26. For All the Tea in China: Espionage, Empire, and the Secret Formula for the World’s Favourite Drink by Sarah Rose
This book is essentially the tale of Robert Fortune, who was sent by the British East India company to infiltrate China to find out the techniques of growing green and black tea and to bring back plants and seeds that they could then grow elsewhere themselves. I found his story to be fairly interesting, but it was bookended by less interesting information about the tea trade and the British East India Company. I suppose I understand the author’s intent in setting the stage for why what Fortune was doing was such a big deal, but her need to follow the British East India Company through it’s demise just felt tacked on and unnecessary. I give the book a 5 out of 10.
Around the Year in 100 Books 