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A review by lindentea
Salt: A World History by Mark Kurlansky
informative
slow-paced
1.5
I don't ever want to see a single salt crystal ever again!!!!!!
Ok real talk: if you think the history of salt would be boring.... you'd be wrong in that there IS something interesting deep down, but right in that this was the blandest way to tell it. And also you're telling me the medieval islamic world wasn't doing shit with salt? what about the ottoman empire? india before the british raj?? africa?? but no........ this "world history" only cares about white people, and also mentions chinese people but in kind of a weird grudging way where it seems to wish it wasn't. the book just FEELS 2002 and nowhere is it more obvious than in the two chapters about gandhi and the role of salt in the indian anticolonial movement to... a chapter about israel & the dead sea that uncritically presents herzl's "turning the desert green" as like. a thing that is True and Good........ hmm all around. hmmmmmm. the guy who did the audiobook did his best to make it interesting tho, and there were some very fun facts throughout... but that does NOT mean there needed to be a long-ass boring book around them!! pop history you will answer for your crimes eventually!!
Ok real talk: if you think the history of salt would be boring.... you'd be wrong in that there IS something interesting deep down, but right in that this was the blandest way to tell it. And also you're telling me the medieval islamic world wasn't doing shit with salt? what about the ottoman empire? india before the british raj?? africa?? but no........ this "world history" only cares about white people, and also mentions chinese people but in kind of a weird grudging way where it seems to wish it wasn't. the book just FEELS 2002 and nowhere is it more obvious than in the two chapters about gandhi and the role of salt in the indian anticolonial movement to... a chapter about israel & the dead sea that uncritically presents herzl's "turning the desert green" as like. a thing that is True and Good........ hmm all around. hmmmmmm. the guy who did the audiobook did his best to make it interesting tho, and there were some very fun facts throughout... but that does NOT mean there needed to be a long-ass boring book around them!! pop history you will answer for your crimes eventually!!