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Ten Tomatoes that Changed the World: A History
New York Times bestselling author William Alexander takes readers on the surprisingly twisty journey of the beloved tomato in this fascinating and erudite microhistory.
The tomato gets no respect. Never has. Lost in the dustbin of history for centuries, accused of being vile and poisonous, subjected to being picked hard-green and gassed, even used as a projectile, the poor tomato has become the avatar for our disaffection with industrial foods — while becoming the most popular vegetable in America (and, in fact, the world). Each summer, tomato festivals crop up across the country; the Heinz ketchup bottle, instantly recognizable, has earned a spot in the Smithsonian; and now the tomato is redefining the very nature of farming, moving from fields into climate-controlled mega-greenhouses the size of New England villages.
Supported by meticulous research and told in a lively, accessible voice, Ten Tomatoes That Changed the World seamlessly weaves travel, history, humor, and a little adventure (and misadventure) to follow the tomato's trail through history. A fascinating story complete with heroes, con artists, conquistadors, and—no surprise—the Mafia, this book is a mouth-watering, informative, and entertaining guide to the food that has captured our hearts for generations.
The tomato gets no respect. Never has. Lost in the dustbin of history for centuries, accused of being vile and poisonous, subjected to being picked hard-green and gassed, even used as a projectile, the poor tomato has become the avatar for our disaffection with industrial foods — while becoming the most popular vegetable in America (and, in fact, the world). Each summer, tomato festivals crop up across the country; the Heinz ketchup bottle, instantly recognizable, has earned a spot in the Smithsonian; and now the tomato is redefining the very nature of farming, moving from fields into climate-controlled mega-greenhouses the size of New England villages.
Supported by meticulous research and told in a lively, accessible voice, Ten Tomatoes That Changed the World seamlessly weaves travel, history, humor, and a little adventure (and misadventure) to follow the tomato's trail through history. A fascinating story complete with heroes, con artists, conquistadors, and—no surprise—the Mafia, this book is a mouth-watering, informative, and entertaining guide to the food that has captured our hearts for generations.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published June 6, 2022
196 people are currently reading
6071 people want to read
About the author
William Alexander
5 books91 followersWilliam Alexander is the author, most recently, of "Flirting with French." His previous books include the bestseller "The $64 Tomato" and "52 Loaves: One Man's Relentless Pursuit of Truth, Meaning, and a Perfect Crust." The New York Times has said about him, "His timing and his delivery are flawless."
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 332 reviews
March 20, 2022
This is a shockingly fascinating book considering that it's entirely about tomatoes. The author approaches the topic from several different angles roughly arranged chronologically through the chapters.
I definitely found the first half of the book more engaging. These chapters included topics about the very early history of tomatoes, pizza, spaghetti, shifting opinions about tomatoes, and more. It's more about history and society. The later parts of the book focus more on things like genetically modified plants, greenhouses, and climate change. It's more about the scientific details.
There were lots of surprising stories and facts throughout the book that are fun to share with others. I feel a lot more informed on this small area of history and really enjoyed the experience of reading this book.
I'd recommend this to people who like cooking, microhistories, scientific nonfiction, or tomatoes. It's pretty accessible and written in an entertaining voice (plus there are photographs!).
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC to read and review.
I definitely found the first half of the book more engaging. These chapters included topics about the very early history of tomatoes, pizza, spaghetti, shifting opinions about tomatoes, and more. It's more about history and society. The later parts of the book focus more on things like genetically modified plants, greenhouses, and climate change. It's more about the scientific details.
There were lots of surprising stories and facts throughout the book that are fun to share with others. I feel a lot more informed on this small area of history and really enjoyed the experience of reading this book.
I'd recommend this to people who like cooking, microhistories, scientific nonfiction, or tomatoes. It's pretty accessible and written in an entertaining voice (plus there are photographs!).
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC to read and review.
March 4, 2023
Thought I’d check out this book because it was an Audible Daily Deal and I like learning new facts. I was pleasantly surprised, because the author wrote a fun book all about tomatoes. It was actually interesting. I’m sure there’s a lot missing, but he covered what he wanted to.
The ten tomatoes he writes about are:
1. The first tomato from Mexico
2. Canned tomatoes
3. San Marzano tomatoes
4. Pizza sauce/ pizza
5. Ketchup/ food regulations
6. Spaghetti sauce/ pasta
7. Big Boy/ new tomato crosses
8. Modern, flavourless tomatoes
9. Heirloom tomatoes
10. Greenhouse tomatoes
Recommended for people who like to know random facts.
