World history told through the story of control over grain, and its transport, as a key factor. Interesting way to do it, especially as it illuminates how valuable Ukraine is to any European power. ( )

Both thought-provoking and well written, Oceans of Grain explains the history of the modern world as it was influenced by the trade in wheat. This book is highly recommended particularly for the light it sheds on the Ukraine war and on the environmental challenges of the US middle west. ( )

This book gives a history of Europe. Asia, and the United States as told from the point of view of wheat and bread. It uses the growing, transportation, storage, and distribution of wheat as the underlying cause for just about all the major events in world history. The author has a point: if cities can't feed their populations then nothing else really matters.

I thought his use of ancient myths as stories for ways to preserve and store wheat were very interesting and it made me look at other stories in a new light. I also enjoyed the parts on the development of milling machinery. While not directly related to his main narrative, how wheat was made into flour is important to the story. This book was written in 2021. The author correctly predicts Russia's invasion of Ukraine in Feb of 2022. I wonder if it was really for the reasons he stated.

Besides the world history, there was a lot of economics in the book, much of which was over my head. This is not a book for lay readers/listeners, but rather for someone who has knowledge of world history and is versed in economics. They will find it more enjoyable.

I also don't think the subtitle, How American Wheat Remade the World, is fitting: there wasn't much in here about American wheat. In the grand scheme of world history, America is very new, but with a subtitle like that I expected American wheat to have a bigger role. Maybe something more like Oceans of Grain: How Wheat Shaped World History.

Overall I really enjoyed the book. I'm glad I had the opportunity to listen to it. This review was written for NetGalley early reviewers. ( )

The frequent exaggerations and overlooking of other factors led to me constantly doubting the credibility of the narrative. I'm skeptical of all the author's hypotheses, and in the end didn't get much from the history.

> For long distances, sailing ships were more efficient until almost the end of the century. A coal-powered steamship in the 1860s consumed at least one hundred tons of coal a day at $15 a ton. The coal on a steamship counted for roughly half the weight capacity of any ship fitted for the Atlantic trade; the engine occupied half the ship’s total volume. As coal disappeared into the boiler, steamships had to take on water just to “stay in trim” to maintain speed and stability. A sailing ship, by comparison, had a smaller cost and a much longer reach. Until the 1920s sailing ships were still used to bring coal to island coaling stations. ( )