Full Description
There may be no more famous form of seafood than an Apalachicola oyster. People travel from all over the world for the chance to try out these oysters and gush over just how large, flavorful, and unique they are in comparison to other foods. In Other People's Oysters, however, Apalachicola oysters are not merely internationally known delicacies bringing money and recognition to the bay - they are the center of family ties, a symbol of a disappearing way of life, and the catalyst for a social movement that rocks the nation.
Tripp and Jessica Rendell have lived on Richards Island in the Apalachicola Bay harvesting, selling, and cooking oysters for decades. During this time, their children - Carina, Bobby, and Roy Lee - grew up to take over the harvesting business (Carina), take over the family restaurant (Bobby) and run off into the wider world to become a lawyer and political activist (Roy Lee). Through the eyes of Carina, we watch life and work change throughout the bay throughout these decades, and witness the ways corporate, environmental and political policy focused more on wealth than the lives of the people and the conservation of the bay led to increasing poverty, decreasing oyster production, and the ongoing destruction of the bay. But when her latest series of law suits seeking aid and reparation stall in the courts, Roy Lee moves back home and forms a plan for taking back the bay, raising up the people, and fighting for the Rendells' way of life.
Other People's Oysters may be read entirely for pleasure and used in courses focused on social movements, families, class dynamics, politics, environmentalism, mental diversity, sexualities, gender, rural and small town cultures, intersectionality or the American southeast.
Contents
Preface xv
Acknowledgements xix
Prologue xxiii
Part One: The Ties That Bind
Chapter 1 3
Chapter 2 11
Chapter 3 17
Chapter 4 25
Chapter 5 31
Part Two: Hungry Hearts
Chapter 6 39
Chapter 7 45
Chapter 8 51
Chapter 9 57
Chapter 10 63
Chapter 11 69
Chapter 12 75
Part Three: Out in the Street
Chapter 13 83
Chapter 14 89
Chapter 15 95
Chapter 16 101
Chapter 17 107
Part Four: The River
Chapter 18 115
Chapter 19 121
Chapter 20 127
Chapter 21 133
Chapter 22 139
Chapter 23 145
Part Five: The Price You Pay
Chapter 24 153
Chapter 25 159
Chapter 26 165
Chapter 27 171
Chapter 28 177
Epilogue 185
Suggested Class Room or Book Club Use 187
About the Authors 189
