A great book don’t read when you’re hungry !

An interesting and perceptive book making an overall interesting read.
The book describes the beginnings of chocolate and sweet making up to the present day. I was interested to read that chocolate had medicinal uses in times gone by , and I’ll keep that in mind next time I’m eating a box of chocolates.
It was fascinating to realise that Quakers were a force behind chocolate and sweet production, and this led to better working and living conditions for the workers.

I found the book an entertaining read but did find it repetitive in parts ,although this didn’t detract from the enjoyment of the book itself.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc copy of this book.

Thank you to Pen and Sword and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

As an avid sweets/candy connoisseur and fan of historical backgrounds on myriad of subjects, this particular book cover and title certainly caught my eye. As an American, I was particularly interested in learning about the history if sweets from a British perspective.

This book starts off with the beginnings of the origins of sweets and quickly dives into the history of various sweets produced throughout history in the U.K. Some of the chapters contained repetitive information and the many facts and tidbits regarding different sweet and chocolate manufacturers at times read more like a PhD thesis rather than a historical book for the average layperson.

I did however, enjoy the chapter on the history of chocolate, as this and a few other chapters contained interesting stories and was easier to read than what at times felt like more of a reference book.

Recommended for any foodie or Anglophile and definitely a great reference for many of the sweets manufacturers in the U.K.

There is a very detailed book on "Sweets" while it does cover sweets from all over the world the main focus is sweets and candy makers in England. Even though this is a book dedicated to sweets there is a section of the book that deals with different chemicals they used in food for fillers and to improve color. Methods of food and liquid storage one where they used lead containers, can you imagine the lead exposure. When coffee and tea popularity took off they were looking for ways for tea manufacturers to lessen cost they reused the tea leaves or add ferrous sulphate or sheep droppings. Some tea had no tea leaves at all. This was not isolated in England it was also happening in the USA. On the candy end of things they even used powdered glass to give candy a sparkly sugar finish. It was interesting to read that some of the first candy was actually medicine or used to hide the flavor of medicine.

They talk about how candy was important to various war efforts by providing soldiers a taste of home along with giving them an energy boost. How when countries need more equipment manufacturing plants for military equipment these candy plants took up the cause to convert and manufacture the equipment.

There is large section devoted to chocolate with an interesting story believed to be how toblerone got their unique shape. There is also a section or chapter that of course deals with bad side of sugar and sweets as far as health effects but one tragic story that involved a Gobstopper (Jaw Breaker) left in the sun. Depending your age you might remember there was a brand chocolate square candies that were called Ayd's that was actually appetite suppressant .

This book was "right up my street". A thorough history of sweets (mainly in Britain) with snippets of juicy information on all of the familiar names that many of us grew up with, (and some I'd never heard of!). This book covers the good, the bad and the ugly of sweets and walks us through the changes and impact of sweets over the years. A sweet read.

Two decades ago, I created a chocolate and coffee resource website. Searching for interesting facts and information about my two favorite vices, back when Google searching was still in its infancy, was often frustrating. Owning a book like this back then would have been a godsend.

If you’re looking for neat and tidy timelines and orderly lists for quick reference, this isn’t that book. But if you want to immerse yourself in the rambling, world-wide evolution of sweets and the effects (good and bad) they’ve had on us, from prehistoric times to now, you’ll enjoy a sweet ride. Besides learning a lot about sugary snacks, you’ll pick up interesting tidbits about herbology, medicine, advertising, accidental inventions, and world culture.

I’d also recommend The History of Sweets to writers, especially those who write historical fiction novels. It’s the little details that bring a story to life, and being able to place the perfect treat into the hands of your characters will delight your readers. This book and its author are UK-centric, but they do provide lots of information about sweets (and candy! You’ll learn the difference) in many other countries. As an American author, I’ll keep this book with my reference guides. My Victorian-era characters will certainly appreciate my gifting them with the occasional sweet, one that's proper for their era and location.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m suddenly craving some Turkish Delight.

This books wasn’t quiet what I was expecting, I thought it would be focused on the different types of sweet. Instead this is a compressive overview of sweet, their history and form. I really enjoyed it, and leant a lot. The section on poisons was scary, and it was fun to learn about the origins of some common treats.

What a temptress this book was, right after Christmas! From food chemistry to ancient historical uses to the importance of packaging to ingredients to sugar trade slaves to pharmaceutical compounding, this book is packed full of everything you've dreamed of knowing about a different side of the sweets (candy) you knew as a kid, very nostalgic. The ancient sweetener was honey. Candy business really started booming in the late 18th century and chocolate a bit later. Thank goodness for that!

