Books about Tea

Here is a selection of books about tea available from Amazon.com

	This exquisitely illustrated volume leads readers on an investigation of the many faces of tea: a mythic plant, a ceremony, the cause of wars (remember the Boston Tea Party), and ultimately one of the world's favorite beverages. The Book of Tea provides a comprehensive history and background of the beloved ritual of tea, capturing the various tastes and nuances of teas from around the world.		Afternoon tea is the English meal-time institution, a social as well as a culinary event. The London Ritz Book of Afternoon Tea captures the essence of this traditional British occasion and provides the reader with all the Ritz expertise in the ceremony as well as over 50 recipes, illustrated with passages from Dickens to Oscar Wilde and charming drawings.
	This informative guide provides answers to most any question one might have about the history of tea, the many types of fine teas available, and different manners of brewing and preparation. A detailed international directory by country describes the production of a rather mind-boggling variety of teas, recommending the best selections, along with seven categories specifying the appropriate times to drink the myriad kinds of teas listed.		The Book of Tea is something of a curiosity: written in English by a Japanese scholar (and issued here in bilingual form), it was first published in 1906, a peak moment of Westernization within Japan. The Book of Tea folds an explication of the philosophy, first Taoist, later Zen Buddhist, that informs its oblique celebration of simplicity and directness--what Okakura calls, in a telling phrase, "moral geometry."
	A cookbook and style book, Having Tea includes a range of stunning locations with recipes, menus, table settings, and serving ideas for tea. There are formal and elegant teas that ring in the winter holidays with rich dark fruitcake, shortbread, brandy snaps, and sherried English trifle; a tea for one in the study with spicy ginger Bundt cake and a plate of cookies; and tea for two in a loft, with slow-scrambled eggs, cornmeal muffins and apple butter, and panfried tomatoes sprinkled with fresh tarragon.		This handy reference covers all of the essentials of tea buying, brewing, and tasting, and explores the comforts of ritual and healing that tea has provided through the centuries. As you sip and savor the wonderful flavors of black teas, green teas, oolongs, and scented/herbal teas, you'll understand why tea is consumed by more people worldwide than any other drink except water.