As others have noted, this is a fascinating book even if you may never end up making any of its recipes. That said, its recipes sound good enough that I wouldn't mind trying a number of them, assuming I can find others willing to share the adventure with me (so far I haven't found any). So this book is perhaps best viewed as a coffee table book (though it lacks photos), something to dip into now and then, rather than actual cookbook, even though it seems a fully competent cookbook. ( )

This book certainly opened my eyes to how little we Westerners eat, in terms of meat products, and how much there is out there. I didn't feel tempted to try out of any of the recipes, though. To begin with I'm an extremely picky eater. Also, you generally had to seek out and kill the animals yourself, and this I could not do. ( )

Does what it says on the label - all you things you never thought you'd want to eat, with recipes. ( )

I can't say that I will actually try many of the recipes in this book. The recipes are divided by type of food: Meat, Fowl, Fish, Shellfish(including insects), Nonflesh Foods of Animal Origin.

You will find your prejudices challenged, since you will probably discover in here something you like that someone else considers "unmentionable". I, for instance, am not likely to need even one of the many recipes for different animals' testicles (especially one that tells you to "express the organ from its membranes by squeezing it as one would peel a Concord grape"!). However, I admit to a fondness for snails.

In addition to the recipes, Schwabe discusses which cultures avoid certain foods, and the origins of various food aversions, all of which is fascinating.