When you are hungry for a snack, you can just grab something out of the freezer and pop it in the microwave. It is hot and ready in seconds to eat in front of your high-def television.
If your parents wanted a snack at your age, they might have grabbed a box of sugar cereal and poured themselves a bowl to eat while they watched Saturday morning cartoons. And if your grandparents had wanted a snack at your age, they might have pulled an apple off the backyard tree before catching a show on the radio.
What about your ancient ancestors? Maybe they plucked some berries off a bush, or had to wait for their next meal instead. (And they didn’t even have electricity, so forget about TV or radio!)
Food is important in a lot of different ways. It gives us the energy we need to live. It plays a central role in many of our holidays and celebrations. And it helps connect us to our ancestors.
Favorite family recipes are passed from generation to generation, and we all have special memories that involve food. Do you remember a delicious pie that your grandmother baked for you, or the first time you climbed an apple or orange tree and picked ripe fruit? Or maybe you’ve used gourds to decorate the Thanksgiving table.
Some of the foods we eat have changed over time, while others have stayed the same for thousands of years. New recipes have been created, and old ones re-discovered. Food is nutrition for your body. But it can also be something poetic and beautiful. The bottom line is that food is a big part of our lives. It’s part science, part history, and part culture.
In this book, you’ll learn about the first foods humans ate and about the earliest farmers. You’ll discover how food gives your body energy, and the different ways we keep food from going bad. You’ll explore how food is used in different cultures and their celebrations. You’ll even see how food might be used in the future.
Ready to follow food across space, time, and history? Grab a snack, and let’s go!
ancestor: people from your family or country that lived before you.
nutrition: the vitamins, minerals, and other things in food that your body uses to stay healthy and grow.
culture: the beliefs and customs of a group of people.