Uncovering the Impact of Coffee: A Historical Exploration of How Coffee Changed the World

KMG365: I ordered this as a gift for my son and he has really enjoyed it. He shared a few excerpts from it as we were sitting around and I found it interesting as well.

United States on Jan 01, 2024

Erinn Soltys: I’m only within the first few chapters so will update my review as needed. I’m typically not big on history, but apparently I love it when it comes to things I’m passionate about! I have gained so much even just in the first few chapters. It’s super informative to hear about how large a role coffee has played in world history, for the past few hundred years especially (for better or for worse), but I also walk away remembering the coolest and/or funniest facts that reveal coffee’s infiltration into almost all sectors... like how the very serious J.S. Bach wrote a hilarious cantata all about coffee! I am eating this up!

United States on Jun 30, 2023

Mauricio S Jardini: Being a Brazilian I can assure you that I learned more about my country history with coffee than anywhere else. I rightly recommend this book.

Brazil on Dec 29, 2019

Jim M.: I bought this book for my own information -- I've been a black coffee drinker for c. 60 years, and a real coffee aficionado for the past 15 years or so. The book's size and amount of information are almost overwhelming, and yet the author's clear, reader-friendly, nearly conversational writing style make it as much a "page-turner" as a good mystery novel. He covers the history, geography, economics, and complex sociology & politics of all aspects of this world-wide industry so completely as to make this work a textbook, nay, a one-volume college course. From Asia, Africa, and the Americas, to Starbuck's, Folgers, Maxwell House and everything in the U.S., it's all here. HIGHLY recommended!!

United States on Oct 04, 2018

Amazon Customer: I first read this book as a young teenaged coffee enthusiast who had just begun to discover that coffee is actually so much more than the Gevalia subscription my father bought me for Christmas. I always knew I wanted to add this book to my library, and I'm so glad I did! Once again, I was thrilled by the storied history of coffee, and how it has shaped governments, economies, and cultures all around the world. If you are looking for a comprehensive look at coffee, and the industry as a whole, this is the book for you; if you are a lover of history, this is the book for you; if you just want to know what the big deal is with coffee, this is the book for you. In my mind, this is pretty much the coffee bible.

Canada on Feb 04, 2016

grinndel98: If you are a new coffee fanatic, and are in to roasting your own coffee and wanting to learn all you can about coffee, go ahead and purchase this book, Pendergrast does a pretty good job of covering the coffee world from harvest to cup, and it is in an easy to read format. But I must say, I felt it was basically a "Cliff Note" of the all encompassing "Coffee Bible" that William H. Uker wrote almost a hundred years ago. Ukers book is titled "All About Coffee", and is the acknowledged complete work of every aspect of the coffee world. You can sometimes find the out of print book on Ebay, but it is usually over $150 for a worn out copy! I found that you can go to "Project Gutenberg" on the web and read the entire book, with all the full color hand drawn pictures, absolutely free of charge! Do it! You won't regret it!

United States on Dec 20, 2014

Morag: Recipient seemed pleased with the book, plenty of information about the new hobby and was looking forward to trying out allt he different coffees from around the world.

United Kingdom on Jun 27, 2014

Murtaza Amarshi: This is a concise and precise coverage of the history of coffee. Mark Pendergrast has a very in depth understanding with extensive research and reference and the whole narrative flows so smoothly and elegantly that if you are really interested in knowing coffee and its history as I was - then you would not leave the book for a minute!

Canada on May 04, 2014

sideshowbob: My first coffee book.. And it is an astonishing read... You would not believe the level of detail and effort put on this single 480 page book.. A must for coffee lovers.. As a barista in a major coffee chain here in the UK I must say that the level of knowledge I have acquired from this single book surpasses by light years the one provided to us by the company. Is it worth the £12.59? YES! will be reading this again and again for years to come...

United Kingdom on Jun 22, 2012

AL: The 4 star rating is the average between the 2 editions. The 1st rates a 5*, the
2nd only a 3. I have left the review on the 1st edition & have added comments @ the
bottom of the review.

1st EDITION

This is an excellent history, but needs a 2nd edition. A lot has happened in the
last 10 years. For instance in 2009, coffee made news as Starbucks had to close some
of its shops because of the recession. Also it's now easier to find organic & Fair
Trade coffee. Vietnam is now one of the top producers of Robusta beans. I wish he
would have dealt a little more with coffee ads which were a major part of coffee's
history during the 20th century. I didn't start drinking coffee until recently, but
I never forgot the Maxwell House percolator tune, Mrs. Olsen, Juan Valdez, or the
"IF I DON'T GET AMERICAN ACE COFFEE, I'M GOING BACK TO BED" commercials. Juan
Valdez' influence is still felt today. Go to any grocery store & you will see 100%
COLOMBIAN coffee. By the way, the man in the A.Ace. firing squad commercial in
Mexico was one of Elvis Presley's back up singers. Since I was once addicted to TV,
I remember the commercials very...

United States on Jan 16, 2010