A book of short stories focusing on the marginalised. Most of the main characters appear bemused or alienated in the world they inhabit, a number because of their religious devotion, others because they are the only black student in their (school or college) class. The title comes from a story in which a woman imagines herself out of her life and 'drinking coffee elsewhere'. Often, the stories focus on the extreme reactions which can arise when these characters find themselves in difficult situations.

I enjoyed the stories - particularly the style, although it could be a little bit creative-writing-class in the shininess of its metaphors. However, I found them a little bit formulaic - my favourite story, "Geese", was the one which moved away from the pattern a little bit, focusing on a group of foreigners in Japan, lucky if they're stuck in dead-end jobs. I also enjoyed "The Ant Of The Self" in which a young man gets stuck with his father trying to make some money out of the Million Man March in Washington DC. ( )

ZZ Packer’s Drinking Coffee Elsewhere is a collection of solid, if predictable, short stories with a single opening gem that outshines all the others in the collection. “Brownies” is an excellent, challenging and powerful story that starts off the collection with a bang. The rest of the stories are good, well-crafted with compelling characters, but predictable. I enjoyed the book, but aside from “Brownies” none of the tales jumped off the page. ( )

A mind-blowing short story collection with characters who truly live and breathe and stay with the reader. ZZ Packer is an extremely talented storyteller and has a realistically imaginative way of subjecting characters to tight, nail-biting situations where they miraculously survive. Highly recommended for short story and novel reading enthusiasts. ( )

These short stories are expertly told with just the right amount of tension towards the end that makes the reader want to reread again and again to glean even more insight. The refined language and the memorable characters make this book a real treat to read. It can be useful to any young adult who wants to explore the complexity of being human. ( )

[close] I read this book in a college creative writing course, since the wonderful Mickey Hess wanted us to go beyond the classics to see learn about newer, more experimental writing techniques from writers and subject matter with a more varied background. ZZ Packer definitely fit the bill. I, being from a small-town, predominately white area, was largely unfamiliar with the plight of urban African-Americans, and the situations were so different than my realm of experience even when I'd been in a similar sitaution. I too was a Girl Scout, for instance, but it was nothing like this.

Still, I did not like Packer's style, and the skill level seemed a bit too simple. In short, I readit simply for eduactional purposes. I will not read any more of her work. ( )