish trade." -New York Times
“A charming fish tale and a pretty gift for your favorite seafood cook or fishing monomaniac." -Los Angeles Times

Mark Kurlansky's classic history of the mighty fish that became "the tragic fable of our age" (Bill McKibben)-with a new foreword by New York Times bestselling fish afficionado Paul Greenberg.

The great codfish: root of revolutions and wars, centerpiece of diets and economies, and the foundation of North American settlement. To the millions it has sustained across the world, it's been a treasure more precious than gold.

Codfish history spans a thousand years and four continents-from the Vikings, who pursued it across the Atlantic, to the enigmatic Basques who commercialized it; from the apt naming of “Cape Cod” in 1602 to the ongoing battle for proper fish 'n' chips. Kurlansky expertly steers through it all, introducing the explorers, merchants, and chefs whose lives were interwoven with this prolific fish and punctuating their stories with gastronomic detail, recipes, and lore.

A modern classic, this “bitter ecological fable” (Los Angeles Times) is ever closer to its end. As our oceans warm and the codfish faces extinction, Kurlansky's dazzling history-featuring new and updated material-is more ensnaring than ever.