I am not a whiskey drinker, but was at a party the other night and got into a discussion with a friend who happens to drink a lot of whiskey and is quite knowledgeable on the subject. My curiousity was piqued since I knew so little about the topic, decided I wanted to learn more and chose bourbon as the starting point. There were quite a few choices on Amazon, but I opted for this one given the 5 star rating and positive reviews.If you want a eminently readable and thorough history of bourbon, it would be tough to find something better than "Bourbon Empire" by Reid Mitenbuler. The author combines strong tasting knowledge of bourbon to complement the top notch research he did. Mitenbuler traces the origin of whiskey in the US (drink at your own peril) to the growth of the industry after the Civil War through the temperance movement, the consolidation among global spirit companies through the present day "craft" movement. One of the great elements of this book is the lore and legend that accompanies bourbon, much of it carefully cultivated through brilliant marketing. This is great history, storytelling and education about a distinctly American product. Pour yourself a nice glass of whiskey and enjoy this great book.