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frenchfrybri's review against another edition
3.0
this book was bananas! it was really broad and honestly i would’ve read a longer book with a lot more details and it seemed like the author had the info to make a big chonk of book but didn’t. very interesting and i learned why i have always hated bananas growing up in north america but enjoyed eating them when i was in kenya haha
jerbil's review against another edition
4.0
Shocked by how intricate and complex the history behind this fruit is. Something we take for granted has caused so much pain, even lead to deaths, and has been the life’s work of so many and haunted so many researchers.
tiarala's review against another edition
4.0
The threat he predicted in 2008 is here. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/08/banana-fungus-latin-america-threatening-future/
Slogged through a little, but mostly a great and engrossing read. If you enjoyed Salt, you'll probably like this one too.
Slogged through a little, but mostly a great and engrossing read. If you enjoyed Salt, you'll probably like this one too.
dobbydoo22's review against another edition
5.0
Koeppel manages to cover a lot of ground in a fairly quick read while keeping the narrative extremely engaging. The facts here are eye-opening, too. I'd definitely recommend this one to anyone with an interest in history, economics, food production, genetics, biology, or just bananas (of course).
smashton12's review against another edition
3.0
This book was a lot more interesting than I thought it would be. I had no idea how rich, tumultuous and blood-soaked the history of the banana is. It's interesting to see where the future of the banana lies, according to the author. This was definitely thought provoking.
sjgrodsky's review against another edition
3.0
Nonfiction gives you some insight into the personality of the author. And I think I would like Dan Koeppel. But I also expect that conversation with him would prove somewhat frustrating as I probed on topics that interested me and got little to nothing in response.
For example: Koeppel mentions many times the environmental degradation caused by banana culture. But he leaves it at that, without any details on the extent of the degradation, efforts to repair abandoned plantations, the long term effects.
And what about organically grown bananas? The book leaves you with the impression that conventional bananas are a fruit you can't eat in good conscience. Are organic bananas grown sustainably? Are workers in better health? Are they traded fairly?
I wish the author had spent less time on bioengineering and more on these consumer issues.
I also have to agree with other reviewers who complained of "sloppy research". Example: at one point the author says that Eli Black jumped out of the Pan Am building. Within 80 pages the building becomes the MetLife building. Maybe the building bore both names at different times. But you gotta explain.
For example: Koeppel mentions many times the environmental degradation caused by banana culture. But he leaves it at that, without any details on the extent of the degradation, efforts to repair abandoned plantations, the long term effects.
And what about organically grown bananas? The book leaves you with the impression that conventional bananas are a fruit you can't eat in good conscience. Are organic bananas grown sustainably? Are workers in better health? Are they traded fairly?
I wish the author had spent less time on bioengineering and more on these consumer issues.
I also have to agree with other reviewers who complained of "sloppy research". Example: at one point the author says that Eli Black jumped out of the Pan Am building. Within 80 pages the building becomes the MetLife building. Maybe the building bore both names at different times. But you gotta explain.