Visual historian Andy Warner (Pests and Pets) traces the evolution of 10 agricultural products to highlight pivotal turning points in the relationship between plants and humans in the second entry of his Oddball Histories series, Spices and Spuds: How Plants Made Our World, a sweeping and instructive middle-grade graphic nonfiction.
All 10 plants covered are likely familiar to young readers: wood, wheat, corn, rice, peppers, sugar, potatoes, tea, tulips, and cotton. "Plants are things that people shape. And anything people shape, shapes people." Warner digs into "this relationship between people and plants, and how we changed each other," using humorous visual storytelling and exceptionally comprehensive text blocks as he spans the globe and millennia. Warner follows human consumption of the 10 pivotal plants and their subsequent impact on social issues, including migration, warfare, immigration, health, and politics. And he doesn't sugarcoat or shy away from the distressing moments, because "telling history is tough if you try to get somewhere honest." Warner draws salient points of connection "through the length and hurt of history" across eras, continents, and cultures--linking, for example, Chinese workers "fleeing war and famine" with descendants of formerly enslaved West Africans in the United States.
Warner strikes a quippy and conversational tone in his wildly informative, highly engaging text. He frames each of the 10 chapters as an independent narrative, allowing the book to be read from start to finish or enabling eager readers to skip among topics. Warner thoughtfully offers page references to connect issues such as colonialism-spread illnesses and the fire hazards of wooden structures, plus an index, though no bibliography. Biting humor is primarily delivered through speech bubbles with banter and pointed witticisms; a British East India Company representative, having invaded India, observes, "It's wild how profitable it is to just take stuff from people." Chapter lengths vary but Warner's relentless pacing complements his remarkably intricate, full-color illustrations. Particular attention to fashion and architecture adds layers to the visual elements, and every page bursts with detail. The end result should appeal to fans of Marc Aronson et al.'s Bite by Bite, Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales, and the You Wouldn't Want To... series.
Readers will likely devour this ambitious and immersive survey of agricultural connections and interdependence. --Kit Ballenger, youth librarian, Help Your Shelf
Shelf Talker: This visually sweeping and instructive middle-grade graphic nonfiction traces 10 agricultural products across continents and millennia to highlight the relationship between plants and humans.