An enthralling, panoramic history of the influence of colonialism on the world today, told through the surprising story of the nutmeg. Amitav Ghosh argues that the nutmeg's violent trajectory from its native islands is revealing of a wider colonial mindset which justifies the exploitation of human life and the natural environment, and which dominates geopolitics to this day. A sharp critique of Western society written against the backdrop of the pandemic and the Black Lives Matter protests.