Table of Contents

Preface ix

Introduction 1

1. Spun in All Directions 9
2. Star Turns 25
3. The Barber from Preston 39
4. Revolutionary Fiber 70
5. Camelot on the Merrimack 91
6. Looming Conflicts 118
7. Southern Exposure 147
8. Changing Fortunes 173
9. Two-Horse Power 202
10. Boll Weevil Blues 233
11. The Shirt on Your Back 270
12. Fields of Conflict 305

Afterword 338

Glossary 345
Notes 349
Bibliography 375
Acknowledgments 381
Index 385

About the Author

Stephen Yafa, a novelist, playwright, and award-winning screenwriter, has written for Playboy, Details, Rolling Stone, and the San Francisco Chronicle.

Reviews

"I have to hand it to Mr. Yafa. Cotton rules." —The Wall Street Journal"With wit and intelligence, Yafa demonstrates how a good deal of history can be learned by following a single thread." —The Washington Post"A comprehensive and often surprising history [of a crop that changed the world]."  —USA Today