''How Starbucks Saved My Life: A Son of Privilege Learns to Live Like Everyone Else'' is a
memoir by Michael Gates Gill that chronicles his journey from a high-level
advertising executive with
J. Walter Thompson to a
barista at
Starbucks
Starbucks Corporation is an American multinational chain of coffeehouses and roastery reserves headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It is the world's largest coffeehouse chain.
As of November 2021, the company had 33,833 stores in 80 c ...
. The book has been optioned by
Tom Hanks for a
film
A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
;
filmmaker
Gus Van Sant
Gus Green Van Sant Jr. (born July 24, 1952) is an American film director, producer, photographer, and musician. He has earned acclaim as both an independent and mainstream filmmaker. His films typically deal with themes of marginalized subcultur ...
has also been in talks to direct.
Gill is the son of famed ''
The New Yorker'' writer
Brendan Gill,
and the brother of Charles Gill, author of the 1987 fiction book ''
The Boozer Challenge''.
Synopsis
Michael Gates Gill had it all by his fifties: a mansion in the suburbs, a wife and loving children, a six-figure salary, and an Ivy League education. Within a few years, he lost his job, got divorced, and was diagnosed with a brain tumor. With no money or health insurance, he got a job at Starbucks.
An unexpected teacher opens his eyes to what living well really looks like. She is a young African American, the daughter of a drug addict; he is used to being the boss but reports to her now. For the first time in his life he experiences being a member of a minority trying hard to survive in a challenging new job. He learns the value of hard work and humility, as well as what it truly means to respect another person.
References
{{reflist
American memoirs
2007 non-fiction books
Gotham Books books
Starbucks in popular culture