Douglas A. Farnie and David J. Jeremy, eds. The Fibre That Changed the World: The Cotton Industry in International Perspective, 1600-1990s. Oxford, U.K.: Oxford University Press, 2004. xxxiv + 614 pp. ISBN 0-19-925566-0, $185.00 (cloth).

This volume sets a new yardstick for future research on thecotton industry, from early modern times to the present. Theeditors have brought an international perspective to a researcharea too long dominated by national or regional studies. Therehave been excellent comparative studies in the past, but thisvolume is distinguished by its unwavering commitment to studythe volume and means of exchanges and technology transfer acrossborders and oceans. With the exception of