@font-face { font-family: Times New Roman ; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Times New Roman ; }table.MsoNormalTable { font-size: 10pt; font-family: Times New Roman ; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; } Be it soft-serve, gelato, Indian kulfi or Israeli glida, some form of ice cream treat can found throughout the world in restaurants and home freezers. Though ice cream was once considered a food for the elite, it has evolved into one of the most popular mass-market products ever developed. In Ice Cream, Laura B. Weiss takes us on a vibrant trip through the history of ice cream from ancient China to modern-day Tokyo in order to tell the lively story of how this delicious indulgence became a global sensation. It's a tale populated with Chinese emperors, English kings, former slaves, women inventors, shrewd entrepreneurs, Italian immigrant hokey-pokey ice cream vendors and a gourmand American First Lady. Though Europeans came up with the first modern recipes, Americans have long claimed ice cream as their national dessert. Indeed, from the sundae to the cone, American entrepreneurs popularized the treat, developed the modern ice cream industry and gave the world the soda fountain - that nostalgic icon of American innocence and small town values. Weiss tells of the iced sherbets made in the Middle East and brought to Europe, the frozen confections made at the French court, and nineteenth- and twentieth-century sodas and sundaes with names such as 'Over the Top' and 'Purple Cow'. Today American brands can be found around the world, but vibrant ice cream cultures like Italy's continue to thrive, and more recent ones, like Japan's, flourish through unique variations. Weiss connects this much-loved food with its place in history, making this a book sure to be enjoyed by all who are beckoned by the siren song of the ice cream man.

About the Author
Laura B. Weiss is a journalist based in New York who specializes in food, travel and lifestyle. Her work has appeared in the New York Times, the New York Daily News, the Zagat restaurant guide and the Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink. She is also an Adjunct Professor at the Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute, New York University.

Reviews
'These are food memoirs, salacious and exotic, colorful, powdered, sweet, greasy and globe-trotting ... sharp and speedy little reads, spotted with off-kilter illustrations' - Chicago Tribune 'In Ice Cream: A Global History, food writer Laura B. Weiss tells the fascinating story of a popular, mass-produced frozen treat that began life thousands of years ago as the dessert of kings.' - Wall Street Journal 'Anyone who has ever enjoyed ice cream, or even just sitting in a soda fountain, will find something to love in this book.' - Globe and Mail, Canada 'Laura Weiss paints a compelling portrait of everyone's favorite dessert. She traces the transition of ice cream from a luxury reserved for the wealthy to an everyday treat accessible to the masses, while never allowing history to obscure a sense of pure pleasure.' - Palm Beach Illustrated 'In her fascinating new book, Laura B. Weiss takes us on a journey from ice cream's beginnings in ancient China to its present day evolution into an artisanal offering. Nestled throughout the book are fun factoids ... With 60 color and black and white photos and 26 vintage and modern recipes from around the world, Ice Cream delves into the mysterious allure of this frozen concoction and its connection to powerful childhood memories' - Dessert Professional Magazine 'look[s] back at ice cream's enduring appeal to people around the globe - from George Washington's ice cream cravings to today's upwardly mobile Chinese - and celebrates the enormous popularity of a beloved treat that never goes out of style. It's a MUST read this summer ... with ice-cream in-hand of course!' - Food Network Magazine 'an informative and light-hearted book about ice cream of all varieties. The book is slender to the hand, but packed with history, facts, and stories.' - In Mama's Kitchen 'Ice Cream: A Global History is the place to turn if you want to know the backstory of everyone's favorite frozen treat!' - David Lebovitz, author of The Perfect Scoop



Book Information
ISBN 9781861897923
Author Laura B. Weiss
Format Hardback
Page Count 176
Imprint Reaktion Books
Publisher Reaktion Books