Oysters: A Celebration in the Raw

This charming and authoritative guide to oysters of the US and Canada seems to have been written with the questions of enthusiasts and restaurant industry veterans in mind. Solid natural history material and a survey of the current state of oystering are followed by a remarkable field guide to 55 different varieties that begins with the Conway Royal from Prince Edward Island (“mild salt flavor with a mossy finish”) and sweeps up and down the Atlantic and Pacific coast to include such gems as the Sea Cow from Washington state (“like a sweet melon that has been sprinkled with salt”). Scott Snider’s terrific photography shows each variety in life-size detail from multiple perspectives, a terrific aid in identification. Impressive enough that Nach offered it a prepublication quote!

Hardcover. Color photographs throughout.