The ten tomatoes he writes about are:
1. The first tomato from Mexico
2. Canned tomatoes
3. San Marzano tomatoes
4. Pizza sauce/ pizza
5. Ketchup/ food regulations
6. Spaghetti sauce/ pasta
7. Big Boy/ new tomato crosses
8. Modern, flavourless tomatoes
9. Heirloom tomatoes
10. Greenhouse tomatoes
Recommended for people who like to know random facts.
June 7, 2022
Rating: 5/5 stars
Out June 7, 2022 [Huge thanks to Grand Central Publishing for providing me with a gifted copy in exchange for an honest review!]
I am a huge fan of micro histories on super niche topics, so when I saw Ten Tomatoes That Changed The World I knew I had to have it, and trust me when I tell you I was not disappointed. I was mildly obsessed with this book from beginning to end (and thoroughly annoyed—er, I mean, regaled—my family with endless tomato anecdotes for several days). The structure of the book is straightforward and easy to follow, using major developments and events (including the invention of pizza, of ketchup, and so on) to tell the history of the tomato—a history which is surprisingly fraught, fascinating, and filled with political, historical, and horticultural drama. Genuinely, I cannot recommend Ten Tomatoes That Changed The World highly enough, and this is coming from someone who is actually allergic to tomatoes! (But I eat them anyway.)
Out June 7, 2022 [Huge thanks to Grand Central Publishing for providing me with a gifted copy in exchange for an honest review!]
I am a huge fan of micro histories on super niche topics, so when I saw Ten Tomatoes That Changed The World I knew I had to have it, and trust me when I tell you I was not disappointed. I was mildly obsessed with this book from beginning to end (and thoroughly annoyed—er, I mean, regaled—my family with endless tomato anecdotes for several days). The structure of the book is straightforward and easy to follow, using major developments and events (including the invention of pizza, of ketchup, and so on) to tell the history of the tomato—a history which is surprisingly fraught, fascinating, and filled with political, historical, and horticultural drama. Genuinely, I cannot recommend Ten Tomatoes That Changed The World highly enough, and this is coming from someone who is actually allergic to tomatoes! (But I eat them anyway.)
August 11, 2022
I quite enjoyed this history of the tomato from its origins to its worldwide domination inserting itself into so many national dishes from Italian to Indian to many countries in Africa. There were sections dedicated to pizza, ketchup but also the science of tomato hybrids and the future of farming tomato. I learned tons but also quite enjoyed. Alexander has a fun sense of humor and would enjoy reading more of his work.
![Profile Image for laurel [the suspected bibliophile].](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fi.gr-assets.com%2Fimages%2FS%2Fcompressed.photo.goodreads.com%2Fusers%2F1645808644i%2F7494844._UX200_CR0%2C6%2C200%2C200_.jpg&w=128&q=75)
July 2, 2025
A comprehensive look at the history of the tomato, from its origins in Mexico and South America to its future grown in hydroponic greenhouses.
This was not quite the book I was anticipating. For some reason, I thought Alexander would be talking about the history of ten different varieties of tomatoes, and while this does cover a wide swath of different tomato types, it's more about the history of the tomato broken down into ten different chapters. Some chapters do focus on a specific variety, but it's a little more scattershot than that, focusing instead on how tomatoes went from an ornamental curiosity (to white Europeans) to one of the most ubiquitous vegetables worldwide.
I did appreciate how vast the scope of this book was, although I kinda wanted a little more information about the tomato's history in Aztec culture, specifically how it was grown in the lakes and canals of Tenochtitlán (modern day Mexico City).
I learned a lot about tomatoes, chiefly: why supermarket tomatoes are so damn bland.
TL;DR: don't buy Florida tomatoes. They have shitty taste and are grown in poisoned sand. DO buy greenhouse tomatoes: while they have a higher carbon footprint, they have 95% fewer pesticides and use 90% less water than their field-grown counterparts (and, bonus: they often taste better). If you're going to buy ketchup, buy Heinz.
This was not quite the book I was anticipating. For some reason, I thought Alexander would be talking about the history of ten different varieties of tomatoes, and while this does cover a wide swath of different tomato types, it's more about the history of the tomato broken down into ten different chapters. Some chapters do focus on a specific variety, but it's a little more scattershot than that, focusing instead on how tomatoes went from an ornamental curiosity (to white Europeans) to one of the most ubiquitous vegetables worldwide.
I did appreciate how vast the scope of this book was, although I kinda wanted a little more information about the tomato's history in Aztec culture, specifically how it was grown in the lakes and canals of Tenochtitlán (modern day Mexico City).
I learned a lot about tomatoes, chiefly: why supermarket tomatoes are so damn bland.
