Join us

Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
Newsletter

Massimo Montanari

A Short History of Spaghetti with Tomato Sauce

Cover: A Short History of Spaghetti with Tomato Sauce - Massimo Montanari

Massimo Montanari

A Short History of Spaghetti with Tomato Sauce

2021, 113 min., Audiobook
ISBN: 9781609457723
Translated by: Gregory Conti
Region: Italy
Book collection: Europa Compass
Available as ebook Available as ebook Available as ebook
$ 20.00

The book

Intellectually engaging and deliciously readable, a stereotype-defying history of how one of the most recognisable symbols of Italian cuisine and national identity is the product of centuries of encounters, dialogue, and exchange.

Is it possible to identify a starting point in history from which everything else unfolds—a single moment that can explain the present and reveal the essence of our identities? According to Massimo Montanari, this is just a myth: by themselves, origins explain very little and historical phenomena can only be understood dynamically—by looking at how events and identities develop and change as a result of encounters and combinations that are often unexpected.

As Montanari shows in this lively, brilliant, and surprising essay, all you need to debunk the “origins myth” is a plate of spaghetti. By tracing the history of the one of Italy’s “national dishes”—from Asia to America, from Africa to Europe; from the beginning of agriculture to the Middle Ages and up to the 20th century—he shows that in order to understand who we are (our identity) we almost always need to look beyond ourselves to other cultures, peoples, and traditions.

The author

Massimo Montanari
Massimo Montanari is Professor of Food History at the University of Bologna and one of Europe’s foremost scholars of the evolution of agriculture, landscape, food, and nutrition since the Middle Ages. His works have been translated into many languages across the globe.

Press

From the same country

  • Cover: The Fire - Cecilia Sala

    Cecilia Sala

    The Fire

    2025, pp. 208, $ 18.00
    A powerful, unflinching portrait of a generation fighting for change in Iran, Afghanistan, and Ukraine 
  • Cover: The Burning Origin - Daniele Mencarelli

    Daniele Mencarelli

    The Burning Origin

    2025, pp. 192, $ 18.00
    A searing story about homecoming and belonging set in contemporary Rome 
  • Cover: The Malcontents - Sacha Naspini

    Sacha Naspini

    The Malcontents

    2025, pp. 480, $ 20.00
    There is a village carved into the rock of the Maremma hinterland in Tuscany and its name is Le Case. A dying country. A provincial trap. A microcosm...
  • Cover: The Four Volumes: My Brilliant Friend - Elena Ferrante

    Elena Ferrante

    The Four Volumes: My Brilliant Friend

    2025, pp. 1248, $ 65.00
    “An unconditional masterpiece.” —Jhumpa Lahiri 
  • Cover: The Days of Abandonment - Elena Ferrante

    Elena Ferrante

    The Days of Abandonment

    2025, pp. 192, $ 18.95
    The shocking story of a woman's descent into desperate loneliness.
  • Cover: The Old Man by the Sea - Domenico Starnone

    Domenico Starnone

    The Old Man by the Sea

    2025, pp. 160, $ 17.00
    From the author of Ties and The House on Via Gemito  

More suggestions

  • Cover: The Fire - Cecilia Sala

    Cecilia Sala

    The Fire

    2025, pp. 208, $ 18.00
    A powerful, unflinching portrait of a generation fighting for change in Iran, Afghanistan, and Ukraine 
  • Cover: Slow Down or Die - Timothée Parrique

    Timothée Parrique

    Slow Down or Die

    2025, pp. 432, $ 19.00
    A bold call to abandon the myth of endless economic growth and embrace a sustainable, just, and thriving future. 
  • Cover: The Passenger: Thailand - AA.VV.

    AA.VV.

    The Passenger: Thailand

    2025, pp. 192, $ 22.00
    Fully-illustrated, The Passenger collects the best new writing, photography, art and reportage from around the world.   IN THIS VOLUME:...
  • Cover: How Isn’t It Going? - Delphine Horvilleur

    Delphine Horvilleur

    How Isn’t It Going?

    2025, pp. 128, $ 16.95
    From France’s leading Jewish intellectual, an intimate yet universal meditation on October 7, its legacy, and the way forward
  • Cover: The Passenger: Naples - AA.VV.

    AA.VV.

    The Passenger: Naples

    2024, pp. 192, $ 22.00
    Fully-illustrated, The Passenger collects the best new writing, photography, art and reportage from around the world.    IN THIS VOLUME:...
  • Cover: Moving the Moon: A Night at the Acropolis Museum - Andrea Marcolongo

    Andrea Marcolongo

    Moving the Moon: A Night at the Acropolis Museum

    2024, pp. 144, $ 22.00
    From one of Europe’s most original and brilliant classicists, an inspiring and deeply personal reflection on loss, memory, and what we owe the past...

Join Our Newsletter and receive a FREE eBook!

Stay updated on Europa’s forthcoming releases, author tours and major news.

Are you a bookseller? Click here!

Are you a librarian? Click here!

X