A bracing new history of the global opium trade . . . Ghosh's tentacular history embraces
opium's entanglement with furniture architecture gardens and its role in modern wars . . .
But it's Ghosh's big-picture thinking that has made his nonfiction so influential . . . A huge
achievement' The New York Times Book Review From the nineteenth century the British reaped
huge profits by exporting vast quantities of opium from India waged wars to defend its access
to markets and created a devastating addiction crisis in China. A sweeping story of greed and
power Smoke and Ashes reveals how opium created the wealth of modern cities like Mumbai
Singapore and Shanghai as well as many of America's most powerful families and institutions
and is a part of Ghosh's personal history. 'Ghosh triumphs in laying out the shame of the
British Empire's opium trade for all to see' Financial Times 'This gave me a deeper chill
than any TV series about the opioid crisis. . . The writing is sublime the research thorough
the eye for story superb' Sunday Telegraph 'Superlative . . . synthesise[s] a wealth of
research with remarkable intellectual clarity' The Times 'Expansive and thoughtful' Peter
Frankopan The Spectator
