Everything but the Coffee

“Those who dip into, or maybe sip at, (as they might a frappuccino in Starbucks) this book will be rewarded with a nice read, a lot of information and a wide-ranging set of insights into a phenomenon that is indeed important in itself, as well as for what it tells us about America and increasingly, the world.”

— American Studies Journal

“When Bryant Simon’s book, Everything but the Coffee: Learning about America from Starbucks arrived in my mail, I thought, great, just what we need: another book by an academic that attempts to understand the world through a simplistic lens, like salt, sushi or coffee. That this genre sells well probably motivated Simon’s publisher. But Simon’s book is better and more honest than most of the genre in recognizing the limitations of both author and subject. . . . Simon shows us how we really live, and it ain’t pretty. There was a time, not so long ago, Simon reminds us, that many of us wondered why people would pay so much money for a cup of coffee—even as we were edging closer in line to place our own order.”

— In These Times