EyebrarianPrize winnersGet the app

Books › The years of rice and salt

Cover of The years of rice and salt

The years of rice and salt

Kim Stanley Robinson

763 pages

A sweeping, centuries-spanning tapestry of reincarnation and alternate history that reimagines the evolution of human civilization.

Where to buyBooks like this

What it feels like

Reading this book feels like watching a time-lapse of human civilization through a kaleidoscope of unfamiliar but deeply resonant cultures. It is a steady, philosophical epic that asks you to settle in for the long haul, tracking the same souls as they are reincarnated across seven hundred years of alternate history. The mood is both sweeping and intimate, balancing the grand mechanics of empires rising and falling with the quiet, persistent struggles of scientists, slaves, and scholars. Robinson’s prose is richly textured and earnest, weaving theological debates and scientific breakthroughs into a tapestry of profound interconnectedness. It will deeply satisfy readers who crave idea-driven, world-building epics that prioritize the slow, majestic arc of human progress over rapid-fire plot.

Mood
  • epic
  • immersive
  • awe-inspiring
  • melancholic
Tone
  • philosophical
  • earnest
  • contemplative
  • scholarly
  • expansive
Pace
steady
Themes
cyclical nature of history · reincarnation and the soul · cultural synthesis · the slow march of progress · human resilience
The writing
Richly detailed and historically textured, blending intimate character focus with sweeping theological and scientific discourse.
The arc
Moves from apocalyptic devastation through centuries of struggle and discovery, culminating in a profound, hard-won sense of global interconnectedness.
Who it's for
Readers who love sweeping, idea-driven epics and philosophical explorations of how societies evolve over centuries.
Content notes
  • pandemic and plague
  • war and violence
  • slavery
  • famine
  • grief and loss

About the book

With the incomparable vision and breathtaking detail that brought his now-classic Marstrilogy to vivid life, bestselling author KIM STANLEY ROBINSON boldly imagines an alternate history of the last seven hundred years. In his grandest work yet, the acclaimed storyteller constructs a world vastly different from the one we know....The Years of Rice and SaltIt is the fourteenth century and one of the most apocalyptic events in human history is set to occur--the coming of the Black Death. History teaches us that a third of Europe's population was destroyed. But what if? What if the plague killed 99 percent of the population instead? How would the world have changed? This is a look at the history that could have been--a history that stretches across centuries, a history that sees dynasties and nations rise and crumble, a history that spans horrible famine and magnificent innovation. These are the years of rice and salt. This is a universe where the first ship to reach the New World travels across the Pacific Ocean from China and colonization spreads from west to east. This is a universe where the Industrial Revolution is triggered by the world's greatest scientific minds--in India. This is a universe where Buddhism and Islam are the most influential and practiced religions and Christianity is merely a historical footnote. Through the eyes of soldiers and kings, explorers and philosophers, slaves and scholars, Robinson renders an immensely rich tapestry. Rewriting history and probing the most profound questions as only he can, Robinson shines his extraordinary light on the place of religion, culture, power, and even love on such an Earth. From the steppes of Asia to the shores of the Western Hemisphere, from the age of Akbar to the present and beyond, here is the stunning story of the creation of a new world.From the Hardcover edition.

Description from Open Library.

Books like The years of rice and salt

See why they match