The Zen of Sushi

The Zen of Fish: The Story of Sushi, from Samurai to Supermarket by Trevor Corson

My rating: 1 of 5 stars
The Zen of Fish had potential and I'd probably have given it three or maybe even four stars if Trevor Corson hadn't made the terrible decision to talk to me as if I was in second grade.  Particularly in passages where he wrote about scientific processes (e.g. the amino acids that give fish their flavor and the processes that create them) he used the kind of language you'd expect from a tour guide giving a tour to class of small children.  I am sorry, but I don't think any second graders are likely to be reading this book.  Please, Mr. Corson, learn to treat your readers with some respect.  In fact, I've read the book Mr. Corson references as his primary source for the scientific information. It was pretty dry and technical in places, but definitely accessible.  It doesn't take baby-talk to make science intelligible!

Aside from his failure with the science, Mr. Corson made another mis-step.  It reads as though he developed a crush on Kate, the sushi student who is the primary focus of the story.  All of a sudden half way through the book he suddenly starts talking way too much about her lovely hair in a way that is totally irrelevant and distracting.

Too bad that a potentially fascinating topic was so abused.

View all my reviews >>