TL;DR: don't buy Florida tomatoes. They have shitty taste and are grown in poisoned sand. DO buy greenhouse tomatoes: while they have a higher carbon footprint, they have 95% fewer pesticides and use 90% less water than their field-grown counterparts (and, bonus: they often taste better). If you're going to buy ketchup, buy Heinz.
May 11, 2023
Earlier in life I never would have guessed that one day I'd be reading history books about such specific food topics as Salt: A World History, Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World, or the tomato. It *did* make me even more grateful to have grown up visiting my (farmer/gardener) grandparents in northwest Iowa and savoring big, juicy, flavorful slices of tomatoes they'd grown (even though we always added unhealthy amounts of salt or sugar to them). Now I understand why it's nearly impossible to find a tomato of any kind - even the heirlooms! - in the grocery store that's even close to being worth its weight in taste. And apparently, when supermarket tomatoes are the most expensive, it indicates that the current batch is likely lower in quality/flavor rather than being better!
I appreciated the author's very American silly, sarcastic tone throughout the book, but did not appreciate his ethnocentrism - especially obvious when he fails to even mention Native American traditions of saving seeds and carefully cultivating good biodiversity over thousands of years.
Here are some random things I found interesting in the book:
~90% of the population of Pompeii successfully evacuated and survived the most famous eruption of Mt. Vesuvius - which is still the most considered the most dangerous active volcano in the world
Michelangelo was discovered because he made a counterfeit piece of art (statue?) so well that impressed higher-ups
There were many more than 800 different ketchup/catsup brands by 1915! Because it was a byproduct/waste product from the new canning industry, developed by Brits based on fish sauces from parts of Asia.
The original ketchups were made from fermented walnuts, anchovies, or mushrooms and therefore had a long shelf life prior to the invention of *tomato* ketchup.
Henry Heinz sounds like one of the most ethical businessmen produced by capitalist America! He paid off all his old creditors even though he’d been absolved from the debts by declaring bankruptcy. Then, in an era of no regulations on food safety and basically every maker of condiments and baby food putting all kinds of toxic fillers and contaminants in their products (such as arsenic, plaster, benzine, cocaine, alcohol and more), he started making horseradish sauce and then ketchup with the product’s purity being the main marketing strategy. For his workers - mostly immigrants - he provided a pool, a gym, on-site health care, good pay, etc. He believed “in order to do well, one must do good.”
Original homemade ketchups were more savory and umami; in order to preserve them in the bottle for up to two years, Heinz added so much sugar to the recipe (to cover up the added vinegar) that it has, to this day, more sugar per liquid ounce than Coca-Cola!
He has a lengthy (and fascinating) chapter on the genetic developments within the commercial and residential tomato growing world, but when talking about seed saving, he describes it as a phenomenon that occurred among baby boomers in the 1970s and NEVER talks about the indigenous practices of seed saving that’s been going on for thousands of years.
After barely surviving Nazi occupation, Holland started building greenhouses to avoid ever having famine. Now 80% of its agriculture takes place under glass. The country is only 16,000 square miles - just ⅔ the size of West Virginia - and yet is now, incredibly, the 2nd leading exporter of food globally, just behind the U.S.! (Although, as of May ‘23, the Netherlands is 6th, after, in order, the U.S., Germany (!), U.K., China, and France. The author’s visit there took place just weeks before COVID-19 became a pandemic.)
I appreciated the author's very American silly, sarcastic tone throughout the book, but did not appreciate his ethnocentrism - especially obvious when he fails to even mention Native American traditions of saving seeds and carefully cultivating good biodiversity over thousands of years.
Here are some random things I found interesting in the book:
~90% of the population of Pompeii successfully evacuated and survived the most famous eruption of Mt. Vesuvius - which is still the most considered the most dangerous active volcano in the world
Michelangelo was discovered because he made a counterfeit piece of art (statue?) so well that impressed higher-ups
There were many more than 800 different ketchup/catsup brands by 1915! Because it was a byproduct/waste product from the new canning industry, developed by Brits based on fish sauces from parts of Asia.
The original ketchups were made from fermented walnuts, anchovies, or mushrooms and therefore had a long shelf life prior to the invention of *tomato* ketchup.
Henry Heinz sounds like one of the most ethical businessmen produced by capitalist America! He paid off all his old creditors even though he’d been absolved from the debts by declaring bankruptcy. Then, in an era of no regulations on food safety and basically every maker of condiments and baby food putting all kinds of toxic fillers and contaminants in their products (such as arsenic, plaster, benzine, cocaine, alcohol and more), he started making horseradish sauce and then ketchup with the product’s purity being the main marketing strategy. For his workers - mostly immigrants - he provided a pool, a gym, on-site health care, good pay, etc. He believed “in order to do well, one must do good.”
