Cheese Through the Years

"Cheese may arouse disgust or fascination," writes Andrew Dalby, in his new title, Cheese: A Global History (Reaktion Books, 2009). A colorful and thorough exploration of the origins of cheese in its many manifestations across the world, the title manages to make learning about history fun—as it should be, when it comes to cheese. This is assisted in part by entertaining illustrations and photographs (such as my personal favorites: the random "British girls enjoying cheese" photo from 1941, and the "cheese mite memorial" statute of Wurchwitz, which contains samples of Milbenkase for visitors to eat), and a selection of archaic recipes, like the one for (savory) cheese-cakes from 1642. Did you know: Camels'-milk cheese has been made in Egypt and Somalia for 2,000 years? Or the oldest known surviving cheese is a 5,000-year-old variety from Egypt? Or that some types of aged European cheese may (legally) contain cheese mites? Well, now you do, so maybe you dont need to read the book after all. Sorry!