The True History of Chocolate

Sophie and Michael Coe's True History of Chocolate almost seems like a love letter to the history of chocolate. In contrast with the other books we have read so far this semester, it focuses much more on the life of the commodity - chocolate - itself, rather than on the lives of the people that it impacts. In that sense, it is the story of chocolate, rather than the impact of chocolate, or spices, or other commodities. My initial reaction is that this book seems to fit more with our initial definition of commodity history, in that it places chocolate at the center of the narrative. I think that Ben mentioned in his post that the Coe's venture into the territory that Robbins warned of: making the commodity the hero of the story, but I also think that if you are going to call your book the True History of Chocolate, then it would by definition need to take center stage.

The Coes follow the history of chocolate from its earliest days in Mesoamerica through to modern times and the level of detail about the life cycle of this commodity is stunning. I found it interesting that the Aztecs used cacao beans as money, although the sheer numbers of beans needed (in the millions!) boggles the mind.

In terms of actors within the narrative, I find that this aspect of the tale about chocolate is lacking. While the Coes mention that chocolate was consumed at all levels of society, although in varying levels, there doesn't seem to be enough attention paid to different social classes and the impact of the chocolate on them, although that may be more because that doesn't seem to be the primary focus of the book.