Paul L. Gaston, Trustees Professor at Kent State University, pursues a broad commitment to interdisciplinary teaching and research in popular culture, higher education reform, public policy, and the humanities. He is the author of six books and more than 40 scholarly articles on topics as varied as early rock 'n' roll, the Italian novel, computer-dominated futures trading, the future of the book, interart analogies, the poetry of George Herbert, the fiction of Walker Percy, and minor league baseball. He earned both his M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Virginia, where he was a Woodrow Wilson Fellow. This is his first book on beer . . . but not his last.