Book

About Spilling the Beans – Coffee in Conflict and War

As a young journalist just arrived in Cambodia at the age of 21 the local story quickly turned out to be one of armed conflict, civil war, blood and violence. In an attempt to distance myself from that coverage I started writing about economic news instead and got to write my first story on coffee sometime in 1994. Within a year I was hooked, not so much by the caffeine rush but the enormous socio-economic importance of coffee across the world, and I decided that writing about coffee was all I wanted to do. Since then, the journey has only continued to get more interesting as I have been able to explore the extraordinary tales of the coffee growers found across South-East Asia, Africa and Latin America!

Spilling The Beans – Coffee in Conflict and War is ultimately their story. An inspiring and powerful narrative non-fiction book “Spilling the Beans” uncovers for the first time the fascinating and shocking story of the human face behind America’s favorite drink, and reveals how millions of producers have had to endure the world’s most dangerous civil wars and armed conflicts in order to produce the coffee with which 80 percent of Americans start their morning breakfast every day.

This book will touch everyone from seed to cup as it for the first time tells the story of the people behind coffee. And for the millions of producers who depend on coffee, Spilling The Beans will show how even in the face of tremendous disaster and personal tragedy, they have remained resilient in their ability to enjoy life.

I am now working on wrapping up the writing process of Spilling The Beans and actively looking for an agent and publisher. I will keep you posted as to how everything is coming along and hope soon to have more news for you all here.

Book Maja Wallgren