Original homemade ketchups were more savory and umami; in order to preserve them in the bottle for up to two years, Heinz added so much sugar to the recipe (to cover up the added vinegar) that it has, to this day, more sugar per liquid ounce than Coca-Cola!
He has a lengthy (and fascinating) chapter on the genetic developments within the commercial and residential tomato growing world, but when talking about seed saving, he describes it as a phenomenon that occurred among baby boomers in the 1970s and NEVER talks about the indigenous practices of seed saving that’s been going on for thousands of years.
After barely surviving Nazi occupation, Holland started building greenhouses to avoid ever having famine. Now 80% of its agriculture takes place under glass. The country is only 16,000 square miles - just ⅔ the size of West Virginia - and yet is now, incredibly, the 2nd leading exporter of food globally, just behind the U.S.! (Although, as of May ‘23, the Netherlands is 6th, after, in order, the U.S., Germany (!), U.K., China, and France. The author’s visit there took place just weeks before COVID-19 became a pandemic.)
October 23, 2022
Lively, vivid essays about tomatoes in history. The author travels widely, from Italy to Mexico to Canada and elsewhere. Much more about technology than I was expecting.
Some tips:
Why do so many supermarket tomatoes, especially Florida tomatoes, taste so bad?
They're bred, grown, and harvested in ways that make them more durable. Florida tomatoes are grown in poisoned sand, picked far before ripeness, and gassed until they turn red. They're also bred to be uniformly red, which unfortunately means less sugar per tomato and therefore less flavor. Nobody is choosing a fast-food burger based on tomato quality.
Should I buy a greenhouse tomato rather than a field-grown tomato?
Sure, if the greenhouse tomato tastes better and you can afford the cost difference. Greenhouse tomatoes have a bigger carbon footprint (in other words, they take more energy to grow). But they use only 10 percent of the water that field-grown tomatoes require, and they cause the release of far fewer pesticides into the environment. Also, working conditions in greenhouses are almost always better than those in fields.
Why are San Marzano tomatoes so delicious?
Volcanic soil, water with a high calcium content, and a layer of clay under the soil that holds water about as well as a bathtub
What percentage of "San Marzano" tomatoes sold in the United States are fakes?
Nearly all of them; most are grown in other parts of Italy with different soil and water conditions
Is spaghetti and meatballs an Italian dish?
It's American. Most Italian dishes from previous eras have way less meat.
Some tips:
Why do so many supermarket tomatoes, especially Florida tomatoes, taste so bad?
They're bred, grown, and harvested in ways that make them more durable. Florida tomatoes are grown in poisoned sand, picked far before ripeness, and gassed until they turn red. They're also bred to be uniformly red, which unfortunately means less sugar per tomato and therefore less flavor. Nobody is choosing a fast-food burger based on tomato quality.
Should I buy a greenhouse tomato rather than a field-grown tomato?
Sure, if the greenhouse tomato tastes better and you can afford the cost difference. Greenhouse tomatoes have a bigger carbon footprint (in other words, they take more energy to grow). But they use only 10 percent of the water that field-grown tomatoes require, and they cause the release of far fewer pesticides into the environment. Also, working conditions in greenhouses are almost always better than those in fields.
Why are San Marzano tomatoes so delicious?
Volcanic soil, water with a high calcium content, and a layer of clay under the soil that holds water about as well as a bathtub
What percentage of "San Marzano" tomatoes sold in the United States are fakes?
Nearly all of them; most are grown in other parts of Italy with different soil and water conditions
Is spaghetti and meatballs an Italian dish?
It's American. Most Italian dishes from previous eras have way less meat.
September 10, 2022
I listened to this one with my husband while driving. It was well researched and takes the story of the tomato from the Aztecs to Dominos pizza to the Leamington greenhouses. Having picked field tomatoes as a child, worked with the greenhouse industry and grown my own from hybrids to heirlooms, the tomato is near and dear to my heart.
Will Alexander did an excellent job providing a touch of humour to make the science and history entertaining. A great read/ listen!
Will Alexander did an excellent job providing a touch of humour to make the science and history entertaining. A great read/ listen!
May 1, 2023
I've now read two tomato books by the same author.
When I picked this book, I didn't realize Alexander had also written The $64 Tomato. But who else would have such a deep and abiding affection for this fruit/veg?
I was thinking that each chapter would be a study on varities of tomatos. Aside from the San Marzano (of course, everyone just lurves a San Marzano), this wasn't the case. Instead, it was much more interesting. (And yes, fine San Marzanos are great for sauce, but there far superior tasting tomatos. I'll fight you.) Topics from mega-greenhouses (hello Ontario!) to the OG (terrible) pizza, this book covered it all. I learned a ton about Florida tomatos (terrible), worker's rights (double terrible) and hybridizationz seed saving and growing a superior tomato (great!). I do admit, I love growing Brandywines. Not because I love to eat them (confession: I don't lurve tomatoes, but I am working on myself, ok?) but because they are beautiful plants and I love to see how big I can grow them.
