Moonshine

No matter where you go on earth, there is moonshine. An eternal changeling,
moonshine has been made from just about every imaginable foodstuff:
grapes, grains, raw sugar, tree bark, horse milk, and more. First-world college
students drink it; so do day labourers in the world’s poorest slums and villages.
Despite its diversity, all moonshine has two characteristics: it is highly alcoholic,
and it is illegal. Indeed, the more that governments crack down on
illicit distilling, the more moonshine gets made and drunk, which, as spirits
expert Kevin R. Kosar relates, helps explain its universal allure.
Kosar tells the colourful history of moonshine with characters that range
from crusading lawmen, earnest farmers and clever tinkerers, to vicious
smugglers and ruthless gangsters; and from pontificating poets, sneaky
swamp-rats and mountain-dwellers, to adolescents looking for a thrill.
Moonshine is a story of human ingenuity; individuals have invented
remarkable contraptions for making moonshine and often under incredibly
difficult circumstances. But all that shines is not fine: much of the
moonshine that is trafficked is toxic – blindness and death are constant
dangers for the moonshine drinker.
Spanning the centuries and the globe, the richly illustrated and entertainingly
written Moonshine will appeal to food and drink lovers, as well as
anyone who enjoys tales of mischief and misbehaviour.