'Here is one of those uncommonly fine books that comes to life every now and then to remind us that history doesn't end and form when a decade does.' Boston Globe *BR**BR*A collection of engaging essays and interviews by activists in civil rights, women's, anti-war, and GI movements, the Black Panther Party, and the League of Revolutionary Black Workers.

Coffee has never been better--or cooler! Ever wonder what goes into making the perfect cup of coffee? There's more to it than you think, and a new breed of coffee nerds has transformed the cheap, gritty sludge your parents drink into the coolest food trend around, with an obsessive commitment to sourcing, roasting, and preparation that has taken the drink to delicious new heights. Coffee Nerd details the history behind the beans and helps you navigate the exciting and sometimes intimidating new wave of coffee. From finding obscure Japanese brewing equipment to recipes and techniques for brewing amazing coffee at home, you'll increase your geek cred--and discover a whole new world of coffee possibilities. Whether you are looking to refine your French-press recipe or just can't survive a morning without a handcrafted latte, this book is sure to stimulate you as you pore over the art of preparing an incredibly smooth cup of coffee.

Follow the ultimate coffee geeks on their worldwide hunt for the best beans. Can a cup of coffee reveal the face of God? Can it become the holy grail of modern-day knights errant who brave hardship and peril in a relentless quest for perfection? Can it change the world? These questions are not rhetorical. When highly prized coffee beans sell at auction for $50, $100, or $150 a pound wholesale (and potentially twice that at retail), anything can happen. In God in a Cup, journalist and late-blooming adventurer Michaele Weissman treks into an exotic and paradoxical realm of specialty coffee where the successful traveler must be part passionate coffee connoisseur, part ambitious entrepreneur, part activist, and part Indiana Jones. Her guides on the journey are the nation’s most heralded coffee business hotshots: Counter Culture’s Peter Giuliano, Intelligentsia’s Geoff Watts, and Stumptown’s Duane Sorenson. With their obsessive standards and fiercely competitive baristas, these roasters are creating a new culture of coffee connoisseurship in America—a culture in which $10 lattes are both a purist’s pleasure and a way to improve the lives of third-world farmers. If you love a good cup of coffee—or a great adventure story—you’ll love this unprecedented up-close look at the people and passions behind today’s best beans. “Weissman illustrates how the origin, flavor compounds and socioeconomic impact of a cup of coffee are relevant now more than ever. . . . Tagging along behind the main characters in today’s specialty coffee scene, [she] travels from the exotic to the expected to artfully deconstruct the connoisseur’s cup of coffee.” —Publishers Weekly

"You never get a second chance to make a first impression." Have you ever heard this saying? Before we get a chance to say a word, our gestures and manners have already spoken for us. Though some of the rules of good manners change, others remain constant. This book is about the constants: the least you need to know to make a good first impression. As Clarence Thomas once said, "Good manners will open doors that the best education cannot." Use this book as a master key to open those doors.

The acclaimed debut short story collection that introduced the world to an arresting and unforgettable new voice in fiction, from multi-award winning author ZZ Packer Her impressive range and talent are abundantly evident: Packer dazzles with her command of language, surprising and delighting us with unexpected turns and indelible images, as she takes us into the lives of characters on the periphery, unsure of where they belong. We meet a Brownie troop of black girls who are confronted with a troop of white girls; a young man who goes with his father to the Million Man March and must decide where his allegiance lies; an international group of drifters in Japan, who are starving, unable to find work; a girl in a Baltimore ghetto who has dreams of the larger world she has seen only on the screens in the television store nearby, where the Lithuanian shopkeeper holds out hope for attaining his own American Dream. With penetrating insight, ZZ Packer helps us see the world with a clearer vision. Fresh, versatile, and captivating, Drinking Coffee Elsewhere is a striking and unforgettable collection, sure to stand out among the contemporary canon of fiction.

Walter is a scientist who has been tragically stripped of the most meaningful people in his life, yet he cannot allow himself to believe that the human mindthe human soulis forever lost in death, as some would have it. His mind equally buckles at the thought of eternal torment, and in his search for truth, he discovers something unexpected. Walters almost-limitless imagination propels him far beyond mere science or religion. He argues like a scientist. He clearly understands religions deeper meanings, yet his solution to this age-old conflict is ultimately very simple and very clear. He has learned how to forgive, trust, love, and then move on in hope. The rewards, he finds, are infinite.

Islamophobia continues to rise among Americans even within progressive mainline churches, creating a poisonous and dangerous atmosphere for interfaith relations. American Lutherans, however, have been engaged in dialogue with Islam for over a generation. Originally, like other Protestant churches, Lutherans studied Islam as a monolithic religious system for the purpose of proselytizing the Christian faith. Over the years and with experience, American Lutherans came to know Islam as a faith tradition of believers in different cultures and contexts. By developing relationships with Muslim neighbors, some ELCA Lutherans and their international partners have learned that it is possible to witness to the Christian faith and listen to Muslim neighbors for the purpose of understanding and to work for a common cause of justice. More Than a Cup of Coffee and Tea documents the “Focus on Islam” that began in the 1980s among ELCA Lutherans and then reflects on more than a generation of engagement with Muslims in various domestic and international contexts. This volume documents where the ELCA has been, what it has learned, and encourages others to continue to develop positive relationships with Muslim neighbors and communities as a Christian activity and to combat Islamophobia.