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Six Thousand Years of Bread: Its Holy and Unholy History (Paperback)

~ H.E. Jacob (Author), Peter Reinhart (Foreword)
Key Phrases: bread goddess, Middle Ages, Roman Empire, World War (more...)
4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Bread's history has frequently been a recipe for disaster. The well-baked loaf--aside from being the main event in one of the major food groups--has caused wars, supernatural visions, festivals, and plagues. H. E. Jacob's celebratory book toasts bread from its earliest beginnings in Egypt, where it was one of the treasures entombed with the dead, to the author's own experiences in a Nazi concentration camp, where a bread made of sawdust kept him alive. The maker of paupers and kings, our daily bread and its evolutions are deliciously described in this illuminating text. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Review

Bread's history has frequently been a recipe for disaster. The well-baked loaf--aside from being the main event in one of the major food groups--has caused wars, supernatural visions, festivals, and plagues. H. E. Jacob's celebratory book toasts bread from its earliest beginnings in Egypt, where it was one of the treasures entombed with the dead, to the author's own experiences in a Nazi concentration camp, where a bread made of sawdust kept him alive. The maker of paupers and kings, our daily bread and its evolutions are deliciously described in this illuminating text. (Amazon.com Review )
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Product Details

  • Paperback: 416 pages
  • Publisher: Skyhorse Publishing (November 2007)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1602391246
  • ISBN-13: 978-1602391246
  • Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 1.1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #287,458 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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More About the Author

Heinrich Eduard Jacob
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:
Inside This Book (learn more)
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
bread goddess
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Middle Ages, Roman Empire, World War, United States, Jesus Christ, French Revolution, New York, Last Supper, North Africa, San Francisco, New World, Son of God, National Assembly, Empire of Wheat, Mother Earth, Gregor Mendel, Far East, Emperor Diocletian, The Octopus, Civil War, Frederick the Great, Wat Tyler, Tiberius Gracchus, Earth Mother, New England
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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Customer Reviews

9 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.7 out of 5 stars (9 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating way to view the history of the western world, September 1, 1998
By A Customer
This review is from: Six Thousand Years of Bread: Its Holy and Unholy History (Paperback)
I bumped into Jacobs' book by accident while browsing the shelves in a library; what a joy to see it's been reissued! (The edition I found was dated 1943.) I have learned so much interesting history from this book; the Temple of Eleusis and its similarities to the life of Christ; the invention of the windmill; why the village hated the miller and Chaucer's Miller's Tale; on and on, there are fascinating things in each new thread he picks up.
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Multi-faceted book-wow, February 22, 2005
This review is from: 6000 Years of Bread (Hardcover)
As a bread baker, I read this book anticipating information on bread through history. Who would have ever known that bread was so important. What a bonus it was learning about agriculture, religion, politics, literature , etc. and their connection to bread. It was facinating how the author found so many connections to bread, which was obviously more important in history than it is today-(referring to low-carb craze). The first 90 pages are a "tough-read", but it gets easier. I have purchased 6 more copies and am distributing them to friends. A very valuable book in my estimation. The deceased author (book published in 1944 and translated from German for the current edition)would have been quite surprised to see what has happened since 1944. If writing more chapters after 1944, he would certainly need a chapter on "chemical bread"-bread on the grocer's shelf that has a 30 day shelf life due to addition of anti-molding agents (sounds healthy doesn't it) requested by the grocery chains. It smells awful. Anyone that loves history, religion or agriculture would certainly find this book enlightening.
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30 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the most uniquely philosophical books i've ever read, April 4, 2000
This review is from: Six Thousand Years of Bread: Its Holy and Unholy History (Paperback)
Jacob's Six Thousand Years of Bread is an amazing presentation of the relationship between bread and the history of Western Civilization. Even if it were just about bread's history, it would be an amazing book given its scope and knowledge. But it isn't REALLY about bread. It uses bread as an access point for discussing transformations of values and paradigms of knowledge through history. In a word, Jacobs presents a philosophical "genealogy" of Western Civilization through a discussion of the role of bread.

Thus, Jacob's is a unique philosophical work. I can't think of any other book in philosophy or history that makes such a clear presentation of the causes and forces of historical transformation. In fact, the term "genealogy" I have used above has a specific sense that is relevant here. Coined by Nietzsche, "genealogy" is a strategy employed for a philosophical discussion of historical transformations of the sort Jacob discusses. But whether comparing Jacob to Nietzsche, Foucault, Derrida, Heidegger, or even Hegel and Kant, I can't think of a better example of a philosophical discussion of historical transformations of values and knowledge. As a bonus, the Jacob's method of using a history of bread to present this genealogy makes it far more approachable than most philosophical discussions. I can't recommend a book more highly. I might even use it as a recommended reading for students in my philosophy classes.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars The Rise of Western Civilization Through Bread

This is a very interesting book which sets forth the impact that bread has throughout history, art, religion and politics down through the ages. Read more
Published on January 15, 2008 by John J. Browne

4.0 out of 5 stars Rise to the occasion
I purchased this book as documentation for a paper I am writing on bread in history. I already have The History of Bread by B. Read more
Published on May 15, 2007 by Deborah Hammons

5.0 out of 5 stars Bread as a catalyst for civilization
I had always known bread was a staple of life. Rarely has a day gone by when I have not consumed it in one form or another. Read more
Published on July 29, 2005 by Jennifer Iannolo

5.0 out of 5 stars A Unique Perspective on World History
I picked up a copy of Six Thousand Years of Bread in an anitque shop. It sat on my shelf for years. I finally read it. WOW! Read more
Published on June 6, 2003 by Anita Burns

3.0 out of 5 stars Philisophical, but outdated as a reference book.
This book discusses the history of bread from the viewpoint of western philosophy. That said, the earlier cultures (such as Egypt, for example) are not Western by nature -- and... Read more
Published on December 15, 2001 by D. Schaefer

5.0 out of 5 stars A dangerous book to read!
This book gives a rollercoaster ride through the role of bread in history. Each chapter is enough to make you buy ten more books on the subject. Thoroughly enjoyable. Read more
Published on December 21, 1997 by sales@waspvox.co.uk

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