The tomato gets no respect. Never has. Lost in the dustbin of history for centuries, accused of being vile and poisonous, subjected to being picked hard-green and gassed, even used as a projectile, the poor tomato has become the avatar for our disaffection with industrial foods — while becoming the most popular vegetable in America (and, in fact, the world). Each summer, tomato festivals crop up across the country; the Heinz ketchup bottle, instantly recognizable, has earned a spot in the Smithsonian; and now the tomato is redefining the very nature of farming, moving from fields into climate-controlled mega-greenhouses the size of New England villages.
About the author
William Alexander is the author of the national bestseller, "The $64 Tomato," as well as "52 Loaves: A Half-Baked Adventure," his hilarious and moving account of a year spent striving to bake the perfect loaf of bread; "Flirting With French," about his often riotous attempt to fulfill a life-dream of learning French, and most recently, "Ten Tomatoes That Changed the World," a whirlwind tour of the history of the humble tomato.
The New York Times Style Magazine says about Alexander, "His timing and his delivery are flawless," while Counterpunch has called him "one of the funniest writers in America." He has appeared on NPR's Morning (and Weekend) Edition, at the National Book Festival in Washington, DC, and was a 2006 Quill Book Awards finalist. Alexander has also contributed over a dozen essays to the New York Times opinion pages, where he has opined on such issues as the Christmas tree threatening his living room, Martha Stewart, and the difficulties of being organic.
Before turning to writing full-time, Bill spent 37 years as a director of information technology at a psychiatric research institution, persisting in the belief that he is a researcher, not a researchee.
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