If you, like me, love a micro-history and gardening/agriculture related stuff this book can teach you plenty of tomato-related information. Facinating small talk for all your friends!
When I picked this book, I didn't realize Alexander had also written The $64 Tomato. But who else would have such a deep and abiding affection for this fruit/veg?
I was thinking that each chapter would be a study on varities of tomatos. Aside from the San Marzano (of course, everyone just lurves a San Marzano), this wasn't the case. Instead, it was much more interesting. (And yes, fine San Marzanos are great for sauce, but there far superior tasting tomatos. I'll fight you.) Topics from mega-greenhouses (hello Ontario!) to the OG (terrible) pizza, this book covered it all. I learned a ton about Florida tomatos (terrible), worker's rights (double terrible) and hybridizationz seed saving and growing a superior tomato (great!). I do admit, I love growing Brandywines. Not because I love to eat them (confession: I don't lurve tomatoes, but I am working on myself, ok?) but because they are beautiful plants and I love to see how big I can grow them.
If you, like me, love a micro-history and gardening/agriculture related stuff this book can teach you plenty of tomato-related information. Facinating small talk for all your friends!
July 28, 2022
BRILLIANT 🍅 this is basically the Tomato version of ‘Sapiens’ and I loved it equally. This book covers the history of tomatoes from where they began to where they are now (and a glimpse into the future) but it’s not just that! I loved this book because whilst I was learning about tomatoes I was also learning about important events in history, biology and economics (much like Sapiens). The author writes in a friendly manner, very easy to consume (yes, that’s a good pun).
I gave this book 5 stars but don’t go adding it to your ‘to read’ list right away. I’d recommend asking your self: did you like Sapiens? Are you especially interested in food? If yes and yes, this book is for you. If you also like history or biology or are an especially curious person or just really love tomatoes so much - this is book is definitely for you.
I gave this book 5 stars but don’t go adding it to your ‘to read’ list right away. I’d recommend asking your self: did you like Sapiens? Are you especially interested in food? If yes and yes, this book is for you. If you also like history or biology or are an especially curious person or just really love tomatoes so much - this is book is definitely for you.
September 8, 2023
An amusing and light-hearted niche history of tomatoes and by extension pizza, ketchup, and spaghetti.
Everyone associates tomatoes with Italian food but they are not actually native to Italy. They were discovered in the New World, and it then took another couple hundred years for them to become popular in Italy.
Among other things, I learned that pretty much every Italian food that has a significant amount of meat (spaghetti and meatballs, veal parmigiana, etc) was invented by Italian-Americans. Also the story about Queen Margherita dining on a tricolor pizza later named in her honor is probably a hoax. Oh well.
The sections on pizza and Heinz ketchup were great, but I thought the final third dragged as he discussed various tomato hybrids and the practical difficulties in developing a tomato that can be mass-produced in numbers needed to satisfy the public demand and still taste good. With our current technology these goals are mutually exclusive.
Interested readers might want to check out Malcolm Gladwell’s fascinating chapter on ketchup and mustard in What the Dog Saw.
Everyone associates tomatoes with Italian food but they are not actually native to Italy. They were discovered in the New World, and it then took another couple hundred years for them to become popular in Italy.
Among other things, I learned that pretty much every Italian food that has a significant amount of meat (spaghetti and meatballs, veal parmigiana, etc) was invented by Italian-Americans. Also the story about Queen Margherita dining on a tricolor pizza later named in her honor is probably a hoax. Oh well.
The sections on pizza and Heinz ketchup were great, but I thought the final third dragged as he discussed various tomato hybrids and the practical difficulties in developing a tomato that can be mass-produced in numbers needed to satisfy the public demand and still taste good. With our current technology these goals are mutually exclusive.
Interested readers might want to check out Malcolm Gladwell’s fascinating chapter on ketchup and mustard in What the Dog Saw.
July 11, 2024
To be fair, I do love tomatoes. But this was a fun, interesting read. The humble tomato’s history touches a lot of topics, from colonization to class struggle to genetics to American capitalism and consumerism to modern agriculture. Worth checking out over a weekend, especially in the summer when you can go grab a fresh Brandywine.
Kudos to the editor - it never got toooo bogged down in the details like most nonfiction does. One can only remember so many 18th century Italian tomato farmers.
One of the coolest facts: Central Americans have been using the tomato in many of the same ways (eg pico de Gallo) for centuries / millennia (the rest of the world didn’t really start until the mid 1800s).
