![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle
Sep. 7th, 2007 04:12 pmI feel a little guilty reviewing books on the bestseller list. After all, anyone can read the bestseller list; these books maybe don't need more people promoting them. But here it is. I read it, I loved it, and now I will share the love.
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver with Steven L. Hopp, and Camille Kingsolver Kingsolver, her husband, and two children set out in this vivid nonfiction adventure to spend and document a year spent eating only locally produced food. After years spent living in suburban Arizona, the family moves to rural Appalachia, with the intent, Kingsolver says, of living in a place that contains more than one of the three basic necessities of life. Starting the year with the first asparagus and some trepidation, they head to the farmer's market to see what they can find. What they end up with is delicious bounty – different things at different times of the year, to be sure, and no bananas – but always good, varied food in the peak of flavor. Trying for the first time to raise enough to eat year-round rather than a small vegetable garden provides room for meditation on the loss of vegetable varieties and the fragility of farmers' livelihoods, while harvesting their turkeys and chickens brings up the issues of carnivory and the difficulties with both CAFOs and vegetarianism. An early autumn trip to Italy shows a culture where food and culture is still deeply connected to the land. As Kingsolver narrates the year, Hopp steps in as "Dr. Science", with factual sidebars, while teenaged Camille provides a week's worth of meals with recipes for each month. It can be a little preachy, but if you already believe that the earth and our diets are in need of some help, it's inspirational rather than disturbing. All the authors are clearly passionate in showing that eating locally is delicious and doable by anybody with a will and a local farmer's market or garden. After listening to the audiobook, with Kingsolver's gently twangy voice, ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
amnachaidh and I were both inspired – I to tomato canning, and he to trying home cheese making, as well as more frequent trips to the farmer's market. For anyone who cares about good food, this is an essential read.
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver with Steven L. Hopp, and Camille Kingsolver Kingsolver, her husband, and two children set out in this vivid nonfiction adventure to spend and document a year spent eating only locally produced food. After years spent living in suburban Arizona, the family moves to rural Appalachia, with the intent, Kingsolver says, of living in a place that contains more than one of the three basic necessities of life. Starting the year with the first asparagus and some trepidation, they head to the farmer's market to see what they can find. What they end up with is delicious bounty – different things at different times of the year, to be sure, and no bananas – but always good, varied food in the peak of flavor. Trying for the first time to raise enough to eat year-round rather than a small vegetable garden provides room for meditation on the loss of vegetable varieties and the fragility of farmers' livelihoods, while harvesting their turkeys and chickens brings up the issues of carnivory and the difficulties with both CAFOs and vegetarianism. An early autumn trip to Italy shows a culture where food and culture is still deeply connected to the land. As Kingsolver narrates the year, Hopp steps in as "Dr. Science", with factual sidebars, while teenaged Camille provides a week's worth of meals with recipes for each month. It can be a little preachy, but if you already believe that the earth and our diets are in need of some help, it's inspirational rather than disturbing. All the authors are clearly passionate in showing that eating locally is delicious and doable by anybody with a will and a local farmer's market or garden. After listening to the audiobook, with Kingsolver's gently twangy voice, amnachaidh and I were both inspired – I to tomato canning, and he to trying home cheese making, as well as more frequent trips to the farmer's market. For anyone who cares about good food, this is an essential read.
