Caffeine

How Caffeine Created the Modern World

By: Michael Pollan

Narrated by: Michael Pollan

Length: 2 hrs and 2 mins

Publisher's summary

Michael Pollan, known for his best-selling nonfiction audio, including The Omnivores Dilemma and How to Change Your Mind, conceived and wrote Caffeine: How Caffeine Created the Modern World as an Audible Original. In this controversial and exciting listen, Pollan explores caffeine’s power as the most-used drug in the world - and the only one we give to children (in soda pop) as a treat.

Pollan takes us on a journey through the history of the drug, which was first discovered in a small part of East Africa and within a century became an addiction affecting most of the human species. Caffeine, it turns out, has changed the course of human history - won and lost wars, changed politics, dominated economies. What’s more, the author shows that the Industrial Revolution would have been impossible without it. The science of how the drug has evolved to addict us is no less fascinating. And caffeine has done all these things while hiding in plain sight! Percolated with Michael Pollan’s unique ability to entertain, inform, and perform, Caffeine is essential listening in a world where an estimated two billion cups of coffee are consumed every day.

©2019 Michael Pollan (P)2020 Audible Originals, LLC.

A worthwhile listen

I found this book insightful, entertaining, thought provoking, intelligent, personal & well researched. Loved it!

Good information, well written

Enjoyed it. About the right length. Sort of 🍿 for the mind. But it left a lot of questions unanswered, like about the relative amounts of caffeine in different kinds of drinks, whether a cup of tea in the morning would interfere with sleep, etc. Michael is really good reader. Very conversational.

Not inspiring at all

Too many references, and too little of the coffee-story itself.
What also annoyed me, is the constant repetition of "quote", "quote", "quote" for the information that was taken from different sources.
It's OK as a freeby, but not really worth buying.

Lighthearted, yet informative history of caffeine

Enjoyable. Some fascinating stories from history about humans drinking coffee (and tea). a relaxing coffee table sort of book:-)

Read at 2x speed to fully experience caffeine joys.

Quick and witty, informative and javafilic, this is one of my personal favorite audible originals.

a comeuppance

an entertaining tale of how the genetic fiends of the coffee and tea plants have managed to have their way with us over the centuries.

scientific, snappy diialog

about my favorite inky hot brewed beverage. My mind on coffee and caffeine, now it all makes sense.

very informative

going to try the drink caffeine only when needed someday but not till I retire.

Short and sweet(ened)

What a nice little personal journey of a coffee lover through caffeine abstinence. It has just enough history and science to feel like I learned something. I enjoyed the author's narration, too.

For a LOOONNNGG bit of fiction that touches on the relationship between coffee houses, the Enlightenment, and the Royal Society, I recommend Neal Stephenson's Baroque Cycle.

Highly entertaining, interesting & informative

Thoroughly enjoyable. Covering the complete story of coffee, from its biological reason for existing, from bees who waggle after drinking caffeinated nectar, to its instrumental role in the enlightenment of the modern world, to studies of its actual effects, effects on sleep, and even the writer himself experimenting and abstaining from coffee while writing the book!

The author is entertaining and I found his reading style engaging and enjoyable!