This book, which promised so much and could have been so good, is largely a disappointment.
The author mentioned that it was developed as a PhD thesis; sadly, it reads like one. With more effort it could have been made much more interesting and readable to people other than his examiners.
Using “standard” – as distinct from “academic” – English and by incorporating many of its overly abundant footnotes into the text, it would have been very much better (footnotes, generally, are irritating). Its subject is fascinating and deserves better treatment. Most readers of Baird Maritime are in the maritime business and many have commercial connections with the Indian Ocean, so they are likely to be interested in the region’s very lengthy history of maritime trade.
Sea of Treasures, then, gives an enticing taste of that trade but ignores many of the much more juicy bits. While it is good, for example, on Pliny the Elder’s descriptions of the desire of Roman plutocrats for spices like pepper, it does not mention the kinds of vessels that were used to transport those spices and the coins used to pay for them. Nor does it describe any of the vital land infrastructure needed to facilitate that trade.
It really would be a better book if it were re-written in simpler English so as to appeal to a more general readership.
Author: Jeremy A. Simmons
Available from Princeton University Press, New Jersey, USA