The sheer amount of information in this book is astonishing...it taught me a LOT, not just about the sweet treats themselves but the importance of Brazil in sugar harvesting, thinking about how much we in the West ingest on average a year (yikes!) and learning more about exotic sweets such as edible flowers and Turkish delights. Candy was sold at apothecaries as medicine.

The biggest companies were discussed in this book including Fisherman's Friend, Fry's Cocoa, Wrigley's, Cadbury's, Rowntree's, etc. Remember candy cigarettes? I do but thought nothing of its implications at the time. They continue to be produced in a few American states. As a kid I requested candy molds instead of toys and made fondant, fancy chocolates and Easter eggs whilst dreaming of Charlie's Chocolate Factory. This book took me back to those wondrous days. A portion of this book focuses on health and nutrition.

Anyone who likes sweets or reading about them will be thrilled with this book! The historical aspects were my favourites.

My sincere thank you to Pen & Sword and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this remarkably nostalgic and delectably informative book in return for an honest review. Much appreciated.

I am often intrigued by the history of food, and after recently reading a history of biscuits, when I saw this I was curious as to what I would find out about sweets and it certainly makes for a a great read packed with trivia and interesting reading about why we have these sweet treats in our lives today.

Starting with the ancients and then jumping ahead, we see a big change in how sweets became a thing and how they were able to be made - the chapters on slavery and sweets in particular are well researched and highlight how rife slavery was even after it was made illegal to use slaves for the collection of sugar and cocoa for chocolate and how even today people still need to be paid better.

I found the chocolate chapters really interesting, however the chapter on special sweets and their origins was also a great chapter to read, delving into jelly beans, humbugs and chewing gum and the chapter on sweets from around the world in particular sweets such as Deuk-Deuk Tong and Mantecol (a sweet treat I definitely want to try!) is also a fascinating chapter and well worth reading.

I’m never sure what to say for non-fiction, however this book certainly didn’t lose it’s flavour as it went on and gives you plenty to chew on.

This is such a fun and informative read. It gave so many fun facts about sweets and their really wild and fascinating history. You don't need to be a major history buff or a scientist to read it, as it's accessible to even the most casual readers. I loved learning little factoids such as how M&M's were originally a way to transport chocolate to the military. So much fun information packed into a little book! I enjoyed this and it would make an awesome coffee table read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This book was very informative, but I think it was a bit long, and it felt a bit repetitive at parts. I feel like this is a very educational book, but I think that it would work best for the people that are the biggest candy fans or just very, very interested in the subject, so I didn't enjoy it much.

This was a fun read. I enjoyed the history involved even though it was a little heaved of a book than I expected. From the front of the book I would have expected something a little different.

Thanks to Pen & Sword & NetGalley for a copy to honestly review.

How could I not dash to review a book about sweets: temptresses, cajolers, soothers, playground currency? A very intriguing, ram-jam (sorry)- packed book starting from the very honeyed beginnings of our sweet tooth. It’s not just a list of mankind suck(!)umbing (sorry again) to the sweet stuff, sugar also has some bitter aftertaste having caused slavery and wars, not to mention major tooth decay.
From cavemen raiding honeycomb to Egyptians preserving flowers in honey to the vast expansion (and increased affordability) of sugar/sweets during Victorian times to our past and current favourites, you can be sure to meet some “old friends”.
Sometimes, the author jumps on the PC bandwagon a bit too readily, e.g. condemning sweets cigarettes (chocolate or chewing gum) as evil dead-cert introductions to chain-smoking. Sometimes, the author goes off on a tangent altogether: The adulteration of various other foodstuffs is only marginally relevant to the history of sweets. Sometimes, information is given at a microscopic level: Do I really need to know the a candy floss machine rotates at a speed of 3,450 RPM? And sometimes whole swathes of text are copied from Chrystal’s 2012 book “Confectionery in Yorkshire Through Time” and his 2013 “Chocolate - The British Chocolate Industry”.
The world of sweets IS a labyrinthine one of business fusion and multiple takeovers and this book is a heap of information, no doubt. I just wish there was some sort of stream-lined order, chronological or alphabetical, and a glossary wouldn’t go amiss, either. The whole image is of a kid going wild in a sweetie shop, jumping around between jars of liquorice, chocolate and jelly beans - chaotic but neverless delightful to watch.

