Primal Feast : Food, Sex, Foraging, and Love

by Allport, Susan

• ISBN13: 9780609601495
• ISBN10: 0609601490
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2000-03-01
• Publisher: Harmony

Summary

Science writer and naturalist Susan Allport takes readers on a passionate investigation of how the quest for food shapes our destinies and how our preferences for food were formed. In an engaging mix of in-depth research and personal anecdotes, the author ofA Natural History of Parentingpresents a delightful feast of facts and reflections on how food affects the lives of every creature, from forest animal to dining room gourmet. How does the gray squirrel find the nuts it buried months earlier? How do Inuit hunters outwit ever-vigilant seals? How do animals manage to consume a healthy mix of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats? What is the connection between food and love, food and intelligence, food and sexuality? Chronicling habits of collecting, storing, and consuming food, in parts of the world as different as the Arctic and her own wooded backyard, Allport untangles the links of the food chain, explains how animals learn which plants and animals are safe to eat, and probes connections between food sharing and human evolution, and between food and reproduction. Along the way she examines the habits of chimpanzees, howler monkeys, hummingbirds, and koalas, among a host of other mammals, insects, and birds. By exploring food as both sustenance and power in societies of hunter-gatherers, Susan Allport reveals important aspects of the human experience that affect us every day. In doing so, she reminds us that food is more than just nourishment: It is a key to understanding the biological universe and a fundamental and essential part of the quality of our existence.

Author Biography

Susan Allport's previous books include <b>A Natural History of Parenting</b>, <b>Sermons in Stone</b>, and <b>Explorers of the Black Box</b>. She has lectured at the American Museum of Natural History and has contributed articles to <i>The New York Times</i>, <i>Audubon magazine</i>, and other publications. She lives in Katonah, New York.

Table of Contents

An Early-Morning Arousal	1	(6)
The Dinner Party	7	(12)
Discriminating Diners	19	(14)
The Surrogate Forager	33	(6)
Foraging at the Ends of the Earth	39	(15)
The Hungrier Sex	54	(19)
What's in a Meal?	73	(15)
The Worm and the Apple	88	(18)
The Only Cooks on the Planet	106	(19)
The Human Omnivore	125	(15)
Cravings	140	(16)
The Nature of Food	156	(24)
The Human Nature of Food	180	(22)
Everyday Angels	202	(16)
Conversations with Bones	218	(23)
Epilogue Foraging in the Garden	241	(5)
Bibliography	246	(9)
Index	255