Two hundred tantalizing drink recipes made more delectable by witty commentary and fanciful illustrations.

To the uninitiated, a drink is just a drink. But connoisseurs know that what you sip is a statement and knowing one's poison is essential to making the right one. With style and sophistication, The Cocktail acquaints readers with the various personalities at the bar: gin bats its eyes behind a bookworm's glasses, whiskey scowls at passersby from the curb, and rum does a tipsy salsa with the bartender.

Featuring 200 concoctions with character, The Cocktail also shows readers the savoir faire of pairing drinks with occasions- mixing up a Rum Runner for an afternoon spent in bare feet and hammocks, or shaking up a 42 Flying Mules for a supercharged late night of raw emotion.

From Manhattans to Mojitos, Tibetan Mules to Southern Shags, The Cocktail covers drinks the world over from classics to trendy eyebrow-raisers. This charming book is divided into nine sections according to liquor-each introduced with a whimsically written profile:

- Champagne: The flirty, giddy staple, tottering around on heels, but not without substance and body- champagne is the leggy blonde who also boasts a degree in neuroscience.
- Gin: If gin had a wardrobe, it would be full of pleated skirts and ruffled shirts, lots of tweed and brooches.
- Tequila: Pin a red rose in your hair and dust on some bronzer-time to be saucy and brazen because, after all, the tequila made you do it. . . .
- Vodka: As racy as a Bond girl, as alluring as a fifties Hollywood starlet, and as compelling as a KGB agent dabbling in a little Russian roulette.

Throughout, Kat Macleod's collages personify cocktails as alluring women with devil-may-care airs-you'll want to cozy up to the bar with all of them. Both mischievous and elegant, this is a book to lift anyone's spirits.