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The Dinner Diaries: Raising Whole Wheat Kids in a White Bread World
by
Betsy Block
A harried mother of two, Betsy Block is in pursuit of the perfect family meal: local, toxin-free, humane, and healthful. But soon she finds herself in a mealtime maze beset by conflicting, often unrealistic advice, and further complicated by two picky kids and a finicky husband. Determined not to give up the good-food fight, she comes up with a creative ten-step makeover p...more
Paperback, 261 pages
Published
July 8th 2008
by Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
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This was one of those books that, when I got it home, I wasn't sure why I'd bought it. So naturally, I didn't have great expectations when I started it. I was pleasantly surprised--I've been doing a lot of reading lately about food and feeding and the ethics and economics of food, and frankly it can all get very overwhelming. I liked Betsy Block's approach, though. She walks you through every step of her family's food makeover, from meat to whole grains to that Waterloo of most families with you...more
It's like Block wants to be the Michael Pollan of soccer moms, but she just comes across as snobby, narcissistic, and impossible. For example, she talks to a dietitian who says that championing organic food is the wrong path to improving nutrition in America (you know, because if a kid has eaten a total of 6 different kinds of vegetables in his life and an average of 5 vegetables a week if you include the 4 servings of french fries, pushing for those occasional few carrots to be organic isn't go...more
A mom tries to improve her family's diet, mostly focused on what's healthy for them, but also focused on what's healthy for the planet. She's a funny writer and shares some really funny stories about her family that made me laugh out loud.
Her kids and husband are really picky eaters. I don't have such picky eaters to deal with but I still found the steps she took really interesting. Parts (the chapter on which fish to eat in particular) were informative and gave me information I'll use in my ow...more
Her kids and husband are really picky eaters. I don't have such picky eaters to deal with but I still found the steps she took really interesting. Parts (the chapter on which fish to eat in particular) were informative and gave me information I'll use in my ow...more
I found this book after I left story time at the library with my 2-year-old. I thought the idea was interesting-- a mom tells her story of how she changed the eating habits of her family.
I got about 2 chapters into it and couldn't stand to read any more. The author really turned me off with her descriptions of her family and parenting style. (She is upset that the kids eat so poorly, but then gives in to their whining. She also decides to let the kids eat whatever they want and the 10 year old s...more
I got about 2 chapters into it and couldn't stand to read any more. The author really turned me off with her descriptions of her family and parenting style. (She is upset that the kids eat so poorly, but then gives in to their whining. She also decides to let the kids eat whatever they want and the 10 year old s...more
Ms. Block seems determined to make things as complicated as possible. Her final conclusions are: eat less meat, eat more vegetables, eat more whole grains,and be aware of what goes into your food. Ummm...duh! The whole book just seemed silly and a little too rambling for my taste. I am also endlessly amused by people who seem to have no grocery budget. Some of us can't afford organic produce and free-trade sugar! Another issue was her hiring a nutritionist. In the real world, if I want my family...more
I really related to this book. Many of us start the food wars with our children while they are still in utero. We try to get every gram of nutrients reccomended by What to Expect When You Are Expecting, even though we really want the most awesome preggo dinner ever, which is a bucket of ribs, topped of by using nutter butters as a spoon for chocolate frosting from the can.
Then the baby arrives and we feel guilty if we don't breastfeed, and defensive if we do, especially if your baby does not wa...more
Then the baby arrives and we feel guilty if we don't breastfeed, and defensive if we do, especially if your baby does not wa...more
Not quite what I expected. I really got the feeling that she wrote this book because it was 'The Cool Thing' to write about. She mentions a lot of other books, and 'field trips', but I don't get the impression that she really got anything out of them.
On the whole, it reads like a Chic-Lit novel - the plucky heroine trying to do 'x' (in this case change her family's diet) with all sorts of opposition, but triumphs in the end (of course) when said family comes to the realization that a healthier d...more
On the whole, it reads like a Chic-Lit novel - the plucky heroine trying to do 'x' (in this case change her family's diet) with all sorts of opposition, but triumphs in the end (of course) when said family comes to the realization that a healthier d...more
I've heard this described as a family friendly version of Animal, Vegetable Miracle. I think it is both more and less than what that description implies. The basic premise is that the author's family wanted to improve the way they eat, both for their health and the health of the planet. They won't be raising much (well, basically any) of the food themselves, so they begin sourcing for local, sustainable products. Along the way, they investigate toxins in foods and food containers, RDAs for child...more
Yes, I've rated this book zero stars. Not 1 star for "didn't like it." But zero stars for I HATED IT. I finished this book solely so I could write a review of it. I HATED this book. The author was snarky and irritating. And slow. Not in her writing, but in her learning. HELLO!? If you're going to be disgusted because your kids are eating the potato chips that you brought into the house, don't bring potato chips into the house! She advocates that parents hide treats just for themselves and lie to...more
This book is so well-intentioned, so personal, so full of useful information, but honestly it made me feel so bad about how I feed my family (and I feed them well) that I put it down for nearly a year before I could bring myself to finish it. And I'm afraid I won't put many of her suggestions into action because it's all rather overwhelming: the charts on good fish and bad; the boxes with websites for more info; the earnest tips and recipes. Here's an example: "Excellent breaking news: the inten...more
I was surprised to find I loved this book. I was a little skeptical, mainly because it received mediocre reviews. But it completely defied my expectations.
