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Everything startedsomewhere, sometime, by someone. In identifying the most important“everythings,” Peter D’Epiro acknowledges that his scope was restricted byeditorial considerations. He eliminated anything B.C.E. because many of thesometimes and someones have been forgotten. He wanted 300 firsts, but spacerestrictions cut that number in two. Every reader will quibble over what’s inand what’s out, yet D’Epiro must be credited for writing a set of witty,sophisticated short essays on some of history’s turning points. The firstcookbook? According to D’Epiro, it was a Roman compendium from the fourthcentury with recipes for ostrich ragout and tips on preserving meat in the agebefore refrigeration.
