The Rarest Fruit

The Life of Edmond Albius
1829. Sainte-Suzanne, Bourbon Island. A Black orphan, a slave of only seven weeks, is placed - as if by fate - into the arms of a botanist with a passion for orchids. At the age of twelve the illiterate prodigy unlocks the secret to hand-pollinating the vanilla orchid. While his discovery brings prosperity to many, a bitter future awaits Edmond.

1829. Sainte-Suzanne, Bourbon Island. A Black orphan, a slave of only seven weeks, is placed – as if by fate – into the arms of Ferréol Beaumont, a botanist with a passion for orchids. He raises this child, Edmond, teaching him all he knows of the lush plants that populate his tropical garden. 

At twelve years old, the illiterate young prodigy unlocks the secret to hand-pollinating the vanilla orchid, revolutionizing not only the island’s economy but French patisserie, perfumes & more. While his discovery brings prosperity to others, the exhilarating aroma of the vanilla flower soon dissipates for Edmond as a bitter reality stretches out before him – his brilliance unrecognized, his name forgotten.

A caustic look at the nineteenth-century history of Reunion Island under French colonial rule. For lovers of history, botany and vanilla ice cream.

Contributor: Karen Fleetwood (Translated by), Laëtitia Saint-Loubert (Translated by)

Translator: Karen Fleetwood, Laëtitia Saint-Loubert

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