Amber Waves

"Wheat was one of the first domesticated food crops, and for roughly 8,000 years it has been a dietary staple in Europe, West Asia, and North Africa. Today, wheat is grown on more land area than any other commercial crop, and it continues to be the most important food grain for humans. A plant this prolific surely deserves its own biography. This book, by plant ecologist Catherine Zabinski, invites readers to follow the evolutionary journey of wheat while exploring its symbiotic relationship with humans. In the early chapters, we are introduced to the habits and history of this member of the grass family, how it lives, how it thrives, and how it arrived at its current form. The action swells when our ancestors discover and exploit grain, which went on to be foundational to the development of civilization -- from the wild grasses first cultivated in the Fertile Crescent to the ancient empires that sought to control its production. Later chapters track a more modern history, with wheat playing a starring role in the Green Revolution and the rise of genetically modified food. The end of the book explores the plant's place in the creation of a sustainable food system"--