Paperback, 231 pages
English language
Published Aug. 14, 2001 by Canongate Books Ltd.
Can you handle mornings without a brew? No? Multiply that. Imagine an entire population under a cloud of lethargy, unable to kick start their days.
Now introduce coffee. Bingo. The brain moves into over-drive and it's time for empire building. So goes Stewart Lee Allen's crazy theory. Only thing is, after retracing coffee's journey to world domination - by train, rickshaw, cargo freighter and donkey - he has plenty of evidence to back it up. Stewart Lee Allen has filtered out the richest beans from coffee's hot and frothy history . . . serving up a steamy, high-energy brew that will stimulate you more than a triple-strength espresso.
An enjoyable romp through coffee history, with an "Idiot Abroad" vibe. Worth reading before you read any other history of coffee books (Black Gold, Uncommon Grounds, etc), as it's full of myths and legends, that are debunked in those other histories. None the less, it was an engaging read.
