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A review by sjgrodsky
Banana: The Fate of the Fruit That Changed the World by Dan Koeppel
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.