I’m delighted to share that my new book, Feeding the People: The Politics of the Potato, has been published today by Cambridge University Press. The book has been several years in the writing so it’s wonderful to see it released into the world, burlap cover and all.
Feeding the People grew out of a fascination with the potato’s extraordinary success as a global food, as well as a curiosity about its spread in 18th century Europe. Here is the blurb:
Potatoes are the world’s fourth most important food crop, yet they were unknown to most of humanity before 1500. Feeding the People traces the global journey of this popular foodstuff from the Andes to everywhere. The potato’s global history reveals the ways in which our ideas about eating are entangled with the emergence of capitalism and its celebration of the free market. It also reminds us that ordinary people make history in ways that continue to shape our lives. Feeding the People tells the story of how eating became part of statecraft, and provides a new account of the global spread of one of the world’s most successful foods.
Should you be interested in finding out more or purchasing a copy of the book, you can do so by visiting the Cambridge University Press website.