Taking Stock: A Journey Among Cows

by Roger Morgan-Grenville

'Funny, insightful and hugely informative ... a charming book' DAILY MAIL 'Tremendous ... We all need to take stock, and this is the ideal starting point. I learnt a lot from this book and laughed a lot too.' ROSAMUND YOUNG, author of The Secret Life of Cows Since highland cattle ransacked his grandmother's vegetable patch when he was six, Roger Morgan-Grenville has been fascinated by cows. So at the age of 61, with no farming experience, he signed on as a part- time labourer on a beef cattle farm to tell their side of the story. The result is this lyrical and evocative book. For 10,000 years, cow and human lives have been intertwined. Cattle have existed alongside us, fed and shod us, quenched our thirst, and provided a thousand other tiny services, and yet most of us know little about them. We are also blissfully unaware of the de-natured lives we often ask them to lead. Part history, part adventure and part unsentimental manifesto for how we should treat cows in the 21st century, Taking Stock asks us to think carefully about what we eat, and to let nature back into food production.

Genres: Nonfiction, Animals, Nature, Book Club

368 pages, Paperback

Published June 1, 2023

Reviews

[Olive Fellows (abookolive) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Taking Stock is a memoir-meets-natural history in which the author first talks about how cows came to be domesticated, then attempts to "tell their side of the story" by giving them the credit they clearly deserve, given how much humans use them for.

I've accidentally become a Roger Morgan-Grenville devotee over the years and I'm not mad about it. He always delivers an informative and entertaining read!

Click here to hear more of my thoughts on this book over on my Booktube channel, abookolive!

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really interesting, well-researched and insightful look into the impact of cows on our food chain, industrial processes and the future of agriculture.

I enjoyed learning the history of the animal and learning about the remaining cattle and dairy farms across the UK and US directly through the author's conversations with farm owners and cowmen. This was done well I think -- it's always good in non-fiction to read other POVs, otherwise the author's continuous monologue can become a little boring and self-indulgent. This kept me engaged by visiting different people and different places, from dairies and abattoirs to tanneries and belt-makers.

As a vegetarian this was perhaps even more interesting to read than had I still been a meat-eater. Hearing the arguments for a continued meat diet were interesting, as the author (and his research) proposes meat-eating within moderation and taking into account the welfare and diet of the cattle before consuming.

Knocked a star off for the somewhat clunky phrasing and very long chapters -- tighter editing would make this an incredibly engaging and accessible read for anyone interested in cows, the food industry and sustainable farming.

Nevertheless, lots of food for thought (pardon the pun) 🐮

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a free e-arc in exchange for an honest review

[Kristin Neff · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was actually incredible I can’t stop talking about cows

[Margaret · Rating 5 out of 5]

Taking Stock is what we all should be doing. Cows have been pressed into service for man's benefit for thousands of years. Man has developed and selected hundreds of breeds in response to local needs. He has modified the habitat he offers them to live out their lives, and has made use of far more than their cuts of meat, their milk and their leather. Morgan-Grenville examines their evolution, our own history as it relates to cows, their habitat and how we have modified that for our own ends, and the current over-exploitation of cattle in some parts of the world. If this sounds heavy, perhaps a little dull, be assured, it's not. This book is written with a light and humorous touch. It's interspersed with anecdotes about the time that the author spent as an assistant stockman, which apart from their story-telling value, give further insights into the world of this animal. I can't do better than quote from a paper I normally avoid, the Daily Mail: 'Funny, insightful and hugely informative ... a charming book'. I'd add - thought-provoking as well.

[Audrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

The jacket cover made this book out to be focused on one man's entry into farm work instead of an intense look at the history of the cow as meal, religious sacrifice, and cultural being. The author stresses multiple times the long history of man's meat based diet and states that makes it good enough for him. No judgment. However, since a whole book was just used to describe the many changes in the life of the cow from prehistory onwards, it needs to be acknowledged that our energy needs and work levels have changed significantly too. Most people lead a much more sedentary lifestyle. Once the shock of being dumped into a more academic tome than expected wore off, there was plenty to learn about the differences between U.S. and English cattle-rearing.

[Rebecca Ambrose · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thought=provokinig and engaging read on a topic you might not expect to be so much so!
Morgan-Grenville uses his past experience and ability to well-research a topic to present how cows have been and are used by man - and makes the reader question how sustainable it all is at the scale and with the approach it uses currently.
He balances his arguments well, and this book should be much more popular than what it is (by that I mean I have seen no one else talk about it).

[Neal Moss · Rating 4 out of 5]

A challenging and emotive subject which the author carefully but boldly approaches. Having read "Shearwaters" I knew the style and factual nature of the topic would be certainly well researched and I was not disappointed. This is a book of our time and one which richly deserves a wide platform, given
Me much to ponder and don't think I will look at a grass field in a nonchalant way again.

[Allee Koestner · Rating 2 out of 5]

A laid-back book exploring all aspects of cows and their impacts. The contents of each chapter jumped around quite a bit but I found the topics interesting. Overall nothing too special about it, but an enjoyable read.