From the Bookshelf of Retro Chapter Chicks …

97 Orchard: An Edible History of Five Immigrant Families in One New York Tenement

Jane Ziegelman

Find A Copy At

Libraries

Group Discussions About This Book

No group discussions for this book yet.

What Members Thought

Jun 01, 2017 Brina rated it really liked it

Shelves: new-york-city, immigration, history, food

One of the things I enjoy about goodreads are the many book challenges offered by groups that allow me to read a wide range of books that I otherwise would not have considered. A popular challenge in a lot of the groups I am in is the A to Z Author Challenge where one reads a book by an author whose last name starts with each letter of the alphabet. For my Z selection I selected 97 Orchard by Jane Zeigelman. Zeigelman is the director of the Kids!Cook program at the New York Tenement House Museum One of the things I enjoy about goodreads are the many book challenges offered by groups that allow me to read a wide range of books that I otherwise would not have considered. A popular challenge in a lot of the groups I am in is the A to Z Author Challenge where one reads a book by an author whose last name starts with each letter of the alphabet. For my Z selection I selected 97 Orchard by Jane Zeigelman. Zeigelman is the director of the Kids!Cook program at the New York Tenement House Museum. This book details life of newly arrived immigrants over the course of one hundred years, five families of different ethnic groups who made one building home.

Prior to the civil war, one of the first groups to immigrate to the United States were the Germans. Decades before World War I when they were seen as a threat to security, the Germans were viewed as model immigrants. Being from Western Europe, they blended in with Caucasians already on American soil and they were viewed as hard workers. Yet, Germans hung on to many traditions, including their food. Mid 19th century New York was still very much a rural urban center; Germans opened breweries and factories to produce their national cuisine including sausages and beer. Prior to their arrival, Americans beverage of choice had been rum. Yet, the German presence slowly changed this as taverns and saloons opened in the German neighborhoods, allowing workers to stop for a beer on the way home from a long day. In addition to beer gardens, Germans are responsible for introducing both the hamburger and hotdog into American traditions, both foods now considered a symbol of this country.

After the Germans, the next group to make their presence felt on American soil were the Irish. Fleeing from the Great Potato Famine of the 1840s, parents placed their children on ships in hope that they would have a better life in the United States. Yet, the Irish were met with discrimination from older immigrants, predominately because of their catholic faith. As a result, they were relegated to menial jobs including street cleaning and factory workers. Their culture was their one means of expressing themselves, including the dance that we know today. Zeigelman writes less about Irish cuisine because she points out that as a group they were most likely to eat at home. The one food of theirs that has made inroads in mainstream society has been corned beef and cabbage, although it is still not on par with other foods considered national dishes.

No two groups immigrated to the United States from the 1880s to the 1920s more than Italians and Eastern European Jews. Both groups cooked with savory spices and herbs and were responsible for a plethora of pushcart vendors peddling their cuisine throughout the Lower East Side. While both the bagel and spaghetti and meatballs are revered by Americans today, this was not always the case. Health workers attempted to Americanize both groups, starting with the children attending public schools. They instituted cooking classes in hopes that the children would learn the importance of eating blander foods and bring these lessons home to their parents. Yet, both Italian and Jewish homemakers had been cooking since they were young children and clung to their traditions from home. Despite the valiant efforts of health officials, both ethnic groups continued to prefer the comforts of home including dill pickles and Italian ten course Sunday dinners. Along with the Germans and Irish, Jews and Italians are responsible for creating a melting pot culture as the United States grew to be a country of many immigrants.

Zeigelman weaves the history of immigrants along with their food contributions to American history and key recipes for each ethnic group's cuisine. She points out instances where each group chose to Americanize and others where they adhered to their traditions from home. The 97 Orchard tenement building was emblematic of the changes immigrants underwent over an one hundred year period, and the building is now part of the New York Tenement House Museum. An interesting look at how food influences a people's history, 97 Orchard was a thought provoking read, which I rate 4 stars. ...more

157 likes · Like · see review

Apr 05, 2016 Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ Jenn Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ Schu marked it as to-read

Shelves: history-non-fiction

Group Home Bookshelf Discussions

Photos Videos

Send invite Members Polls