By Gregory Dicum and Nina Luttinger The Coffee Book is an engaging - informative look at one of the most popular products in the world. Jammed full of facts - figures - cartoons - and commentary - it covers coffee from its first use in Ethiopia in the sixth century AD to the dramatic rise of Starbucks and other specialty retailers in the 1990s. Written with verve and filled with revealing anecdotes and little-known facts - the book surveys the social history of cafe society from the first coffeehouses in Constantinople Renaissance French cafes to beatnik havens of Berkeley and Greenwich Village; explores the process of cultivation - harvesting and roasting from bean to cup; and tells the dramatic story of international trade and speculation for a product that can make or break entire national economies. The book also examines the industry?s major players - reveals how the quest for higher profits has often come at the expense of quality - and shows how a much-loved product has been turned into a lifestyle. Finally - The Coffee Book considers the exploitation that mass cultivation causes - and explores the growing ? conscious coffee? market and Fair Trade movement. (196 pages - 2000) For more information - visit Global Exchange's Coffee campaign .
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