A Splendid Exchange outlines the history of global trade, revealing that it is older than we think, has enabled the progress of civilization, and continues to change the world on a daily basis.

Did you know that the Americas were discovered not because of the venture's historical merit, but because people wanted more purple clothes. The rare color was a desired fashion statement, but the ingredients to dye clothes purple could only be found in certain sea snails that happened to live in the Atlantic Ocean. Merchants went further and further into the sea to find them and that momentum led to bigger expeditions.

Hindsight is 20/20, and in retrospect, it may seem obvious that searching the big oceans was a good idea in the first place. But back then, the looming dangers were much more prevalent. In A Splendid Exchange, William J. Bernstein recounts similarly curious stories from the history of global trade, all while chronologically illustrating its progress.