Kudos to the editor - it never got toooo bogged down in the details like most nonfiction does. One can only remember so many 18th century Italian tomato farmers.
One of the coolest facts: Central Americans have been using the tomato in many of the same ways (eg pico de Gallo) for centuries / millennia (the rest of the world didn’t really start until the mid 1800s).
January 11, 2025
This was a fascinating read. You learn about the beginnings of tomatoes, where fake and real San Marzano tomatoes come from, the story of the name “Margherita” pizza (and whether it’s true), who Chef Boyardee is, why everywhere but Italy eats spaghetti and meatballs, why grocery store tomatoes are like cardboard, and how they are making those amazing Campari tomatoes I get at Costco?! Highly recommend!
March 18, 2025
Pretty interesting stories, but not all the chapters are as fun as others. 3.5 and rounding down. Don’t even like tomatoes, but I’m willing to give them another try now.
May 3, 2025
What a fascinating history! I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this book.
January 15, 2025
I love books like this! I was kind of skeptical going in, but was so pleasantly surprised at the pace, humor, and fascinating detail! I think my favorite tomato discussed was the history of the margherita pizza! Loved the discussion on genetics as well, but was equally intrigued by the sodium benzoate war in Heinz’s ketchup! Very fun read!
February 26, 2025
4.5 stars and I have a new writer crush
July 20, 2022
“Certainly, being in the nightshade family did the tomato no favors, for its fellow nightshade, belladonna, is one of the most toxic plants on the planet, having killed off more popes, cardinals, and Roman emperors than syphilis.”
Having grown many heirloom tomato varieties myself, both determinate and indeterminate, l found this history of the tomato fascinating. The original “discovered” by Hernán Cortes in the Aztec Empire, the tomato was a ribbed, segmented fruit. Forgotten for centuries, it was rediscovered and hybridized to the fruit we use today. This history includes the San Marzano tomatoes of Naples which became essential for the margherita pizza and later to the Lombardi pizzas of NYC. This history includes Henry J Heinz and the bottling of ketchup, continues to the Florida green tomatoe and ends with the Campari tomatoes grown in Ontario by the Mastronardi greenhouses.
Reading this history of the tomato made me think of the voyage to the bunny planet, first tomato, by Rosemary Wells. In this children’s book, a young girl waits for the first tomato of the season. Been there.
‘A ruby red tomato is hanging on the vine. If my mother didn’t want it, the tomato would be mine.
It smells of rain and steamy earth and hot June sun. In the whole tomato garden it’s the only ripe one. I close my eyes and breathe in its fat red smell. I wish that I could eat it now and never, never tell.
But I save it for my mother without another look….
I hear my mother calling when the summer winds blow. “I’ve made you first tomato soup because I love you so.”’
Having grown many heirloom tomato varieties myself, both determinate and indeterminate, l found this history of the tomato fascinating. The original “discovered” by Hernán Cortes in the Aztec Empire, the tomato was a ribbed, segmented fruit. Forgotten for centuries, it was rediscovered and hybridized to the fruit we use today. This history includes the San Marzano tomatoes of Naples which became essential for the margherita pizza and later to the Lombardi pizzas of NYC. This history includes Henry J Heinz and the bottling of ketchup, continues to the Florida green tomatoe and ends with the Campari tomatoes grown in Ontario by the Mastronardi greenhouses.
Reading this history of the tomato made me think of the voyage to the bunny planet, first tomato, by Rosemary Wells. In this children’s book, a young girl waits for the first tomato of the season. Been there.
‘A ruby red tomato is hanging on the vine. If my mother didn’t want it, the tomato would be mine.
It smells of rain and steamy earth and hot June sun. In the whole tomato garden it’s the only ripe one. I close my eyes and breathe in its fat red smell. I wish that I could eat it now and never, never tell.
But I save it for my mother without another look….
I hear my mother calling when the summer winds blow. “I’ve made you first tomato soup because I love you so.”’
June 9, 2022
As a tomato addict, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I currently have 30 tomato plants in my garden, with 18 different varieties. It's going to be quite the year of experimentation!
Alexander offers an in-depth look into everything tomato related. In the first half, the book explores the history and culture of the tomato. The second half dives into the science of tomatoes. The breeding, the growing, and environmental factors.
It's a great companion piece to the author's earlier book, "The $64 Tomato". Together they have pushed my interest (aka: obsession) to new levels.
I will be keeping this book handy for future reviews, especially during the off-season when I can only dream about growing more tomatoes!
Highly recommend to any gardener who loves tomatoes!
Alexander offers an in-depth look into everything tomato related. In the first half, the book explores the history and culture of the tomato. The second half dives into the science of tomatoes. The breeding, the growing, and environmental factors.
