“What is acceptable here? What passes for normal? I’m not sure, but some people get too near the edge and have actually been barred. One man was cruel to the clerks; he called it “teasing” and he tried to get a political rise out of the regulars, but he was met with silence at every turn. After four months, he just stopped coming. He drove a fancy car and liked to gloat over the erosion of Democratic power after 9/ll. Maybe his wife got sick or he moved to Florida. Age brings change, sooner or later. Life brought it later to me. My husband and my best friend died in the same month. It’s been a year, and the weather hasn’t changed. It just rains more this summer, and sometimes the power fails in the late afternoon. Atlanta is a city of trees. Some fall.”
– an excerpt from the book
Author Reputation Press is honored to publish “Whose Coffee Is It?” by June Akers Seese. This book is now available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and the ARPress website.
“Whose Coffee Is It?” by June Akers Seese presents a unique narrative that delves into the complexities of identity, ownership, and personal relationships through the token of coffee.
Recipient of a 200l Yaddo Writers’ Fellowship, June Akers Seese is also the author of two novels published by Dalkey Archive Press: What Waiting Really Means, Is This What Other Women Feel Too?, plus a collection of short fiction, James Mason and the Walk-In Closet, Some Things are Better Left to Saxophones, and A Nurse Can Go Anywhere and Collected Short Stories were published.
Her short stories have appeared in Witness, Carolina Quarterly, and South Carolina Review, and they are collected in three chapbooks funded by the Georgia Council for the Arts: Near Occasions of Sin, Claudia and a Long Line of Women, and My Affairs are in Order/All Those Men Are Dead Now. Mrs. Seese teaches “The Memoir: Reading It and Writing It” at Callanwolde Fine Arts Center in Atlanta, Georgia.
Several key themes emerge throughout “Whose Coffee Is It?” that contribute to its depth: the story examines how people define themselves in relation to others, as seen through their reactions to the coffee they choose and the company they keep. The coffee shop acts as a microcosm of society, where connections are formed and sometimes severed. Characters grapple with feelings of isolation even when surrounded by others. The question of “who owns the coffee” symbolizes deeper inquiries about generosity, sharing, and the true nature of ownership in emotional connections.
At its core, “Whose Coffee Is It?” revolves around the everyday ritual of coffee consumption, which becomes a metaphor for broader themes of connection and the question of ownership in relationships. The book introduces various characters whose lives intersect in a coffee shop setting, illustrating their personal dilemmas and interactions. This setting serves as a catalyst for revealing different perspectives on what coffee signifies—comfort, community, or even competition.
Ultimately, “Whose Coffee Is It?” invites readers to reflect on their own relationships and the significance of seemingly trivial interactions in their lives. By elevating a common activity like drinking coffee into a narrative device, June Akers Seese crafts a thought-provoking story that resonates with anyone who has ever pondered the nuances of connection and ownership in human relationships.
“Whose Coffee Is It?” by June Akers Seese is now available for purchase via ARPress Bookstore: