Chewing Gum ─ The Fortunes of Taste

Redclift (geography, King's College London, UK) narrates the history of chewing gum, combining discussion of gum as a iconic emblem of the rise of American mass consumer culture with explorations of how its phenomenal marketplace success impacted the indigenous Mexicans who collected the chicle necessary for its manufacture. He brings the story full circle from the introduction of the first chicle-based gum, through the growth of bubble gum culture, to the reintroduction of chicle-based gum as an environmentally sensitive product helping Mexican forest workers live sustainable lifestyles. Annotation c2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Michael Redclift, a leading scholar in ecology and social theory, is a professor of geography at King's College, London. He is author or editor of fifteen books, including Sustainable Development and Wasted.