My book collection - part two

This is my second book list post. My first can be found here.

The full list of categories I hope to eventually populate is as follows:

• Human Evolution, Nutrition and Health

• Human Microbiome

• Human Nutrition

• Human Health and Disease

• Soil Microbiome

• Soil and Regenerative Food Production

• Fermented Food and Drink

• Exercise

• Nature and Foraging

Here’s the most recent addition which will be listed in the next instalment in the category of “Human Health and Disease”

Brain Energy: A Revolutionary Breakthrough in Understanding Mental Health – and Improving Treatment for Anxiety, Depression, OCD, PTSD, and More. Christopher Palmer, MD (2022) – don’t let the title of this book put you off. Whilst it is about mental health, the author does two things that fascinate me. Firstly, he de-mystifies the field of mental health by using anecdotes and language that allows a lay-person like me to follow his thesis. Secondly, and more importantly for me, he describes how the mitochondria in our cells are intimately involved in managing all aspects of our body’s cellular health, not just the production of energy as I was taught decades ago. I provide a review of the book here.

The cumulative listing of past posts is below:

Human Evolution, Nutrition and Health

The Story of the human Body. Daniel Lieberman (2014) – The starting point for any consideration of my health is the evolution of the human body and its microbiome. This book offers an excellent starting point for understanding how we evolved to benefit from certain kinds of nutrition and lifestyle. It also explains how our more recent cultural behaviour may be at odds with our evolutionary past and how those mismatches may be leading to what we describe now as non-communicable chronic diseases. I provide a review of the book here.

Fermented Food and Drink

The Art of Fermentation: An In-Depth Exploration of Essential Concepts and Processes from Around the World. Sandor Elix Katz (2012) – If there is such a thing as the fermentation bible, this is it. It contains close to 500 easy-to-read pages on co-evolution between humans and microbes, health benefits of fermentation and recipes for all types of fermented food and drink. If you’re interested in fermentation, this book should be in your collection.

The Noma Guide to Fermentation. Rene Redzepi and David Zilber (2018) – Noma is a (soon to close) Michelin-rated restaurant in Copenhagen, Denmark. Every dish in the restaurant includes some form of fermentation, and this book is written by the restaurant’s co-owners. In it you’ll find chapters on fermentation principles, equipment, and over 100 recipes. Of all of the books in my collection, this one contains lists of the most specialized equipment, tightly controlled fermentation recipes, and instructions on how to add fermented ingredients to your food.

Of Cabbages and Kimchi: A Practical Guide to the World of Fermented Food. James Read (2023) – This is the most recent addition to my collection of books on fermented foods. It covers ten fermented foods and (non-alcoholic) drinks and describes each with a mixture of history, folklore and recipes. The book is beautifully illustrated and is probably the most accessible to the lay-person in my collection.

Fermentation: How to Make Your Own Sauerkraut, Kimchi, Brine Pickles, Kefir, Kombucha, Vegan Dairy, and More. Asa Simonsson (2019) – The author is a Swede living in the UK where she is a practicing naturopath and chef. As with all of the books listed here, she provides guidance of fermentation principles before describing the traditional techniques, equipment and recipes she grew up with. I like this book for the Swedish insight.

Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats.. Sally Fallon (2001) – This isn’t strictly a book about fermentation (it has sections on sprouts, stocks, sauces, and dressings) but it does have some useful guidelines and recipes not covered elsewhere.