Picky by Helen Zoe Veit

An eye-opening investigation into why American kids no longer eat broadly and with gusto.

Here’s a question worth pondering on a rainy afternoon in the cove: are children naturally picky? It sure seems that way. Yet, amazingly, pickiness used to be almost nonexistent.

Well into the 20th century, Americans saw children as joyful omnivores, naturally curious and eager to eat. That idea feels almost unbelievable today. Don’t kids have special taste buds? Aren’t they wildly sensitive to texture and color? Aren’t they simply incapable of liking “adult foods”?

Americans in the past didn’t think any of those things. They assumed children could enjoy the same foods as grown-ups, and children almost always did. They loved spicy relishes, vinegary pickles, and bitter greens. They spent their allowances on raw oysters and looked forward to their daily coffee.

So how did modern kids become such incredibly narrow eaters? The story is fascinating, and it’s about much more than rising abundance. This book traces how fussy eating came to define “children’s food” and reshaped American diets at large.

Maybe most importantly, it reveals the tools parents once used, and how we can still use them to raise happy, healthy, wildly un-picky kids today.

Part social history, part practical wisdom, this is a brand-new hardcover that food lovers, parents, and history buffs will devour in a single sitting. It’s the kind of book that makes you rethink something you thought you already understood.

Come linger a while and browse. We’d love to help you take this one home.

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