Homer called it a divine substance. Plato described it as especially dear to the gods. As Mark Kurlansky so brilliantly relates here, salt has shaped civilisation from the beginning, and its story is a glittering, often surprising part of the history of mankind. Wars have been fought over salt and, while salt taxes secured empires across Europe and Asia, they have also inspired revolution - Gandhi's salt march in 1930 began the overthrow of British rule in India.
From the rural Sichuan province where the last home-made soya sauce is produced to the Cheshire brine springs that supplied salt around the globe, Mark Kurlansky has produced a kaleidoscope of world history, a multi-layered masterpiece that blends political, commercial, scientific, religious and culinary records into a rich and memorable tale.
Mark Kurlansky is the author of 23 books of fiction, nonfiction, children's writing.His best-sellingCod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the Worldwon the 1999 James Beard Award for Food Writing and the 1999 Glenfiddich Award. His other works include:Salt,The Basque History of the Worldand the short story collectionThe White Man in the Tree. He lives in New York City with his wife and daughter.
