Empire of Cotton: A Global History

I picked the book up because a reviewer of the fantasy novel “Babel” by R.F. Kuang suggested that a reader who enjoyed this YA fiction novel might be inspired to read this nonfiction book that deals with the same time period and the 19th century war capitalism effects on a global scale.

Babel by R.F. Kuang - Classics of Science Fiction

I skipped the YA novel and went right to this book and I'm pleased with my random path to this book. It was insightful and clear about the connections that evolve as a commodity becomes part of a system of trade, beginning with local subsistence production to a nation-based medium of exchange and eventually a global force for war capitalism, colonization, slavery, and eventually decolonization.

It's written with an interested general reader in mind, yet has enough extended examples, research and interpretation to be included on a course syllabus. This author will be on my list of ones to watch watch when I'm looking for good economic history reads.