Seven Deadly Sins and One Very Naughty Fruit

by Mikey Robins

A fascinating, funny and downright bizarre survey of culinary oddities by one of Australia’s most beloved comedians.In this irreverent romp through the history of food via the Seven Deadly Sins, Mikey Robins uncovers the most bizarre food-related stories of all time. From the Ancient Egyptians to the Romans, from the medieval monarchs to our current obsession with celebrity chefs, our forebears have left their mark on our habits and social mores, our plates and our palates, telling us one truth above where there is food, there is folly.On the topic of GLUTTONY , Mikey exposes our obsession with outlandish overconsumption and the thrill of competitive eating. PRIDE reveals some of the most arrogant dinner hosts in history, and how the once humble chef has now achieved rock-god status. LUST sheds light on our aphrodisiac fixations and the most desired foods through time. SLOTH charts the curious evolution of the fork and the etiquette of flatulence. WRATH tells of sausage duels and poisonous spite, while GREED will make you blush at the indulgences of the rich and famous. And who hasn’t experienced ENVY when your dining companion’s plate sings while yours sputters?Mikey Robins is your personal guide down history’s gullet and into the underbelly of our wildest desires, darkest fears and guiltiest pleasures. ‘Not a book for those with delicate stomachs, but a hoot for everyone else’ Sydney Morning Herald'Chock full of quirky facts, surprising histories and slightly rude morsels... much like the author himself' Amanda Keller

Genres: Nonfiction, Food, History, Audiobook, Humor

368 pages, Paperback

Published August 1, 2019

Reviews

[Petra X · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review The book is written in a very colloquial Australian way - I picked up some slang which was fun, but also some other words, like the old Scottish 'Groke'. We need this word! As a noun, it refers to 'someone who stares at you while you eat hoping you will share your food.' This is not by someone hungry, but someone, as we say in the Caribbean 'raben' I think it comes from ravenous, but actually means greedy Dogs groke everyone eating anywhere close to them, some cats, like one of mine, Coco, is the same. They don't care what it is, if you are eating they want some!

I learned that Caesar salad was not some dish served in ancient Rome, but was invented in the mid 20thC at the Hotel Caeser in Tijuana! That rather spoiled that. I was sure with the dressing including anchovies that referenced the nasty, fermented entrails-of-fish garum sauce the Romans couldn't live without. Sort of the ketchup of its day.

I really enjoyed the book. It was erudite, but funny, and very iconoclastic in the way Australians are. I don't usually like books where the author inserts himself at every opportunity, but in this book it worked. 4 stars for content, but 5 stars because I really enjoyed it.
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Reading notes

I didn't expect to find a sex toy called the Dirty Pineapple in a book on food. Instructions: open a can of pineapple rings, stack them (well at least one) on any handy erect penis then make love. The pineapple ring will press on the clitoris and the pineapple juices are pleasantly tingling. Afterwards, the now mashed up pineapple ring(s) can be consumed by both lovers as a post-coital snack. Really. What occurs to me about this is that the holes in pineapple rings are really quite small....

The author referenced a cook book so vile, that I wasn't even going to mention it, but have changed my mind :-D Natural Harvest - A Collection of Semen-Based Recipes - Cum Cream Caramel, Macho Mohito... I won't go on.

[Tanja Berg · Rating 4 out of 5]

This last book of the year was a rather salacious story about various culinary delights, sorted into categories of deadly sins. I learned a few things that I could easily have been spared for. You know what a splosher is? No, I didn’t either. It’s someone with a fetish for setting their behind down on cake. This is not the worst of the sec and food association presented either. I’m not sure I would have liked this on paper, but the audio format worked brilliantly, read by the author.

[LibraryKath · Rating 1 out of 5]

Yawn. This was boring, I chucked it before I got halfway in. The chapter on gluttony was nothing more than fatphobia cloaked in self pity. I expected it to be funny and smart, but mostly it was factoids that could be found anywhere on the internet with a bunch of bad puns and schoolyard wee poo bum lines.

Pass.

[Wide Eyes, Big Ears! · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve always had a soft spot for Mickey Robins so I enjoyed his take on the history of food. Mikey has done a ton of research and loosely groups his facts and anecdotes around the seven deadly sins - the sheer mountain of facts is impressive. You’ll be disappointed if you are after in-depth expounding on the sins, the links aren’t that strong. Rather like Kitty Flanagan’s 488 Rules For Life, I think this works best as an audiobook because it’s Mikey’s inflection, humour, and personal asides that draw you in and make you smile - you’re spending time with him. Also like Kitty’s book, there’s no need to work through the book in one sitting. The cavalcade of facts can start to blur into each other and none of them rely on previous ones, so listening or reading in shorter bursts will probably help you appreciate each section and the book more.

[Frances Cheverton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great holiday read. Nothing heavy and some good laugh out loud moments.

[Alayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very enjoyable look at food and eating through the prism of the seven deadly sins. Quite funny at times.

[Saturday's Child · Rating 3 out of 5]

A rather humorous look at The Seven Deadly Sins using food as the theme. I learnt a few things and got a lot of laughs from reading this.

[Krystelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting little read that was reasonably quick to finish. It goes through all of the seven deadly sins and the relation to food that all of them have. There’s some reaches here (looking at you, wrath) but at the same time there’s some very interesting titbits that cover a wide gamut of facts about food and the odd human relationship we have with it. There’s a little off colour humour here and there, but nothing so obscene you can’t take it in stride. Some of the parts I wanted a little more from, like the various food challenges from around the world that went a long way to disgusting my friends. A fun read that has at least one or two things you’re not going to know before you read it.

[Sun · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mikey Robins is best known as a comedian so I was surprised to see he has written a book (and co-authored others).

This is a book that links food to all of the 7 deadly sins. Each chapter is full of fascinating facts and anecdotes from throughout history.

Books written by comedians are great - the authors don’t take themselves or their subject matter too seriously and they pepper the text with jokes so that it’s sure to be entertaining. The book’s main pitfall is that the interesting tidbits are easy to forget, because there is no overarching narrative to draw everything together. Perhaps worth re-reading!

[LindaMoctez · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great fun read! I am not a non- fiction reader, but this book got me in at its first pages! Mikey Robbin’s has very cleverly entertained us with hilarious good anecdotes, adding his own witty commentary. The research is thorough, the tone lighter than light, and all in all, I felt both informed about my favourite subject, while often laughing out loud! Well done Mikey! A highly recommended read.

[Kate Gordon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this one slowly and savoured it like a jumbo bag of Freddie Frogs. No, I am not a “foodie”. Yes, I still found this book deeply fascinating. And hilarious.

[Wayne's · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mildly diverting

[Bec · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fairly average list of facts about fruit themed by the 7 deadly sins. All the information is collated from other books & articles. Interesting in it's way but nothing to get too excited about.

[Robert Henderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Witty to the end, Mickey looks at food through the prism of the seven deadly sins. Very enjoyable and informative.

[Alison Neal · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's some really interesting trivia in this book, but no real thread of cohesion to it's collation.

[Roseb · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the beginning, but I felt like it petered out as it went along. 4 stars at the beginning, 2 by the end.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable but there were many moments of babble.

[Stef · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book, well written and interesting. Easy to follow as it is in short sections.

[Rowena Eddy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Highly readable collection of anecdotes, loosely based on food.

[Azi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes off-putting in its revelations, mostly hilarious and enlightening for sure. One section had me laughing until my stomach ached. Definitely worth checking out.