The Story of Sugar

Two schoolboys' curiosity and campus adventures provide a framing narrative for a clear, illustrated explanation of the sugar business. Episodic school-life incidents and interpersonal rivalries alternate with expository chapters that trace cane cultivation, harvesting, milling, boiling and crystallization, the production of molasses, packaging and shipment of raw sugar, and urban refinery processes that whiten and prepare sugar for sale. Practical descriptions of machinery and methods are woven into plot episodes such as narrow escapes, wagers, family complications, and new acquaintances, giving readers both a coming-of-age slice-of-life story and a step-by-step account of how sugar moves from field to table.