Book blogging: Catching Fire

Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human by Richard W. Wrangham

My review

Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Another in a long line of interesting evolutionary theories that cannot possibly be tested or proven. Still, the author makes a compelling argument using all sorts of anecdotal evidence.

Conventional wisdom has it that man first began hunting and only later learned to use fire. Wrangham argues that just the opposite is true, and he bases his arguments mainly on logic and comparative analysis of modern man and great apes.

Favorite argument:
Without cooking, primitive man would not have had time to hunt, gather and eat.

Evidence offered:
Chimpanzees spend 70% of their waking hours chewing, simply so that the rough vegetation they eat will be broken down enough so that their bodies will be able to extract sufficient nutrition. Adult humans spend only 5% of their waking time chewing their food.

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Book blogging: Interworld

Interworld by Neil Gaiman

My review

Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Unlimited universes and a multitude of Joey Harkers who walk between worlds and fight to defend the multiverse from the magical villains of Hex and the scientific goons of the Binary . . . it all makes for a truly bizarre yet unusual story.

Favorite character: Hue.


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Book Blogging: The Omnivore's Dilemma

The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan

My review

Rating: 4 of 5 stars
I read Pollan's In Defense of Food a while back and instantly fell in love. I knew the minute I finished it, I had to find The Omnivore's Dilemma and devour it too. It was an intriguing concept, but I'll admit it wasn't really the book I thought it was going to be. I don't know what I thought it would be about, but the idea of following three meals from the farm to the table (or driver's seat as it were) was captivating. Not to be horribly cliche, but it really made me think.

Of course, some of my childhood was spent on a farm, and many of my earliest memories revolve around slaughtering animals for food (annual chicken slaughtering day, anyone?), so I'm probably more aware than many Americans of the origins of our food. Even so, the sections on industrially farmed corn and factory-raised beef were eye opening. Even moreso was the section on "industrial organic," or organic farming on a large scale a la Eggland's Best and Horizon Dairy. I'll admit I have bought industrial organic in the past and patted myself on the back for being "green" or environmentally conscious or whatever you want to call it. However, since reading this book, I've been more aware of the truly alternative option: buying local. I'm currently loving our local farmer's market, and I'm making an effort to buy more local vegetables and meats along with handicrafts and other fun farmers market finds.

The Omnivore's Dilemma will not necessarily radicalize the way you go about feeding yourself and your family. However, if each reader finds him or herself just a little bit more aware of how our food choices affect the world around us, we will probably all be better off for it in the end.

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