Coffee. How a bean changed the world

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Coffee. How a Bean Changed the World is a non-fiction book published in 1999 by the American business journalist Mark Pendergrast .

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Pendergrast researched the book for three years. a. he worked as a coffee bean harvester in Guatemala . On this basis, he describes the history of coffee in four chapters from the beginnings of the early Middle Ages in Ethiopia , through the Arab-Islamic world of that time and Europe at the end of the late Middle Ages , to the 21st century. In particular, the mythology about the origin of coffee, the political and economic aspects as well as the cultural and social significance and development are dealt with.

Reviews

"The cultural history of the American business journalist Mark Pendergrast about coffee is without much notice a" pamphlet against the globalization mania and the tendency towards monoculture agriculture ", says reviewer Andreas Hergeth. The "500-page book" contains, albeit somewhat US-heavy, a thorough review of the history of coffee, from the first mention of an Arab doctor in the 10th century to the isolation of caffeine by Friedlieb Runge from Berlin in 1819 to on the “coffee wars” of the 20th century, Hergeth reports. The author always keeps a "critical eye" for political and economic developments and also takes the "inglorious role" of the USA in the coffee trade to the test, the reviewer praised. "

- Andreas Hergeth, the daily newspaper

“Basically, Hansjörg Küster seems to ascribe qualities to this cultural history of coffee in his brief criticism - at least in the American original edition. He criticizes the translator's “style blooms” and the missing register in the German edition. Unfortunately, it is not possible to use the "extensive" volume as a reference work. Küster also points out that Pendergrast wrote his monograph from an American perspective. Although the author added "Chapter about coffee in Europe" for the German edition, the Maxwell Group, for example, is described in detail as Nescafe. "

- Hansjörg Küster , Süddeutsche Zeitung

“The story began in Ethiopia over a thousand years ago. It is there that Kaldi, a goatherd, accidentally discovered the coffee tree and the intoxicating effect of its fruits. It is told by a legend that the US business journalist Mark Pendergrast combined with other stories, facts and research on his own trips to create a cultural history of coffee. Pendergrast describes the triumphant advance of a fruit that was initially considered a dubious intoxicant and is now the most important stimulant in our culture alongside tobacco and alcohol, and it does its job in an entertaining and knowledgeable way. Pendergrast reports how the Sandinista supported their revolution by confiscating the coffee plantations, how Idi Amin financed his massacres with the proceeds from coffee exports and how the success of the 'Starbucks' coffee bars changed everyday culture in the USA. "

- The mirror

expenditure

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Mark Pendergrast: Coffee. How a bean changed the world. Review note. Pearl divers , accessed April 8, 2015 .
  2. ^ Spiegel online: Cheers coffee , June 3, 2002