Slumps, Grunts, and Snickerdoodles: What Colonial America Ate and Why [Hardcover]

Lila Perl Yerkow (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 16, 1979 | Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up

Portrays the historical context and domestic surroundings in which the early settlers lived. Includes thirteen authentic recipes.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Useful for both home economics and social studies classes, this truly is a must for any library." (School Library Journal Starred )

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Hardcover: 128 pages
• Publisher: Clarion Books (July 16, 1979)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0395289238
• ISBN-13: 978-0395289235
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,472,127 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Lila Perl was born in Brooklyn and read voraciously as a child, but never dreamed that she would become the author of more than 60 books published by mainstream publishers including Dutton, Houghton Mifflin, HarperCollins, and Scholastic. Her subjects for adults, young adults, and children range from mummies, ancient Egyptians, and the ancient Maya, to the Holocaust, genocide, cloning, and world terrorism; from the foods and everyday lives of colonial and pioneer Americans to personal ancestor-hunting.

Lila Perl was listed in 2001 among "The Pride of Brooklyn College" by her alma mater, and has received a "Best Books for the Teenage" award from the New York Public Library. Her book on junk food, fast food, and health food won a Boston Globe Award. Her Holocaust story, Four Perfect Pebbles, was a recipient of the Sidney Taylor Award.

In June, 2011, Lila Perl published her first Ebook, What I Did Last Summer, a story about the magic of a first love at a rustic summer camp far from parental restrictions and shadowed by a looming war. Fifteen-year-old Bryna tells her story as she teeters between innocence and young womanhood, a story that is funny,tender,and wistful.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating read, October 30, 2007

By 

K. Prussack (Hoboken, NJ United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Slumps, Grunts, and Snickerdoodles: What Colonial America Ate and Why (Hardcover)

I borrowed this book from my local library and loved it so much I had to buy one for my son's 6th grade class (who are studying colonial America) and one for home. It is a wonderful history centered around food in colonial America together with authentic but updated recipes of food by region. I often cook with the students in my children's school and we will be using this book as our "textbook" this year.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Readable History of Foods from Colonial Times, November 14, 2011

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Should I Buy It? - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Slumps, Grunts, and Snickerdoodles: What Colonial America Ate and Why (Hardcover)

What I've always enjoyed about Lila Perl is that her work, while geared toward a young audience, I find is actually written for all age groups. This is one of three books I own written by Ms. Perl. My public library, which is an extensive library system, does not have most of her writings, so I plan to buy Ms. Perl's historical books where I can.

This, in particular, is my most favorite of the books I've purchased thus far. "Slumps, Grunts, and Snickerdoodles ..." is a fascinating account of the history behind the traditional foods of the colonies. It provides information on how Pilgrims and other settlers adapted the crops, which the Indians (or "tribes") taught them to cultivate - especially corn and beans, and recipes to provide the basis of many genuine "American" dishes as we know them today; e.g., Boston brown bread, hush puppies, fish fried in cornmeal, cornbread, succotash, etc. It also provides a brief history on some of the settlements, e.g., why the settlement of Jamestown initially failed, the development of tobacco as a huge cash crop for the South, etc.

I cannot recommend historical books written by Lila Perl highly enough. FYI, if you enjoyed this book, you should also read "Hunter's Stew and Hangertown Fry: What Pioneer Americans Ate and Why." Did you know eggs cost 50 cents each (that's $6.00 a carton) in the days of the Gold Rush?