Biblio-Discography
The World of Sound & Spirit:
Coffee, Tea and Chocolate"
History of Food, by Maguelonne Toussaint-Samat, translated from the French by Anthea Bell (Blackwell, 1987/1994) J.G. Ballard says "a banquet of a book laid out on the broadest possible table....Almost every page made my mouth water", and that's not the half of it. It's an extremely engaging book that you want to skip around in to find out facinating things about all your favorite foods. Honey, beans, meat, milk, cereals and grain, beer, bread, olive oil, wine, fish, salt, sugar, spices, coffee, tea and chocolate... It's all there!
Food of the Gods: The Search for the Original Tree of Knowledge, by Terence McKenna (Bantam, 1992) A wide ranging exploration, characterized by the author as "A Radical History of Plants, Drugs, and Human Evolution", that looks at the connections between human historical uses of mind altering plants as "doorways to the divine." Everything from mushrooms, cannabis, coca and alcohal to sugar, tea, coffee and chocolate is considered.
The Encyclopedia of Islam, New Edition edited by E. van Donzel, B. Lewis and Ch. Pellat (E. J. Brill, 1978) The article on Kahwa (" an Arabic word of uncertain etymology, which is the basis of the usual words for coffee in various languages") offered fascinating information about coffee and Islamic history and culture, and was the source of details regarding the Sufi dervishes' use of coffee in their religious ceremonies.
Coffee and Tea, by Elin McCoy and John Frederick Walker (1991) Previously published by the authors under the pseudonym Peter Quimme as The Signet Book of Coffee and Tea, this third edition has been revised and updated and calls itself "The Complete Guide To Evaluating, Buying, Preparing, And Enjoying Every Variety of Coffee And Tea". An excellent little book, it's a wonderful introduction to the lore and legends of coffee and tea. Of particular interest to Sound & Spirit were the Brief Histories of Coffee and Tea, from their Legendary Beginnings to the latest developments.
Coffee: The Essential Guide to the Essential Bean, by Catherine Calvert (with recipes by Jane Stacey) (Hearst Books, 1994) Most of the book is devoted to recipes; but the opening chapter added a factoid or two to our understanding of the story of coffee.
Coffee: A Connoisseur's Companion, by Claudio Roden (Random House, 1994) Less of a cookbook, this small book includes sections on the History, Cultivation, Selection and Buying, and Preparation of Coffee, interspersed with lovely watercolors by Murray Zanoni. The chapter on History was particularly helpful.
The Book of Coffee, by Alain Stella (Flammarion, 1997) This is a large "coffee table" book with large photographs and plates with paintings and artwork; the penultimate chapter "Coffee Society" in eighty pages traces the many contexts in which coffee has been served and enjoyed from the Sufi mystics in Arabia, Egypt and Turkey, to Europeans in Italy, Austria, France, Northern Europe and finally North America.
The Book of Coffee, by Francesco and Riccardo Illy (Abbeville Press, 1989) Another large "coffee table" book full of photographs and art about coffee and culture, this book reports the legend telling of how coffee was brought from heaven to the Prophet Mohammed by the Archangel Gabriel.
The Book of Coffee & Tea, by Joel, David & Carl Schapira (St. Maretin's Griffin, 1982) In addition to the stories of both coffee and tea, the authors include a section on Herbal and Spiced teas and infusions. It's a nice book, entertaining with a wide range of information.
The Book of Tea, by Kakuso Okakura (Dover, 1964) Written quickly, in English, by a reknowned scholar, art critic and Curator of Chinese and Japanese Art at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, this small book is considered a minor modern classic. It is an explanation and defense (what technically is called an "apology") of Eastern traditions and feelings, for the Western audience. Okakura discuses the tea ceremony, its formalities and beliefs, and religious influences, origins and history of tea and tea drinking.
The Tea Ceremony, by Sen'o and Sendo Tanaka (Kodansha, 1998) A large format book, full of beautiful photographs, diagrams and drawings, that explores serving tea as "an art and a spiritual discipline." Its chapters are divided into three sections, "The History", "The Aesthetic", and "The Ceremony"; and the extensive lists in the appendices are very informative.
The Chocolate Book, by Lesley Mackley & Carole Handslip (Salamander, 1996) Along with pages of recipes and photographs of desserts using chocolate, is a short history of the food from the 7th century C.E. Aztec preparation tchocoatl, to milk chocolate, first made in Switzerland in 1876..
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