Thanks to Netgalley and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for the ARC of this! I'm catching up on my backlog and this was up next for our homeschool non-fiction pick!

This was an excellent blend of history with a little bit of science, perfect for getting kids interested in history by making it about something they already enjoy. Warner doesn't shy away from the nastier side of history (slavery, the introduction of opium to China by the British, the Great Famine in Ireland), but he does keep the tone of the book light and conversational. The organization was well done, with an interesting option to read by theme flipping between sections if you didn't feel like reading front to back. The illustrations were good. My kids were interested throughout, and everytime I asked them what we should do first for school on a given day, they picked this one.

A graphic novel about the histories of "Spices and Spuds." Covering wood, wheat, corn, rice, peppers, sugar, potatoes, tea, tulips and cotton, the pages have a lot going on. The full colored spreads are filled with text and something going on in every corner. May appeal to those interested in food in grades 6th - 8th.

I have already talked about this book so much and I've only finished the part about trees. Non-fiction graphic novels are so great and this one is a great follow up to Pets and Pests. So engaging and informative. I can only imagine how much I'll have to say about it when I've finished it.

Andy Warner's Oddball Histories: Spices and Spuds is an engaging and accessible graphic novel tracing the history and importance of Wood, Wheat, Corn, Rice, Peppers, Sugar, Potatoes, Tea, Tulips, and Cotton. Warner does a fantastic job of hitting historical and cultural milestones for all of these stories, including the often complicated trade routes. Spices and Spuds is filled with lots of funny little anecdotes. I will be referring back to this in our homeschool history texts when my kids get a little older-Enjoyable read for all ages. Thank you Net Galley and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for the advance reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

This was a fantastically engaging history book. It was told in graphic novel form, and the pictures were so well done. It explored the history of various plants and the impact of their trade on the world as a whole. This is a topic I find especially interesting, having lived on multiple continents. I appreciated that it didn't shy away from more challenging situations (for example situations where enslaved people were instrumental on a crop's success), but would recommend reading it with children or being aware so important conversations can be had.

I really like how the book was laid out, with different chapters dedicated to different plants, for example a chapter on tulips, and a chapter on wheat. A lot of links between the chapters were made, making the book a cohesive read. I think this book would be a fantastic read for older children.

Andy Warner’s Oddball Histories returns with a look at the crops that made us. Spices and Spuds takes us on a deep-dive into the history of the world via the relationship between humans and their agricultural interactions. Broken down into chapters based on highlighting each major player plant, this book can easily be broken up to focus on a particular subject (as the author points out in the introduction). However like the circle of life, there are several call backs between sections that make some knowledge of other chapters essentially in getting the whole picture. The illustrations, simple text and humor make the wealth of information in this text easily digestible for middle-grade readers.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!