Uncommon GroundsUncommon Grounds

Traces the use and popularity of coffee from ancient Ethiopia to the present, describing the effect of the coffee trade and industry on economic, political, and social history
From its beginnings in Ethiopia to the expansion of the Starbucks empire, the author explores the growth and nature of the coffee business. Mainly concerned with the marketing of coffee in the United States, he does touch upon coffee in Europe and social justice and health issues. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
Uncommon Grounds tells the story of coffee from its discovery on a hill in Abyssinia to its role in intrigue in the American colonies to its rise as a national consumer product in the twentieth century and its rediscovery with the advent of Starbucks at the end of the century. A panoramic epic, Uncommon Grounds uses coffee production, trade, and consumption as a window through which to view broad historical themes: the clash and blending of cultures, the rise of marketing and the “national brand,” assembly line mass production, and urbanization. Coffeehouses have provided places to plan revolutions, write poetry, do business, and meet friends. The coffee industry has dominated and molded the economy, politics, and social structure of entire countries.Mark Pendergrast introduces the reader to an eccentric cast of characters, all of them with a passion for the golden bean. Uncommon Grounds is nothing less than a coffee-flavored history of the world.
The first comprehensive business and social history of coffee, written by the author of a successful history of Coca-Cola. There are plenty of books for the coffee connoisseur, full of advice about where to find the best beans and how to brew the perfect cup, but none of them comes close to this remarkable story.