The true adventures of David Fairchild, a late-nineteenth-century food explorer who travelled the globe and introduced diverse crops like avocados, mangoes, seedless grapes - and thousands more - to the American plate. Kale from Croatia, mangoes from India, and hops from Bavaria. Peaches from China, avocados from Chile, and pomegranates from Malta. Along the way, he was arrested, caught diseases, and bargained with island tribes. But his culinary ambition came during a formative era, and through him, America transformed into the most diverse food system ever created.