Famine studies is, mercifully, a dwindling sub‐genre, and in this fascinating book it is presented as history. The timescale sweeps through some 5,000 years, from famines in ancient Egypt to Malawi in 2002 and Niger in 2005. This scope is impressive, and the thematic structure juxtaposes famines that are separated by many centuries, illuminating continuities as well as changes over time in famine processes and defining characteristics. The fact that famine persists in the early twenty‐first century gives this book a resonance and relevance that a review confined to historical famines would not provide.
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