An extraordinary look at an ordinary substance—and one we'd be dead without: salt. Salt has shaped civilization from the very beginning, and the story of this common household seasoning proves a fascinating one. In a kaleidoscope of history, Mark Kurlansky—bestselling author of  1968 and...

Before New York City was the Big Apple, it could have been called the Big Oyster. Now award-winning author Mark Kurlansky tells the remarkable story of New York by following the trajectory of one of its most fascinating inhabitants–the oyster, whose influence on the great metropolis remains...

A cultural and political examination of a monumental year—by the author of Salt: A World History. Over the course of one year, significant events that shaped American and world history took place: The North Vietnamese launched the Tet offensive. Prague Spring began. Martin Luther King, Jr...