Eating the Plates: A Pilgrim Book of Food and Manners

Penner's Pilgrims are heroes, and deservedly so. She takes the story of their crossing on the Mayflower and establishment of Plymouth Colony, and fleshes it out with all the distasteful, even disgusting, details of their struggle for survival. Everything that made life difficult in the 1600s is mentioned--the acceptance of insect infestation in one's hair, clothing, bed, and food; the lack of efficient implements for home construction; the danger of crossing the Atlantic on an open vessel; ...