Cover Image: Who Ate the First Oyster?

Who Ate the First Oyster?

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Member Reviews

This was a brief, informative and hilarious-filled anecdotal book about all the first inventions in history, and when I say history it is all encompassing (like beginning of time on Earth with first people). It was fascinating and I was not bored by one page of this when I expected this to be something else. Probably even a re-read at some point and I might even purchase a copy after publishing.

A must read for anyone interested when things were first invented, even strange things!

Thanks to Netgalley, Cody Cassidy and Penguin Group for an ARC even though this book is already released in exchange for an honest review.

Available: 5/5/20

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I found this book so enjoyable! I like the way Mr. Cassidy set the book up by timeline. It was entertaining reading about who invented or discovered what, where and when! I especially enjoyed learning about soap (5000 years ago), first small pox case and how it affected the world, and the oldest joke ever recorded. I've read some of these else where, but nice to have in one collection. I think this could be a good read for anyone ages 11 and up.

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Fantastic and quick read that looks at various "firsts" throughout History. Some are food, some are actions, but all are well researched, and written about in entertaining fashion.

Love that this was made advisable early to me, and will highly recommend to like minded folks as well as the collection development staff in my library.

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Cassidy's detailed research is evident in this exploration into a brief history of many "firsts". From who invented the first invention to who brewed the first beer, Cassidy takes us on a journey around the world, through space and time, to take a shot at answering these seemingly impossible questions. Beyond these attempts, Cassidy speaks to the impact of these firsts in human history.
As someone who often conjures up these types of questions, I appreciate the premise of this book. Adding the level of research Cassidy offers creates an incredibly thought-provoking commentary on these defining moments in our history.

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If the title doesn’t catch your attention, then the content sure will! I love weird history and science topics, so this mixed both of those subjects together into an easily readable format. The chapters are so interesting, and I love that the author explains how different discoveries have influenced how we see the history of our species and the hominids that came before us.

Also, the organized bibliography. I will never not praise a nicely organized bibliography.

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It's a question we've all pondered at some point: Who first decided to . . . ? In Cody Cassidy's new book Who Ate the First Oyster? Cassidy's research helps give us a better understanding of some of the most important firsts in human history- and why they are so important. From eating the first oyster to drinking the first beer, riding the first horse, or first getting smallpox, each chapter covers a different period in human evolution and the "first" that propelled us onward. Even more important, and interesting (to me anyway), he personalizes the discoveries and inventions by bringing the anonymous people responsible for these "firsts" back into the limelight they so richly deserve.

Cassidy's writing style is casual and full of humor, yet the reader has no doubt that this is an author who has done his research and isn't just making everything up. While the actual person Cassidy credits the "first" to isn't necessarily a historic figure, they are the general figure. For example, 'Oyster Girl' may or may not have been what the person who ate the first oyster was actually called, but Cassidy describes what her life would have been like based on archaeological evidence, why the chance is good it was a woman, why eating oysters hadn't been done before, and why we should care. The science is presented to the reader in an understandable manner, making it accessible to anyone instead of Ph.Ds only. Each chapter was both entertaining and informative and I found myself wishing I'd be able to remember more of the factoids than I inevitable would- but also thinking this was a book I would enjoy re-reading to remember more with each pass.


I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

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Though I hadn’t ever given a lot of thought to oysters, I did often I find myself asking “who do you think was the first person to decide to—“. When this book went up on NetGalley, I immediately requested it. I majored in anthropology and also currently teach it so I already knew some of the information in this book. What kept me interested was the way it was written. It was entertaining and descriptive and had a well written narrative structure to it. Each “character” has a backstory and almost personality to them. The notes before each chapter-where the author explains what ‘time’ each discovery was happening-were very creative and I thought the topics of each chapter were well chosen. The author doesn’t just answer the question, he gives you an entire story behind it.

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I rarely read nonfiction. However, I found this to be interesting. I like the history and the logic of how it was determined who would have been the first to do the items he picked as firsts invented or discovered - fire, oysters, clothing, arrow, masterpiece, Americas, beer, surgery, horse, wheel, soap, etc., Chapters are not long, so good for reading when you only have a short amount of time.

Thank you to the publisher, author and NetGalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review.

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This is a great book for anyone that is a fan of microhistories. Although the inventors cannot be named, the innovations humans developed over the years change human life forever and this is a well-written narrative.

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Through its delves into a range of past eras, civilizations, and cultures to perform educated guesses as to who were the men and women that were possibly behind some of the great firsts and why, "Who Are the First Oyster" is definitively quite an excellently informative read. However, thanks to both its subject matter and Cody Cassidy’s own light writing style, this is also one of those histories that is honestly just plain fun to read and learn from.

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