Mary Mallon ,widely known as Typhoid Mary, worked as a cook to rich families in early 20th century New York city.
Though never sick with typhoid fever herself she carried the deadly bacillus and unconsciously contaminated the food she prepared with it.
An involuntary killer, she moved from household to household, spreading the disease.
Anthony Bourdain tells the story of the infamous Typhoid Mary from a cooks point of view, explaining why she wouldn’t stop cooking despite the fact she was a menace to society.
Bourdain manages to portray not only Mary and her Prosecutor, using quotes from the original transcriptions of the case, but also draws an image of society in NYC around 1900 and explains the social backgrounds of female immigrants and the first womens movement within the story.
Very interesting little book, I like the mildly sarcastic style in which Bourdain writes. It’s a good read for anyone interested in history, especially the history of New York City.
I could get easily get obsessed with the curious case of Typhoid Mary and Anthony Bourdain provides a good introduction to the subject.
