The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals in WACKY READING CHALLENGES

Oct 17, 2018 Jody rated it really liked it

Shelves: nonfiction, amazon-100, audiobook, aty-2018, 50-before-50-nonfiction

This was excellent. Fascinating, confronting, thought-provoking - it has me questioning if I should go back and revisit vegetarianism (particularly since the Spider is a vegetarian), and certainly has me thinking more about eating locally & ethically.

I'm glad I suffered through the Scott Brick narration (seriously, I hate that guy - but he's a "love to hate" at least), as I feel like I got more out of it by listening to it. ...more

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Jul 12, 2020 Nancy rated it really liked it

Shelves: non-fiction, science, on-kindle, environment, food

This book sets out with a lofty plan - to examine how we, as omnivores, eat in today's reality and to explore the values which sit behind our relationship with food. The author opens the book explaining the 'eating disorder' characteristic of particularly the American public (although it relates to the Australian public as well), whereby we're dragged one way and the other by new science, new revelations, good foods which become bad foods and vice versa until we get to a point where no-one reall This book sets out with a lofty plan - to examine how we, as omnivores, eat in today's reality and to explore the values which sit behind our relationship with food. The author opens the book explaining the 'eating disorder' characteristic of particularly the American public (although it relates to the Australian public as well), whereby we're dragged one way and the other by new science, new revelations, good foods which become bad foods and vice versa until we get to a point where no-one really has any confidence in their own ability to choose what to eat.

He then explores three meals - the first, a highly industrialised fast-food meal, eaten in the car. The second, a farmed meal but from a different style of farming, and the third a meal which the author hunts, gathers and creates himself. I found the first section fascinating and somewhat terrifying. If you want any nudge to get you away from processed foods and processed meats in particular, then read the first part of this book. The revelation that nearly every processed food item is made out of corn to a greater or lesser extent was shocking. And the treatment of animals in these industrial processing factories...well, what can you say?

The second was also really interesting, as the author describes a farm which is worked in total harmony with nature. This is not just with nature in terms of weather, terrain and vegetation, but also in terms of the nature of the animals which exist on the farm. It was also fascinating and my admiration for the author's ability to slaughter the chickens was immense!

I felt he lost his way a little in the final part of the book. He muses on vegetarianism for a while, which I found also very interesting, but especially in the final pages the whole book becomes a Thoreau-style philosophical ramble. I got it, but he lost me at the same time.

Nevertheless, if you want to really begin to understand what it is you put in your body, then it is a highly recommended read. Just be prepared for it to get very heavy in parts. ...more

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