The author, Betsy Block, documents her attempts to transform her family's diet to be more healthy, organic, and eco-friendly. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about her struggles in getting her family to come on board, and how she slowly but surely made her home a place with wholesome food.
One aspect of her book that I appreciated was all the re...more
The author, Betsy Block, documents her attempts to transform her family's diet to be more healthy, organic, and eco-friendly. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about her struggles in getting her family to come on board, and how she slowly but surely made her home a place with wholesome food.
One aspect of her book that I appreciated was all the re...more
Couldn't finish this one. This author lives in a world of indecision. The basic idea is that she (and her fairly supportive husband) want to overhaul their family's diet to be healthier. They are all picky eaters and she decides to consult a nutritionist, a farmer, a ...I don't know. She does go to a place where they slaughter pigs to learn more about, what exactly, I do not know.
I do know that there were times when I really wanted to shake her and say, "consistency and decisiveness go a long w...more
I do know that there were times when I really wanted to shake her and say, "consistency and decisiveness go a long w...more
This was kind of a fun read. It's about a mom's journey to getting her family to eat better. While I am not willing to be as determined in certain things as her (like getting milk and eggs from somewhere closer to the source than Costco), it encouraged me to be a bit more proactive in introducing a few new things to my kids. I am also glad to see that my kids are far better eaters and much more adventurous than hers, so I feel like I'm a step ahead.
Just a fun read that gives you some good thoug...more
Just a fun read that gives you some good thoug...more
Boston resident Betsy Block, a mother of two, chronicles the ten-step overhaul of her family's eating habits. The issues she tackles are hardly ground-breaking (the typical: less sugar and meat, more omega-3 fatty acids and whole grains, switching to local and organic purchases whenever as possible) but her writing is so honest and easy-to-relate to that I was quickly drawn in. This book is as much about the trials and tribulations as it is about food. Block's children and husband are much more...more
I thought this book was worth only three stars (more autobiography and fewer recipes than I'd hoped for--I should have paid more attention to the title). But I'm giving it an extra star because it inspired me to eat kale. Voluntarily. More than once.
Aug 04, 2011
Erika
added it
Once I got past my disagreement with her parenting style and my anger whenever someone refused to try a food, I really enjoyed the mix of story and information. It inspired me to press forward with healthy eating for me and my family.
I have actually lived the chapter on trying to by fish. This book was hilarious, even though her kids and picky husband can be annoying, it is very relatable for me!!! Like Animal Vegetable Miracle only funnier.
This book had a lot of good information, but was moderately whiny at times. I really enjoyed how down to earth & "real" this mother was, but sometimes felt like "just do it already!" I like that she included some great info & resources at the end. All in all, not bad, but not great.
This book is more entertainment then how to. I did enjoy it though. The last chapter was what I liked the most. The author comes to some realizations about doing & eating all the right things that I can relate. We can try to do all we can without sacrificing family relationships.
An interesting read from a Brackett mom! The whole food/chemical, etc. situation is depressing - even with her tongue and cheek commentary.
Interesting book. Really makes me think more about what I'm eating, where my food is coming from and the environmental impacts of food choices.
A good book of material that I've learned about elsewhere. I liked the author's style and voice, and the recipes sound delicious.
Betsy writes with humor about how crazy life can be in a family of four with as many tastebuds.
Bernice Reini
Bernice Reini
I found this book at the dollar store for guess how much? A dollar! But I really liked it! I read it in like literally, a day. However! It was a day where I spent 5 hours laying out, working on my tan. So I had some free time for reading. It could be read much more slowly and thoughtfully and still be thoroughly enjoyable. It was fun to read, but also really educational. I feel healthier just having read it...
Renee's Food Revolution has arrived in our kitchen. My husband's gonna hate me.
There was too much stream-of-consciousness hand wringing in this book for me.
The semi-interesting quest of a mother to figure out how to feed her family better. A good premise, but I just didn't find all of her whining as humorous and I was supposed to, I guess.
Thank goodness my husband isn't so picky!
I really liked this book. I don't have kids, but this book would be great for parents who want their families to eat healthy meals. Betsy Block was very funny, as were her husband and two kids. I really liked hearing about her family and their step by step process as they tried to become healthy. It also gave me some ideas of what I should and should not be eating (especially types of fish). Overall, the author made this topic interesting and fun to read about, unlike many books on this topic th...more
This is an odd book. I found the author to be, well, a tad too self-righteous for my comfort. I can't imagine being this hard on the food choices my kids want to make. It was like a somewhat more challenged version of Kingsolver's recent book. I definitely preferred Kingsolver and would recommend that over this.
The idea here was that it would be Kingsolver for the folks with young children, but it doesn't work that way in practice, and while it was interesting, I can't really recommend it.
The idea here was that it would be Kingsolver for the folks with young children, but it doesn't work that way in practice, and while it was interesting, I can't really recommend it.
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Oct 16, 2008 10:03am