Better Than Homemade: Amazing Food That Changed the Way We Eat Paperback – September 2, 2004

I like to collect pop culture "curio" books, and this is one of my favorites. It's lightly humorous while being very interesting, and I would recommend it to anyone casually interested in food, trivia, and pop culture. It's also great for people who take forever to poke through the asiles of the supermarket, reading all of the labels and product packaging out of interest more than anything else. Highly recommended, and also a great gift idea for children to discuss with parents or grandparents who "lived through it."

I got this book for my daughter she does into heath side cooking at a historical house, she cooks from scratch at home and likes the old receipes like the ones she learned to cook from as she was growing up

A real keeper for those who are interested in just where all our processed foods come from. Easy read, lots of pix, many historical ads and facts. A good supplement to Wyman's "I'm a Spam Fan." Her style differing slightly from her "I'm a Spam Fan," you'll find that Ms. Wyman's work, "Better Than Homemade," has a bit more of a bite to it. There are some poignant jests aimed at the food scientists, marketeers and the American Consumer. But all is in good fun and the main thrust of her book is that we have invented some really cool products that have honestly changed our way of thinking about what we eat.

Retro walk down memory lane good bathroom book.

Love nostalgia? Love shows like Unwrapped? Love FOOD? Then you will LOVE this book! With fascinating tidbits on everything from Hamburger Helper to Reddi-Whip, from Jiffy Pop to Pringles, Tater Tots and Velveeta, this book truly had something for everyone's taste. One WARNING, though... this book might make you very, very hungry!

My uncle lives in England and is interested in all things Americana. I'm going to make him a box of items mentioned in the book, like Kool-Aid and Marshmallow Fluff, that he's never heard of or tried. He can read the book, and then sample the goods. He's hard to buy for, and this is going to be a cute gift that I'm sure he'll appreciate.

Highly entertaining and factoid-filled history of pop culture supermarket staples for fans of this genre but one chapter is so unbelievable it casts doubt on veracity of everything else in book. Does, Wyman, or anyone else of a certain else of a certain age, honestly believe Swanson frozen TV dinners were developed to utilize unused poultry because a Swanson buyer overestimated Thanksgiving turkey sales following an alleged 1951 national heat wave so severe that thousands of Americans opted for lighter, cooler traditional turkey day fare? When was last time anyone ate a baloney sandwich on Thanksgiving because of the thermometer? Baloney!

Good information