I was recently in a chain bookstore and noticed the following comparatively
new title:

Tea -- Addiction, Exploitation, & Empire

by Roy Moxham
pub by Carroll & Graff, New York

ISBN 0 7867 1227 9

When the author was a young man with limited prospects, he audaciously
talked his way into being hired as a resident assistant manager of an
African tea plantation, which assignment he managed to survive while
learning a lot about the practicalities of life. After some dozen years at
it, he returned to England and became an art dealer, later a book
conservator.

It's a fascinating account which encompasses the economics, politics,
history, and agriculture of tea. Some of the book is the tea period of his
personal biography. Historical and technical portions were researched with
the assistance of various experts in the field.

I read about 20 pages at the store and decided it would probably be a
fascinating read. It's a new hardcover at about $22 (U.S.) If you want to
read it but not buy the new full-priced hardcover, there will probably be
some used copies available on the net in about six months, or you could
speak with your local library about either acquiring it or getting it for
you on the inter-library loan system.

I've actually read this book. The first and last chapters are personal
accounts of the author's work on a tea plantation in Africa. These
are, in my opinion, the most interesting parts of the book. The rest
is sort of a revisionist history of tea that exposes and emphasizes
the various cruelties inflicted upon the people of Ceylon, India and
China by the tea trade. Definitely an interesting read for anyone who
cares about the history of tea.

--Alex