Tobacco: A Cultural History of How an Exotic Plant Seduced Civilization

"A rich, complex history . . . Deeply engaging and witty" (Los Angeles Times).

Long before Columbus arrived in the New Word, tobacco was cultivated and enjoyed by the indigenous inhabitants of the Americas, who used it for medicinal, religious, and social purposes. But when Europeans began to colonize the American continents, it became something else entirely—a cultural touchstone of pleasure and success, and a coveted commodity that would transform the world economy forever.

Iain Ga...