Les intimités de Paris

Un jour, en voyant s'échapper du sommet de la montagne une épaisse fumée noire, les petites souris grises deviennent bleues de peur. " Un chat ? Un dragon ? Des Indiens ? " s'affolent-elles. Quel est donc cet ennemi invisible ?

Typical food is an in-vogue topic, embodying issues such as current trends in food globalization and European Union policies on agriculture and trade. It is, however, striking how little is known about its history. This book, inspired by the conference La tipicità nella storia : tradizione, innovazione, territorio, held in Parma and Langhirano in 2010, is an attempt to fill this gap. It includes essays by historians, sociologists, economists and experts in the food industry, who cover a wide range of products (wine, cheese, chocolate, cider), across a broad geographic scope (from France to Costa Rica and Norway) and time frame (from the Middle Ages to the present day). Besides the crucial issue of when and why the link between food and place of origin emerged, the contributors look at interactions between physical terroir and human savoir-faire and also between industrial innovation and traditional skills. Typicality is usually considered as a bottom-up process but the role of institutional protection is also examined. Designation of origin can be seen as a qualitative safeguard for food production, yet its influence on consumers' choices is emphasized as well. In its approach, this multi-faceted book questions the oversimplified idea of typicality arising from a vaguely defined traditional food heritage. In 2010, the editors of this book founded the Food Lab, a research laboratory on food history based in the Department of Economics at the University of Parma. This book contains articles in English and French.

En ce jour anniversaire de la Bérézina, un des plus puissants hommes d'affaires de la planète est interpellé dans son jet personnel, à l'aéroport de Tokyo. Les Japonais, de manière inattendue et suicidaire, s'emparent de l'homme pour l'incarcérer. De manière tout aussi inattendue, l'homme adepte de Rocambole, s'évade avec une douceur, au goût de vaseline, que ses geôliers ont du mal à digérer. Vexés comme des poux sur la tête d'un chauve, ils décident de venger leur honneur. Mal leur en prit, mais leur détermination est sans limite. Une équipe d'Européens, rompus aux enlèvements en tout genre, pieds et points liés, réussit l'exploit de saisir le fugitif. On ne sait pas pourquoi, le responsable de cet enlèvement se soumettra à un exemplaire Hara-kiri, courageux et fatal, pour sauver son honneur, celui de sa famille et de son pays.