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Title details for The Joy of Drinking by Barbara Holland - Available

The Joy of Drinking

by Barbara Holland
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With characteristic elegance and delicious wit, Barbara Holland, ("a national treasure,"-Philadelphia Inquirer) celebrates the age-old act of drinking in this gimlet-eyed survey of man's relationship with booze, since the joyful discovery, ten thousand years ago, of fermented fruits and grains. In this spirited paean to alcohol, two parts cultural history, one part personal meditation, Holland takes readers on a bacchanalian romp through the Fertile Crescent, the Mermaid Tavern, Plymouth Rock, and Capitol Hill and reveals, as Faulkner famously once said, how civilization indeed begins with fermentation. Filled with tasty tidbits about distillers, bootleggers, taverns, hangovers, and Alcoholics Anonymous, The Joy of Drinking is a fascinating portrait of the world of pleasures fermented and distilled. PRAISE: "Impressive...Holland has a light, winsome touch and is always funny."-New York Times "With a style as witty, practical and Triple Sec as M.F.K. Fisher's, Holland's "The Joy of Drinking" grows from a hilarious ancient-history lesson into a compulsively readable mini-mosaic of humans and our various fermented tipples." -Los Angeles Times "Holland, a prolific and wide-ranging writer, distills a considerable tonnage of fact and trivia into this casual, shot-sized volume...She has a breezy, whimsical style, perfectly suited to her swift romp across the histories and cultures of alcohol down through the ages." -Publishers Weekly "Mixing fact, fable, anecdote, and personal opinion with irresistible panache, cultural historian Barbara Holland's The Joy of Drinking distills thousands of years of humankind's lusty relationship with alcohol-made from fermented honey, hops, grapes, grains, and even mare's milk-into a slim, sparkling history that covers all manner of blithe spirits, from lowly beer, 'the cornerstone of civilization,' to the vaunted martini, aka 'Fred Astaire in a glass.'" -Elle The critically acclaimed author of When All the World Was Young tells the remarkable, idiosyncratic story of the world's love affair with drinking.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    September 24, 2010

  • Formats

    • Kindle Book

    • OverDrive Read

      • ISBN: 9781596918061

    • EPUB ebook

      • ISBN: 9781596918061
      • File size: 417 KB

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      February 19, 2007
      Holland, a prolific and wide-ranging writer (Gentlemen's Blood
      , among others), distills a considerable tonnage of fact and trivia into this casual, shot-sized volume, the kind once found in every libation-related library, tucked behind every bar next to the Mr. Boston guide and a dog-eared paperback joke collection. She has a breezy, whimsical style, perfectly suited to her swift romp across the histories and cultures of alcohol down through the ages. While disclosing facts about the drinking habits—and abuses—of characters like Mark Anthony, Samuel Pepys and Pope Leo XIII, Holland includes summaries of how various kinds of fermentations and distillates were developed, often accidentally, in cultures from ancient Arabia to present-day America, and in times from Ptolemy's to Prohibition. She includes several recipes for home-style "remedies" like elderberry wine and applejack, as well as diagrams and instructions for the construction of your own backyard still. It's the sort of book-length essay that makes a perfect Father's Day gift, with stocking-stuffer backlist potential in seasons to come.

    • Library Journal

      June 1, 2007
      With humor and irreverence, Holland (They Went Whistling) has taken on an assortment of subjects in her prolific career. Her own life has proved a popular theme as well (When All the World Was Young; Bingo Night at the Fire Hall); she grew up in Washington, DC, and lives in rural Virginia. Her latest book mixes history, cultural studies, literature, and a little science, all with her distinctive voice. Holland traces the role of fermentation and intoxication from the beginnings of agrarian societies to the present day, and her delineation of hangover cures is particularly amusing. The work ends with two appendixes: one with recipes for wine, brandy, and applejack, and one with instructions for building a whiskey still. Though the research is undocumented, there is a selected bibliography. Fans of Holland will recognize her curmudgeonly disdain for modern tastes, which at times sours the general fun in this slim volume. Recommended for large public libraries or where Holland has a following.Meagan Storey, Virginia Wesleyan Coll., Norfolk

      Copyright 2007 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Formats

  • Kindle Book
  • OverDrive Read
  • EPUB ebook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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