I borrowed this book from the library b/c I'm curious to learn more abt salt - after all, it's one of the FEW foods I can eat - but don't feel like reading Kurlansky's ENTIRE grown-up book about salt. 496 pages on salt's history is about 450 pages more than I'm willing to invest. I'm enjoying this book's shortened, simplified version of his research.

I've learned that ppl only needed to add salt to their food when their diet changed d/t farming; before that they got all the salt they needed from the flesh of wild animals (pg. 15). Additionally, "it was thought that wild animals were first tamed by farmers offering them salt" (pg. 15).

I learned that the ability to preserve food using salt meant that ppl could travel further afield. This was a tremendous game-changer. "Hence, when people had a good supply of salt, they could also have a thriving international trade, which in turn led to great power. On every continent, in every century, the dominant people were the ones who controlled the salt trade. Today, the largest producer of salt is the United States." (pg. 17)

More facts! Early roads in the United States were built on animal trails that connected one salt source to another (pg. 37).

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Pg. 7: "Salt is the only rock eaten by human beings."

Illustrations are fabulous! E.g., pg. 21 shows a woman salting a mummy. The mummy is on a tilted table, low to the ground; water is draining from its feet into a collection urn (b/c salt dehydrates!). So cool that the pic includes deets to show this process!

Pg. 25: "Many English words are based on the Roman word for salt, sal--even the word 'salt' itself. Sal is the root of the words 'salary' and 'soldier' because Roman soldiers were often paid in salt. This is also the origin of the expressions 'worth his salt' and 'to earn his salt.'"

This social studies information is about Salt and how it is used all throughout the world. It started in Spain when a man bout the rock from a small mountain town and what happened to that rock when different things happened to it. The book explains what salt is, how it is made, and how it is and was used throughout all the world. It talks much of the history of salt.

This history based picture book tells a beautiful story about all of salts great qualities. The story travels through time telling the reading about all the different ways salt was used (scientifically and for cooking) through ancient civilization and how it is used today. The illustrations of this story are beautifully done and each page includes more information about salt.

The Story of Salt by Mark Kurlansky, Illustrator S.D. Schindler- Children’s Illustrated Colour Picture Book- The book narrates the history of discovery Salt, its use cooking food. Salt is an important business commodity. Chemical name of salt is Sodium Chloride (NaCl), common salt or table salt. Chinese were some of the first to document their use of salt to create new staples in the country. Chinese sauce involves a fermentation process. Importance of salt is that it has the ability to pull moisture from items and create a brine that cures them in piclked cucumbers, meats and eggs. Salt as a preserving agent for meat and fishes. Manufacture of salt is a profitable business, be it for food and for medicine. One chapter of the book is related to Indian independence movement of 1930. British Government levied tax on sale of salt. Thus, British manufactured salt was available for sale with tax. Indian salt manufacturing industry was suppressed. Mahatma Gandhi fought the British ban on local procuring and selling of salt, feeling that the people had a right to work for themselves without being suppressed. He marched with his people to Sabarmati 260 miles and picked up salt from the sea, thus breaking the British law. Coloured illustrations help the reader to relate to the story. I have read the Hindi language translation of this book.

This was a truly illuminating book. I really enjoyed it. Great facts and strong presentation.

The kids and I read this together. Who knew so much world history was shaped by salt? Something we take so for granted today. The pictures make it interesting for the children, and the topic was interesting for me.

Easy to understand and very illuminating. You're never too old to learn something cool and new from a kid's book. I particularly enjoyed the illustrations, and think kinda will enjoy getting lost in the world created here.

This edition is for school children--not the 500 page book--it really gives a lot of information in interesting ways

This is actually not the book I meant to order from the library--I was looking for Kurlansky's history of salt for adults--but since this volume arrived for me today, I thought I'd give it a read. The authors provide lots of little details (for instance, I now know that 'worth his salt' comes from Roman legionaries getting paid for their service in salt), and if the text seems a bit sprawling and unfocused, well, credit that to the vast importance salt has had in the history of human society.

Who knew that smuggling salt was a crime? Lots of information about salt.

I highly recommend this one! We had just finished learning about (and visiting) the Erie Canal so the mention in the book made it so relatable. So interesting! We were all attentive through the whole book. We finished by following up this book with Matthew 5:13. Perfect follow up to this excellent book.

Fascinating story of salt throughout time. This picture book explores the history and science of salt in a simple way, but it may leave the reader thirsting to learn more! Highly recommended for all ages.