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mrsthrift's review
4.0
"[Grandma:] may not understand the complexities of the internet, but we are the fools who cannot even preserve our summer vegetables so we don't starve in the winter."
I picked up this book because 1. I think Vandana Shiva is one of the greatest minds of our day 2. I care a lot about the future of food & seed 3. The cover art is by Nikki McClure & I like her papercuts.
This book has roots in the Slow Food movement, and is shepherded along by the brilliant words of Vandana Shiva, Michael Pollan, Carlo Petrini, and Prince Charles. It starts with a few speeches from an Italian Slow Food meeting. As most speeches are, they seem most effective if you read them aloud. I recommend a long soak in the bathtub - good acoustics for that sort of thing. The speeches are followed by the manifestos. Do you know what a manifesto is? A series of complaints and demands. The manifestos are a little dense for casual reading. I can imagine they would be quite interesting in a classroom setting, but I don't live in a classroom. So mostly I muddled through them. The final portion of the book consists of two pieces from Jamey Lionette & Michael Pollan. This is, by far, the most accessible part of the book. There are clear explanations about the relationships between globalization of food, poverty, landlessness, corporate control of our food systems, and how very, very broken these systems are. This would be a good place to start if you are new to the concepts introduced here. Start with Michael Pollan & read backwards (a good philosophy for life, in general).
I can see that some people might feel like this is one of those "heavy on problems, light on solutions" books that can get you mired down by hopelessness. I didn't feel that way. This book offers hope and action - here are solutions, we are farmers growing food already, we are people talking about food, we are eaters buying from farmers, we are social justice activists having these conversations, we are writing a manifesto addressed to the world's largest powers demanding food that's sustainable, just, clean, and responsible; we want food that reflects our heritage, where we have been, where we are going, and we don't want to buy it from a corporation. I am not hopeless, no, not when there are people with seeds & soil.
I picked up this book because 1. I think Vandana Shiva is one of the greatest minds of our day 2. I care a lot about the future of food & seed 3. The cover art is by Nikki McClure & I like her papercuts.
This book has roots in the Slow Food movement, and is shepherded along by the brilliant words of Vandana Shiva, Michael Pollan, Carlo Petrini, and Prince Charles. It starts with a few speeches from an Italian Slow Food meeting. As most speeches are, they seem most effective if you read them aloud. I recommend a long soak in the bathtub - good acoustics for that sort of thing. The speeches are followed by the manifestos. Do you know what a manifesto is? A series of complaints and demands. The manifestos are a little dense for casual reading. I can imagine they would be quite interesting in a classroom setting, but I don't live in a classroom. So mostly I muddled through them. The final portion of the book consists of two pieces from Jamey Lionette & Michael Pollan. This is, by far, the most accessible part of the book. There are clear explanations about the relationships between globalization of food, poverty, landlessness, corporate control of our food systems, and how very, very broken these systems are. This would be a good place to start if you are new to the concepts introduced here. Start with Michael Pollan & read backwards (a good philosophy for life, in general).
I can see that some people might feel like this is one of those "heavy on problems, light on solutions" books that can get you mired down by hopelessness. I didn't feel that way. This book offers hope and action - here are solutions, we are farmers growing food already, we are people talking about food, we are eaters buying from farmers, we are social justice activists having these conversations, we are writing a manifesto addressed to the world's largest powers demanding food that's sustainable, just, clean, and responsible; we want food that reflects our heritage, where we have been, where we are going, and we don't want to buy it from a corporation. I am not hopeless, no, not when there are people with seeds & soil.
rebeckb's review
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
5.0
wow i picked this up at our annual friends of the library sale (50¢) i was blown away at how this manifesto perfectly aligns with the changes we are making to the restaurant i work at. this manifesto only furthered my excitement to move towards a fully local, slow food run restaurant. the passage “ a view from behind the counter” was excellent. loved this will be reading more from the recommendations at the end
bookmarksnbreadsticks's review
informative
inspiring
slow-paced
4.0
A pocket-sized guide on the future of food and seeds
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