In his book An Edible History of Humanity, Tom Standage explains how food has played a really important role in shaping our history. He talks about how the way we produce and share food has led to big events like wars, revolutions, and new inventions. Standage shows us how food has influenced different parts of society, including the growth of civilizations and the expansion of empires, as well as changes in farming and food production.
The book is organized by time, starting from when people first began to farm plants and raise animals and moving all the way to today's industrial food production. Standage gives lots of historical examples to show that food has been a key factor in major events. For instance, he explains how the domestication of wheat was important because it allowed people to settle down and form complex societies in the Middle East. This shift from a nomadic lifestyle to settled farming provided enough food for people to live in bigger groups and create cities.