Diet for a new America
Posted by Sariea on Apr 01, 2007 · Member since Feb 2007 · 845 posts
i just got this book today because i heard a few of you talking about it.
I was surprised when i recognized the picture of the author, from when i saw him on "Supersize Me".
but i was wondering, what exactly should i be expecting from this book?
thanks :)
I really liked the book. The author, John Robbins, was actual the heir to the Baskin-Robbins ice cream company. So it comes from an interesting perspective.
I found it to be very well written and organized. I liked how the author divided the book up into 3 sections concerning why to go vegan: animal rights, health, and envirnoment issues. The animal cruelty part was hard to read for me. But if you skip any part of the book, the rest of the book will still make perfect sense to you. IMO, he backed up the vegan diet with a lot of factual information, left nothing open-ended. He even interviewed a few factory farm workers for it. Hope you enjoy it!
Edit: I haven't read it, but "The Food Revolution" was written by the same person. I believe it is written the same way, but with newer information.
It will change your life! I couldn't put it down. I was already 4 years veg. when I read it so I didn't need convincing, but it really changed me. You be loaded with information and evidence to back up your dietary choice if you ever need it. My husband read it (most of it) and hasn't really eaten meat since. It pushed me closer to veganism too. I think when I read the next one which is much more current (Food Revolution) I became full on vegan. You will enjoy it, but you will cry too.
John Robbins just wrote a positive review for a new documentary Beyond Closed Doors. Its on Amazon. The films is about animal agriculture and how it is affected by ethics, science and politics.
It's a great book! I think it is the #1 print resource for promoting veganism.
Before I read it, I was the hagen-daaz-and-cheese-pizza variety of vegetarian. Like most Americans, I thought cheese was healthy and a great source of needed protein.
Although I am not strictly vegan now, I do now look at cheese, etc as unhealthy junk food because of this book, and I try to greatly limit any consumption of animal products.
This book provides the needed info on health issues to persuade people of the logic of a vegan diet. The info on factory farming at the beginning of the book (the first third) is very difficult to read, and definitely not for everyone, but important info to have out there and available.
It's a great book.
It's backed up with a lot of research, not just a lot of talk.