History of Soymilk and Other Non-Dairy Milks (1226-2013): Including Infant Formulas, Calf Milk Replacers, Soy Creamers, Soy Shakes, Soy Smoothies, Almond Milk, Coconut Milk, Peanut Milk, Rice Milk, Sesame Milk, etc.

William Shurtleff and Akiko Aoyagi began full-time study of soyfoods in Japan in Oct. 1972. Shurtleff (a graduate of Stanford University) apprenticed for two years with a traditional Japanese tofu maker. Akiko (born in Japan, an illustrator, designer, and outstanding cook) created hundreds of original illustrations and recipes. Their first book, The Book of Tofu, was published by Autumn Press (founded by Nahum Stiskin) in Dec. 1975. Their other popular books include The Book of Miso and The Book of Tempeh. They have also published a series of craft and technical manuals (such as Tofu & Soymilk Production) to help entrepreneurs start their own soyfoods manufacturing companies. Their books have sold more than 820,000 copies. They have also produced SoyaScan, the world's largest computerized database on soyfoods and soybeans with 92,000 records from 1100 B.C. to the present. They also have the world's largest library (books, articles, archival records) and collection of original soyfoods graphics.  Since 2008 they have worked full time to publish digital books from this database on Google Books. Extensively illustrated from their graphics collection, these books are all available free of charge. Shurtleff has made soyfoods his life's work; he is widely regarded as the world's foremost authority on the subject (except in the area of nutrition where he defers to Mark Messina PhD and Kenneth Setchell PhD).