Rated of 5
by Pat An Edible History of Humanity
History buffs rejoice! Tom Standage has written an erudite and entertaining view of world history through the lense of food choices and agriculture.
He interspaces the tale of history with thoroughly understandable explanations of plant adaptation, sociology and military tactics. Standage is a wonderful storyteller who makes history come alive in a clear and concise writing style. Fans of Mark Kurlansky will definitely enjoy this book.
Rated of 5
by Froma A Feast for Readers
Standage is at his best telling a story, whether it be Napoleon’s strategy, the invention of canned food, or the Berlin airlift. The book is weakest in the early chapters where, of necessity, Standage weaves many strands together, jumping around geographically and temporally, tracking the move from hunter/gatherer to agriculturally based societies. The stories of Stalin’s and Mao’s famines are completely gripping; the analysis of the relationship between dictatorship and famine is compelling; the story of the green revolution, fascinating. If you think you might enjoy this book, read it. You will.
Rated of 5
by Susan Focus on Food An Edible History of Humanity helped me look at food/agriculture and how it relates to industrialization, war and society in ways I had not before. Since I generally like histories that focus on a specific topic (e.g. salt, cod, coal), I found this book mostly enjoyable to read - there were, however, times when I felt more details than I wanted/needed were presented.
A very large book - in number of pages and in content - and every page worth reading. Thoroughly enjoyed this one and her first book on the...
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Two Lives is a memoir written by international best-selling author, Vikram Seth. In this interesting and engaging book, Seth writes about his great...
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Z, the novel about the life of Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald is at points charming and; like another reviewer, I kept thinking of the movie, "Midnight...
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News Corp will officially split into two companies June 28(May 24 2013) As expected, News Corp has announced it will officially split its publishing and entertainment businesses on 28 June.
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Its board approved the...
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