It's a great companion piece to the author's earlier book, "The $64 Tomato". Together they have pushed my interest (aka: obsession) to new levels.
I will be keeping this book handy for future reviews, especially during the off-season when I can only dream about growing more tomatoes!
Highly recommend to any gardener who loves tomatoes!
September 19, 2022
I really enjoyed (and could definitely relate to) Alexander's previous book, The $64 Tomato, about the extreme difficulty of organic home gardening. In our yard, between the deer, rabbits, chipmunks, groundhogs, birds, and insects, we'd have to plant the whole acre to get a basket of tomatoes. Apparently the ordeal piqued his interest in the history of tomatoes, hence this current book. His writing is entertaining, and I learned a ton about tomato pills, why you can't get a good pizza in Naples, ketchup, the terroir of Sicily and the unintended consequences of abbreviations, why supermarket tomatoes taste so bad, and how the Canadians grow those Campari tomatoes in newfangled acre-sized greenhouses. I was amused by illustrations like the elderly farmer standing atop his stepladder to harvest tomatoes from a vine staked about twelve feet straight up, and prompted to take a break from the text to finally watch the cult classic Attack of the Killer Tomatoes (truly awful). All in all, a very satisfying read.
January 4, 2024
I love books like this - "lists" of how certain foods/drinks made an impact on our past, how some of it changed history and how some of those factors are still in play today.
I love tomatoes and can't think of anything that's better than a freshly-picked tomato, still warm from the sun in the garden. As a kid, there were many times when the tomato I picked didn't make it down the hill to the house :) It's hard to imagine a time when tomatoes were thought of as poisonous, but the author explained how that came to be, and how it took so many baby steps to change that perception.
His writing style was right up my alley, presenting factual information in an entertaining manner, making me smile and even chuckle while listening to the book. He made me feel like I was present for some of the events he described, although in some dangerous situations, as a fly on the wall rather than a participant.
I have already added more of the author's book to my to-read shelf and look forward to reading them soon.
I love tomatoes and can't think of anything that's better than a freshly-picked tomato, still warm from the sun in the garden. As a kid, there were many times when the tomato I picked didn't make it down the hill to the house :) It's hard to imagine a time when tomatoes were thought of as poisonous, but the author explained how that came to be, and how it took so many baby steps to change that perception.
His writing style was right up my alley, presenting factual information in an entertaining manner, making me smile and even chuckle while listening to the book. He made me feel like I was present for some of the events he described, although in some dangerous situations, as a fly on the wall rather than a participant.
I have already added more of the author's book to my to-read shelf and look forward to reading them soon.
August 14, 2024
Overall, a unique and enjoyable microhistory about the history and usage of tomatoes! I loved the author's voice; he injected a lot of humor into the book. However, I know I prefer nonfiction that reads a little bit more like fiction so this fact packed microhistory felt like it had too much info.
I did enjoy learning more about tomatoes though and some of my favorite facts from this book are:
-Tikka Masala was created when someone sent back a plate of curry in Britain and the chef poured in some of his tomato soup (allegedly)
-When tomatoes were first introduced they weren't actually eaten until a century later. But they did earn the name "love apple"
-Florida tomatoes (which supply most of our supermarket tomatoes) are bred to be tough and hardy (for shipping) and are picked green, and ripened with gas
I did enjoy learning more about tomatoes though and some of my favorite facts from this book are:
-Tikka Masala was created when someone sent back a plate of curry in Britain and the chef poured in some of his tomato soup (allegedly)
-When tomatoes were first introduced they weren't actually eaten until a century later. But they did earn the name "love apple"
-Florida tomatoes (which supply most of our supermarket tomatoes) are bred to be tough and hardy (for shipping) and are picked green, and ripened with gas
August 17, 2024
If this title would have 'A history of the tomato in Western Culture' my my appreciation & rating would have been higher, but the promise of a global scope in the title and lack thereof in the chapter left me feeling more and more annoyed while reading.
The tomato is native to Latin America. The three top tomato producing countries in 2022 were China, India and Turkey. Tomato consumption per capita is highest in China, followed by India. Yet 95% of this text is about US and Europe, starting this history in Renaissance Italy, only briefly adding that the tomato had been cultivated for a thousand years in Central America.
Five star worthy content in some of the chapters, but this is a big omission with regard to the books title.
The tomato is native to Latin America. The three top tomato producing countries in 2022 were China, India and Turkey. Tomato consumption per capita is highest in China, followed by India. Yet 95% of this text is about US and Europe, starting this history in Renaissance Italy, only briefly adding that the tomato had been cultivated for a thousand years in Central America.
