Chocolate: Sweet Science and Dark Secrets of the World’s Favorite Treat by Kay Frydenborg (review)

Abstract

Reviewed by: Chocolate: Sweet Science and Dark Secrets of the World’s Favorite Treat by Kay Frydenborg Elizabeth Bush Frydenborg, Kay Chocolate: Sweet Science and Dark Secrets of the World’s Favorite Treat. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2015 [256p] ISBN 978-0-544-17566-2 $18.99 Reviewed from galleys Ad Gr. 6-9 Modern and ancient history; botany, chemistry, ecology, and the physiology of taste; invention, commerce, and labor economics—actual samples are (sadly) the notably missing element in this multi-faceted overview of cacao, cocoa, and their marvelous manifestation, chocolate candy. Wide-ranging issues covered here resist [End Page 543] consistent organization, though, so readers follow Frydenborg along a twisting path through the near past (e.g., the Milton Hershey generation) and the remote past (cacao cultivation predating the Maya); through the uses of cocoa as nutritious food, medicine, and sinful (literally, to some) snack; to causes of cacao’s endangerment, degradation, and hope for a brighter agri-future. Additionally, offhand references are surprisingly inaccurate. Many of her side trips are worthwhile, though—the topics of the slave trade and continuing exploitative labor practices; differences among South American, Central American, and African products; how to accommodate both taste and ethics when selecting chocolate candy. Adding to the organizational complexity, however, is the illustration layout, a hodgepodge of black and white intext illustrations and a tipped-in section of color plates. Supplemental information nonetheless is abundant and valuable, from the chocolate timeline and bibliography to the extensive, densely annotated list of chocolate related websites. Copyright © 2015 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois