false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178767524m/835313.jpg 835313 6 Since its discovery in an Ethiopian rainforest centuries ago, coffee has brewed up a rich and troubled history, according to <I>Uncommon Grounds</I>, a sweeping book by business writer Mark Pendergrast. Over the years, the beverage has fomented revolution, spurred deforestation, enriched a few while impoverishing the many, and addicted millions with its psychoactive caffeine. Coffee is now the world's second most valuable legal commodity, behind oil, according to Pendergrast, who is also author of <I>For God, Country, and Coca-Cola</I>.<p> "A good cup of coffee can turn the worst day tolerable, can provide an all-important moment of contemplation, can rekindle a romance," he writes. "And yet, poetic as its taste may be, coffee's history is rife with controversy and politics." For example, coffee bankrolled Idi Amin's genocidal regime in Uganda and the Sandinistas' revolution in Nicaragua. <I>Uncommon Grounds</I> provides some fascinating tidbits. Did you know that coffeehouses helped spawn the French and American revolutions? Or that coffee supplanted alcohol as a favorite breakfast drink in Britain in the late 1600s, and later became a patriotic American beverage after the Boston Tea Party? Pendergrast also details the rise and fall of regional coffee brands in the United States, the role of advertising in the industry, the global economic impact of coffee prices, and the recent emergence of specialty-coffee retailers--Starbucks, for example. Finally, he explores the social and environmental ramifications of coffee and highlights recent attempts to encourage a livable wage and environmental protection in coffee-producing nations such as Brazil. Pendergrast also includes an appendix on "how to brew the perfect cup." This wide-ranging book is a good read for those curious about the history and context behind that morning cup of coffee, as well as for those strictly interested in the business side of the industry. <I>--Dan Ring</I> 820927 1999 Uncommon Grounds: The History of Coffee and How It Transformed Our World total:119|5:17|4:42|3:48|2:12|1:0| 119 421 308 28 5 0 false false Tue Dec 09 21:11:20 -0800 2008 Thu Jan 01 12:32:41 -0800 2009 1
It talks about everything for coffee - the origins, the history, the long and bloody history of the bean and it...more...]]> 4 1 false false Wed Jul 25 07:33:13 -0700 2007 Wed Jul 25 07:34:28 -0700 2007 3 1 false false Wed Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Dec 15 04:40:59 -0800 2008 Mon Dec 15 04:43:35 -0800 2008 more...]]> 2 0 false false Thu Feb 19 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Tue Sep 09 17:07:31 -0700 2008 Fri Feb 20 18:14:37 -0800 2009 Uncommon Grounds!

"Coffee provides one fascinating thread, stitching together the disciplines of history, anthropology, sociology, psychology, medi...more...]]> 4 2 false false Fri Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Jul 21 14:04:36 -0700 2008 Sat Aug 23 08:16:24 -0700 2008 more...]]> 2 0 false false Sat Jul 26 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed Jun 18 12:17:28 -0700 2008 Mon Aug 04 07:08:38 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Fri Nov 20 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 20 13:22:37 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 20 13:25:35 -0800 2009
With that said, this book was a bit of a hard read. Comprising 420 pages and with Pendergrast being an economic historian, for a layperson the book was dense and detail rich to a fault. And to a coffee guy like myself, the hist...more...]]> 5 0 false false Wed Jun 15 00:00:00 -0700 2005 Mon Dec 08 14:37:54 -0800 2008 Mon Dec 08 14:45:20 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun May 10 09:42:16 -0700 2009 Thu May 14 18:16:07 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Jul 12 15:37:11 -0700 2009 Sun Jul 12 15:38:56 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Wed Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Thu Dec 06 14:26:34 -0800 2007 Tue Jun 03 15:11:30 -0700 2008 more...]]> 0 0 false false Sat Mar 07 19:43:39 -0800 2009 Sat Mar 07 19:44:18 -0800 2009 2 0 false false Sun Apr 27 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu May 29 07:43:52 -0700 2008 Mon Jun 23 08:15:45 -0700 2008 ...more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu Jun 26 08:42:37 -0700 2008 Tue Oct 28 17:00:28 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu Oct 16 09:21:45 -0700 2008 Fri Nov 02 15:21:25 -0700 2007 Thu Oct 16 09:21:45 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 0 true false Sat Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Sat Jan 05 13:09:14 -0800 2008 Sat Jan 05 13:11:36 -0800 2008 more...]]> 2 0 false false Sat Mar 24 11:10:02 -0700 2007 Sat Mar 24 11:16:05 -0700 2007 4 0 false false Wed Apr 30 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon May 05 11:29:13 -0700 2008 Mon May 05 11:37:33 -0700 2008 5 0 false false Thu Oct 30 14:32:07 -0700 2008 Thu Oct 30 14:33:44 -0700 2008 3 0 false false Wed Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue Jan 15 12:17:23 -0800 2008 Tue Jan 15 12:18:17 -0800 2008 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=835313