Book

My first book, Food, Religion & Communities in Early Modern Europe is out now with Bloomsbury, currently priced £22/$30 in paperback. Thinking with food, I explore the Spanish Inquisition, the Reformation, and the persecution of witchcraft to offer a different perspective on early modern European history. The book has received excellent reviews and praise from fellow scholars.

Reviews:

American Historical Review: ‘fascinating’, ‘highly readable’.

English Historical Review: ‘a compelling and readable analysis’.

Journal of Early Modern History: ‘a “must-read” contribution to current research on early modern foodways, which will stimulate debates in the classroom and beyond’.

Cultural & Social History: ‘a model European cultural history’, ‘elegantly written, thoughtfully structured’, ‘a provocation’.

Cultural History: ‘adds something new and very needed in European food history’.

Agriculutral History Review: ‘beautifully written and represents a welcome, and highly accessible, addition to the field of early modern food studies’.

EuropeNow Journal: ‘engaging and informative’, ‘its readable and engaging style will be of great value in the undergraduate classroom, while its sophistication and scope will appeal to the advanced scholar’.

Heythrop Journal: ‘The stories in this book, with their wealth of fascinating details, illuminate, with nuance, every aspect of the societies from which they come’.

Praise from scholars:

‘A highly imaginative account of food, faith and society in early modern Europe. Kissane offers a refreshing comparative discussion which is never broad-brushed but richly contextualised. Students will enjoy a stimulating read which makes us think in new ways about religion and culture in the period.’
Ulinka Rublack, Professor of Early Modern European History, University of Cambridge.

‘Here is some astounding storytelling: three separate episodes from Inquisition era Castile to Reformation Zurich to a witch hunt in Shetland, all three about food and women. This book fills so many gaps in the scholarship, is so beautifully written and thought provoking that I would recommend it for any early modern history class and anyone interested in the history of food and the history of women.’ 
Ken Albala, Professor of History, University of the Pacific, California.