First published 2011
Charles C. Mann explores how Christopher Columbus accidentally unleashed the greatest ecological transformation in millions of years. When Columbus reached the Americas in 1492, he ended 200 million years of continental separation. European ships began carrying thousands of species across oceans. Tomatoes reached Italy, oranges arrived in Florida, chocolate traveled to Switzerland, and chili peppers found their way to Thailand. Hidden passengers joined the journey: earthworms, mosquitoes, honeybees, dandelions, bacteria, and rats invaded new continents. Eighty years later, Legazpi succeeded where Columbus had failed, establishing permanent trade routes to China through Manila. Silver mined by African and Indian slaves in the Americas bought Asian silk for European markets. Mann draws on research from ecologists, anthropologists, and historians to show how this biological and economic exchange network shaped human history, fueling European dominance while devastating China and convulsing Africa.
Genres: history, environment, non-fiction, biology, academic, american-history
Vibes: thought-provoking
Tropes: historical-non-fiction
Setting: Americas, Asia, China, Europe, Florida, Italy, Switzerland, Thailand
Period: 1492, 1493, 16th-century
557 pages · Hardcover · Alfred A. Knopf (NY)