This book was received as an ARC from Pen & Sword - Pen & Sword History in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

I do have to say I was not expecting a this book to be very informative as it was. I was expecting many more photos and recipes. However, all of the historical content featured in this book was very interesting and enticing to read and sugar had its impact in a lot of historical events. I am a candy lover and have many recipes for homemade candy and chocolate and now knowing where it came from and its impact in history, I learn to appreciate it a lot more and have a more healthier relationship with sugar rather than an addictive one.

We will consider adding this title to our TX Non-Fiction collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

*This book was received as an advanced reader's copy from NetGalley.

While I don't eat many sweets myself, I do love reading about food history. And there's something glamorous and fun about the making of candy, at least from the outside. This book takes you through the history of some sweets and their makers.

Primarily based on locations and sweets in the UK, this book takes you through very ancient history (briefly) of sweets and their origins, leads more into the last couple centuries and outlines the major producers and origins of others (chocolate, jelly babies, etc.), and also takes you through a multitude of histories of specific producers in the UK and/or candy shops. Interspersed are chapters on sweets and health, specific sweet's history, and a few other nuggets of knowledge.

This book is great in that you can pull out random trivia and facts about various sweets and their origins. It's not so great in that the chapters are haphazard and have no real flow. You finish one tedious chapter on the origin of some candy makers in Britain, only to return to another chapter about the same thing 2 or 3 chapters on. I think that type of history should have been condensed into one. The chapters on the sweets themselves were more engaging than those on the makers, which tended to get a bit over-descriptive and repetitive. Additionally, the chapter on health was kind of randomly placed into the book and felt out of place as such.

Another note is that (and I'm sure it's primarily being advertised there) is that this book is more the history of UK sweets with maybe a few snippets elsewhere in the world. This is fine, but it makes it harder for a reader not based there to understand some of the locations or people being referenced as it is written like the reader already knows these areas and various terminologies used throughout the book (I did a lot of googling on 'rock' and 'jelly babies' and town names to make sure I understood). As a result, coltsfoot rock is now on my wishlist for a treat I'd like to try, which is nice, but having to stop and google so often took me out of the book a bit. I'm not saying it's focus is a flaw for the book, but merely letting the reader of this review know that if you are not UK based, you'll need to do this type of searching potentially if you choose to read this book.

Definitely some interesting facts in this book, but more limited to a certain area for it's focus. If you really love sweets though, you'll want to read this one!

Review by M. Reynard 2020

What is not to love about this book?! Everyone loves candy and this book has a really nice history of it all! I was surprised to learn candies started out as medicine. Then remembers salmiak pastillen, which my family ate like candy, were throat lozenges! So, yes, candies were meds before they were sweets. I loved learning about my favorites, both from Asia, Europe, North America, and the Caribbean. I had no idea candies were rationed during WW2- and even until the 1950's in some places! (how did we survive THAT?) And subversive and all other sorts of wrong stuff. It's a fun browsing book, and as we are all hunkering down during these dark, cold, days of winter, why not order a bunch of favorites, and cozy up with some hot chocolate and spend the day reading the entire book! Yummy book! I need to go find some candy now...!

What a freaking page turner. Book had me guessing from page to page and I never wanted to put it down. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This title was a lot more than I expected.

I requested The History of Sweets based on that sweet (can't resist the pun!) cover, with its inviting colorful confections, and thought I'd get a rundown of the basic history of our most favorite candies. What I got was far more interesting. Yes, there is plenty of information about the sweets we love best (there is an extensive write up about chocolate, which does have a significant role in history), but there is also a fascinating account of the medicinal history of candy as well as the not so pleasant history of dangerous and deadly additives that once found their way into our stomachs.

Other interesting things that were touched upon: candy's relation to race/racism, war efforts, women's and workers rights; marketing strategies for confections throughout history; favorite candies around the world.

As this is a British title, most of the history and candy companies profiled have an English slant, and that's probably what I found the most useful. This was more than just a run down of Reece's Peanut Butter Cups and Hershey Kisses. There are also many lovely photographs and historic advertisements; my only wish was that there were even more.

Overall, this was a highly satisfying book that I'd recommend to any history fan and candy buff.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Pen & Sword Press for "granting my wish" and allowing me to read this copy in exchange for a review.

My two favourite parts of the book are the pictures that went throughout the book and the section on the different companies who make chocolate within the Uk. At parts the book can feel like one giant list but I learn a lot and enjoyed myself.