The Hungry Historians

This month's episode of The Hungry Historians turns our attention to our host Kelly A. Spring, who has just released her new book with Reaktion Books as part of their 'The Edible Series'. This book is a study of Spam, looking particularly at its origins, importance during World War II, and its afterlife, especially in Korea, the USA.

In this episode, Matt interviews Kelly about her book to learn more about this fasinating food product.

SPAM: A Global History can be bought from Reaktion Books and other booksellers.

In this month's episode of The Hungry Historians, Kelly and Matt chat with Alex Ketchum and Megan Elias about their book "Queers at the Table". This is an anthology of essays, comics, and recipes that reveals the dynamic and transformative relationship between queerness and food.

In this episode we discuss the nature of putting such a book together, what the intended purposes were, and what they hoped their readers will do with the book and how they hope to gain more interaction through various forthcoming events and activities.

Queers at the Table is available via Arsenal Pulp Press and various other booksellers.

Is food waste a modern creation or does it have a long and interesting history? In this month's episode Matt and Kelly interview Eleanor Barnett about her book "Leftovers: A History of Food Waste and Preservation" which can be found at Bloomsbury Publishers and other book retailers.

In this month's Hungry Historians, Kelly A. Spring and Matt Phillpott discuss the history of menus with Nathalie Cooke (McGill University). We were surprised by just how much can be learned from menus and excited to hear about the various tricks used to encourage certain choices and illustrations used to excite interest. We also discuss cryptic menus and who is left out.

You can find out more from Nathalie's latest book, Tastes and Traditions: A Journey through Menu History, available from Reaktion Books and all good bookstores.

We hope you enjoy the episode!

What information do food labels provide and what is the history of providing regulatory information to consumers? In this month's episode, Kelly and Matt interview Xaq Frohlich (Auburn University), about his book "From Label to Table: Regulating Food in America in the Information Age. You can learn more about Xaq and his book from his website www.xaqfrohlich.com.

What are the foodways in Ghana and how has this changed over the last 200 years? In this episode Kelly Spring and Matt Phillpott interview Brandi Simpson Miller about her book Food and Identity in Nineteenth and Twentieth Century Ghana: Food, Fights, and Regionalism (2021).

How does food packaging work? What is its purpose? Is it really all just about marketing or is it there for a reason? In this episode Kelly Spring and Matt Phillpott interview Professor Anne Murcott about her book The (Not So) Secret Lives of Food Packaging.

Are you interested in the history of food? In this introduction, Dr Kelly A. Spring and Dr Matthew Phillpott share their ideas and thoughts about what the study of food history is about and what The Hungry Historians podcast is going to focus on over the coming months.