Cover of The Years of Rice and Salt
Alternate History

The Years of Rice and Salt

by

  • 2002 first published
  • 664 pages
  • ★ 4.2 (5 ratings)
  • 13 editions
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Published in 2002, The Years of Rice and Salt is an alternate history novel by Kim Stanley Robinson. Key subjects include Black Death and alternative history.

Open Library readers give it an average of 4.2 out of 5 from 5 ratings, and 48 more have it on their want-to-read list. It has been published in 13 editions across 3 languages.

At about 664 pages, most readers finish it in 12–13 hours.

About The Years of Rice and Salt

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.
Description from Open Library

Awards & lists

Themes, setting & tropes

Genres

Subjects

  • Black Death
  • Science Fiction
  • Alternative history
  • Science Fiction - General
  • Fiction - Science Fiction

Quick answers

Who wrote The Years of Rice and Salt?

The Years of Rice and Salt was written by Kim Stanley Robinson and first published in 2002.

What genre is The Years of Rice and Salt?

It is usually shelved as Alternate History.

How long is The Years of Rice and Salt?

The median edition has 664 pages, about 12–13 hours of reading at 250 words per minute.

What books are similar to The Years of Rice and Salt?

Readers who like it often enjoy A Meeting at Corvallis, Boneshaker and Tilting the Balance (Worldwar Series, Volume 2).

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