Five star worthy content in some of the chapters, but this is a big omission with regard to the books title.
June 14, 2022
This book and William Alexander will take you from the Aztecs to Dominos to Campari tomatoes. If you love tomatoes (I do) or history (I do if it’s history that interests me), you’ll greatly enjoy this book. It was fascinating to read how the tomato finally became something gourmet and loved in Italy and the U.S.
William Alexander did not cook in this book. There was no hilarious pursuit of gardening and cooking or language learning. There are a few super short mentions of his making pizza etc in the book but just a sentence sprinkled here and there. His kids and wife Anne are mostly missing. Indeed, I myself felt like William Alexander is mostly missing from the book.
He’s still in the book of course since he is the writer, but he’s mostly just there as a narrator… a bit like a dry museum guide. This book is THE MUSEUM OF THE TOMATO FROM AZTECS TO BRANDYWINES.
I learned quite a bit of new information. I just really missed William Alexander’s exploits and personality flooding the pages. No hijinks. No hilarity. No subdued hilarious sarcasm from his wife.
I didn’t love this book as much as his past books. It was still a very good read. I very much recommend the book but not as your first book by him.
I hesitated to write a review at all. What if he or his wife Anne read this? But, if I was the writer, I’d want honesty. I have to believe they do, too. Yes, I really did write this silly paragraph. I’ve read all his books, and I feel bad giving the book four stars instead of five… I just have to point out that four stars is still very good.
William Alexander did not cook in this book. There was no hilarious pursuit of gardening and cooking or language learning. There are a few super short mentions of his making pizza etc in the book but just a sentence sprinkled here and there. His kids and wife Anne are mostly missing. Indeed, I myself felt like William Alexander is mostly missing from the book.
He’s still in the book of course since he is the writer, but he’s mostly just there as a narrator… a bit like a dry museum guide. This book is THE MUSEUM OF THE TOMATO FROM AZTECS TO BRANDYWINES.
I learned quite a bit of new information. I just really missed William Alexander’s exploits and personality flooding the pages. No hijinks. No hilarity. No subdued hilarious sarcasm from his wife.
I didn’t love this book as much as his past books. It was still a very good read. I very much recommend the book but not as your first book by him.
I hesitated to write a review at all. What if he or his wife Anne read this? But, if I was the writer, I’d want honesty. I have to believe they do, too. Yes, I really did write this silly paragraph. I’ve read all his books, and I feel bad giving the book four stars instead of five… I just have to point out that four stars is still very good.
September 16, 2022
I obviously judge books by their covers all the time, and this one jumped out at me and promised to be great. It was, but not quite what I expected. I guess I thought it would be ten stories that featured a tomato (sort of like Adam and Eve and their apple, Newton and his apple -- but with tomatoes) but it turned out to be the history of tomatoes instead. Even though it isn't what I thought I was getting into, it was both interesting and entertaining, two key qualities I look for in my books. 4 stars.
August 16, 2022
I didn’t read the synopsis and I thought tomato was going to be figurative - but no. This is legit a book about tomatoes and how they changed the world. It was interesting and done in a way that didn’t feel like learning. I can honestly say I never gave much thought to tomatoes and where they came from…they’ve always just been there, we grow them in the garden, buy them at the store, use them for pasta…and tomato soup! I honestly loved this book.
March 6, 2023
4.25
I don’t like tomatoes myself but I’m interested in where things come from and their importance, particularly foods and beverages and this did a nice job of discussing it in terms of western civilization, particularly Italy and the US. My one wish would’ve been for more exploration of the history of the tomato in Mexico but I also understand we might not have a lot of information on that.
I don’t like tomatoes myself but I’m interested in where things come from and their importance, particularly foods and beverages and this did a nice job of discussing it in terms of western civilization, particularly Italy and the US. My one wish would’ve been for more exploration of the history of the tomato in Mexico but I also understand we might not have a lot of information on that.
August 4, 2023
This book had its moments. The beginning was much better where you can learn about the history of ketchup, pasta, pizza, and other iconic tomato products. But as the books goes on it seems like the author doesn’t know where to end the book and seems like he rambled about modern day tomato cultivation. I definitely have a new appreciation for the tomato but not for the author.
February 29, 2024
My husband bought me this book for Christmas. He was looking for something historical, food based, lots of trivial knowledge, and humorous. He picked well. I now know more than I ever thought possible about the ubiquitous tomato. Even was able to bring it local to central Ohio with the story of Alexander Livingston and the hybridization of tomatoes.
August 30, 2022
My kind of book! As a major tomato lover and grower, I really enjoyed this book, had a Bill Bryson feel to it, entertaining and funny. Sure hope there is a tomato question in my pub trivia this week, I will shine!
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