A Dark History of Tea looks at our long relationship with the humble cup of tea. Food historian Seren Charrington-Hollins traces tea's origins from its accidental discovery in China to its rise to the tables of the high and mighty.
‘A Dark History of Tea’ – as the name suggests – is not a happy history lesson and indeed focuses on every dark aspect of Tea’s history. This book starts with the discovery of tea in China. The bulk of the book is concerned with the rise of tea in China and the tea trade by EIC, smuggling, and adulteration. The Opium Wars between China and England, how tea was planted in India, the tea auctions in Britain, and the life of the workers on these tea plantations formed the rest of the book. The book also discusses how the British developed etiquette, traditions, superstitions related to tea drinking, and even witchcraft and readings of tea leaves finds a mention. All in all, the book tries to cover, as many interesting facts related to tea as it can.
The best thing about the book is that it does not try to whitewash the horrors that have been committed in the name of the tea trade; from colonization, Opium Wars to Slavery. It even talks about Victorian England’s addiction to opium and gin and the resulting impact on the masses.
The book was interesting but at times, there was a lot of repetition (about adulteration or drug use in England) and the order of events kept going back and forth at times. This book is primarily about Britain's dark history with tea and the East India Company’s trade with China/India. It mostly ignored the rise of tea’s popularity in the rest of the world. I also found the chapters on drug use, witchcraft, and the readings of tea leaves, not totally related to the topic.
Overall, this was an interesting book, and a quick read on tea’s history as a popular drink in modern times. If you are looking to read an alternative (but real) take on the history of tea, this is the book you should read.
4/5 stars
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