For decades America took its beloved ground-beef-patty sandwich pretty much for granted, the only controversy concerning whether it should have a slice of cheese melted atop the meat. Thanks to the ubiquity granted it by America’s mobile culture, the hamburger’s hegemony is now threatened on both nutritional and economic fronts. Ozersky traces the well-documented history of the hamburger, debunking many of the myths surrounding its nineteenth-century origins. He gives special attention to the origins of the White Castle chain of burger drive-ins, showing how it anticipated many of the innovations most people ascribe to McDonald’s. Ozersky finds the hard-driving Ray Kroc, author of McDonald’s success, a contradictory character, at once valuing conformity yet gathering around himself creative minds to ensure McDonald’s marketplace dominance. Ozersky’s analysis of Burger King’s and Wendy’s differing strategies to make their burgers somehow distinctive within the American fast-food market makes for great reading. --Mark Knoblauch
“There have been many books written about hamburgers, but none have placed hamburger mania into an American cultural context as does Josh Ozersky’s The Hamburger.”—Andrew Smith, editor, Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink
(Andrew Smith )
"When I want to know about hamburgers, Josh Ozersky is the man I turn to."—Morgan Spurlock, director of Super Size Me
(Morgan Spurlock )
"This book is too good and too smart to be categorized as mere ''food writing.'' It''s like a meeting between Jane & Michael Stern and Ken Burns: bright, funny pop commentary mixed with vivid, rigorously reported American history. All compactly served on a golden-brown bun!"—David Kamp, author of The United States of Arugula
(David Kamp )
"Josh Ozersky is a cultural historian whose appetite for life and passion for eating have landed him in the heart of the food world. When he focuses on a single American icon, like the hamburger, we can trust him to take us on a delicious journey. This is my favorite book about the burger to come along!"—Daniel Boulud, Chef/Restaurateur
(Daniel Boulud )
"A sexy little volume on the history of the patty from its 18th-century beginnings to its postwar boom thanks to White Castle."—Rachel Wharton, New York Daily News
(Rachel Wharton
New York Daily News )
"A must read for any like-minded eaters."—Midtown Lunch
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Midtown Lunch 20080421)
"This entertaining and informative book, which traces the burger''s evolution from working man''s snack during the Depression to symbol of American corporatism, is nothing less than a brief history of America in the 20th century."—The Economist
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The Economist 20080424)
"Lively, well-reported. . . . A tasty cultural history that appreciates the sizzle and symbolism of its subject."—Bob Minzesheimer, USA Today
(Bob Minzesheimer
USA Today 20080508)
"Short but comprehensive, heavy with interesting detail about the habits of American diners and restaurateurs."—Graeme Wood, The Atlantic Monthly
(Graeme Wood
The Atlantic Monthly 20080519)
"Hugely satisfying. . . . Both scholarly and witty."—Daniel Okrent, Fortune
(Daniel Okrent
Fortune 20080414)
"Ozersky helps to put American history in the context of the hamburger''s life story. Or is it the other way around? No matter, it''s a fascinating look at one of our favorite things."—Gwyneth Doland, Fiery Foods & BBQ
(Gwyneth Doland
Fiery Foods & BBQ 20080501)
"The book is more than an overview of the sandwich; it is an impassioned argument for its significance in American culture and a celebration of its power."—New York Magazine
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New York Magazine 20080331)
"Filled with anecdotes and enthusiasm, this book does what very few can do: it makes you hungry."—Kevin Lauderdale, Author Magazine
(Kevin Lauderdale
Author Magazine 20080318)
"Authoritative [and] impressively detailed."—Frank Bruni, Diners Journal
(Frank Bruni
Diner's Journal 20080502)
"Ozersky tells a taut tale of the sandwich''s Diaspora and hand-to-mouth existence. . . . Ozersky''s unusual blend of passion and common sense sets his book apart from others of its kind."—Ted Anthony, San Francisco Chronicle
(Ted Anthony
San Francisco Chronicle 20080626)
"Ozersky''s little ode to joy on a bun is social history at its most flexible. . . .Ozersky''s inquisitive mind and evocative prose will get the juices flowing and your mouth watering."—Robert Leiter, Jewish Exponent
(Robert Leiter
Jewish Exponent 20080703)
"[S]erves up a fast-paced and amusing account of how German ''hamburg steak'' evolved into hamburgers for urban factory workers, became an irrepressible economic and cultural force, and played a role in the suburbanization of America."—Joshua Glenn, Boston Globe (Brainiac Summer Reading)
(Joshua Glenn
Boston Globe 20080627)
"A short, utterly brilliant chronicle of this (Katherine A. Powers Boston Sunday Globe 20080824)
"Colorful reading. . . . This is a country that needed something to unite it, and, however improbably, Ozersky convinces us that the hamburger has done just that. " —Holly Brubach, New York Times Magazine
(Holly Bruback
New York Times Magazine )
"Ozersky''s book is part biographical sketches of the great hamburger men and part American culture. . . . [H]e attempts to answer why the hamburger caught on in America and what kind of icon the burger business and the burger provide."—Rosalind Early, Belles Lettres
(Rosalind Early
Belles Lettres )
