Infused - Adventures in Tea

I so loved this book! I rationed my reading to a chapter an evening because I wanted to relish each adventure, each farmer and each tea as a separate and memorable moment. I picked up this book because of my love and appreciation for tea and finished the book with a love and appreciation for Henrietta - her passion for the tea, for the farmers, for sustainability, for sharing simple and enduring pleasures in our fractured world. I am from Boston and would never throw her tea in the harbor! Henrietta’s beautiful website is the travel we all need right now - more love, more passion, more tea.

I was enticed to borrow this book from the library as it promised off-the-beaten paths of adventure. Little did I know that I will be enlightened by the joys of tea, too. For someone who has been drinking tea from a teabag, oblivious to the stories behind each type of tea, this book opened a whole new world for me. I enjoyed the book so much that I had to get one for myself (and will return the one I borrowed from the library once it is open again). It is delightful to read the book for a second time, and a joy to experience tea on an entirely different level. Thank you, Henrietta, for sharing your passion for tea with us.

Where do I start? I picked this book up never expecting to fall in love with it - but only three pages in I was already hooked. This isn't a stuffy book that talks about how to brew tea, the author truly takes you on a tea adventure, where you absolutely learn more about tea with some funny stories in between. Reading it feels like you've invited a good friend over for a chat who happens to be a tea expert. Not only did I enjoy this book, I've gone ahead and purchased several or Rare Tea Co. teas, which I cannot wait to write more about once sampled!

...I want to finish with how much I do love Henrietta Lovell's book. Her prose is lovely, just lovely, excellent writing, so engaging and inviting, so exciting to explore with her and also so much fun to read. She knows just what to say and what to include, how far to go. I love how she ended the book, with such hope and pragmatism, and fueled with optimism. She must be wonderful to know!

Infused is on my list of “life changing books.” I picked it up on a whim off the new release shelf at my public library. That impulse led me to teas far superior to the ones I formerly enjoyed. An eye opener! Immediately purchased a copy to keep on my nightstand. Love to refer to it when making the difficult decision of what tea to try next.