A Splendid Exchange：How Trade Shaped the World

AdamSmithwrotethatmanhasanintrinsic"propensitytotruck,barter,andexchangeonethingforanother.”Buthowdidtradeevolvetothepointwherewedon’tthinktwiceaboutbitingintoanapplefromtheothersideoftheworld?Inthissweepingnarrativehistoryofworldtrade,WilliamJ.Bernsteintellstheextraordinarystoryofglobalcommercefromitsprehistoricoriginstothemyriadcontroversiessurroundingittoday.HetransportsreadersfromancientsailingshipsthatbroughtthesilktradefromChinatoRomeinthesecondcenturytotheriseandfallofthePortuguesemonopolyinspicesinthesixteenth;fromtheAmericantradebattlesoftheearlytwentiethcenturytothemoderneraoftelevisionsfromTaiwan,lettucefromMexico,andT-shirtsfromChina.Lively,authoritative,andastonishinginscope,ASplendidExchangeisarivetingnarrativethatviewstradeandglobalizationnotinpoliticalterms,butratherasanevolutionaryprocessasoldaswarandreligion—ahistoricalconstant—thatwillcontinuetofosterthegrowthofintellectualcapital,shrinktheworld,andpropelthetrajectoryofthehumanspecies.