Holy guacamole! Would you look at all these glowing 5-star reviews for this book! Glowing 5-star reviews from Goodreads members who can't even be bothered to create an avatar picture. Really people? 5-stars? This book was AMAZING in your opinion? Come on! It is a 76 page e-book, that just skims the Paleo Diet topic. A short e-book that was given away for free on Amazon awhile back. Yet all these people think it was AMAZING! It just always amazes me when I read something, then come here to see what others thought of it, and see reviews like this book has. Okay people, whatever.
This is a short e-book introduction to the Paleo Diet, a diet based on what our prehistoric hunter, gatherer, forager ancestors would have eaten, which the book describes as "Meats, eggs and seafood make up the majority of the day's calories, followed by fats from plant foods, fruits and vegetables, and then nuts and seeds. The Paleo diet is a high-protein/low carbohydrate diet."
Okay, so far, so good. High protein, low carb. Let's see where this goes.
Now we get the list of forbidden foods. "These eliminated foods included processed foods, alcohol, grains, legumes, and sugar."
Hmm, okay I get processed foods, sugar, and alcohol. But grains and legumes are totally out? What is wrong with legumes?
Hmm, and condiments...ketchup is out, mustard is allowed. Our prehistoric ancestors made mustard??? I don't see it. Oh well, we continue.
Beverages...Water should be your primary beverage." Yes, I can see our prehistoric ancestors drinking water.
"Tea and coffee are acceptable on the Paleo diet, as long as you use almond milk to lighten them, rather than dairy milk."
Hmm, okay, our prehistoric ancestors did this??? I don't see it.
Okay, now we are on to the recommended meats. Here are a few: Alligator, Bear, Bison, Caribou, Elk, Emu, Goose, Kangaroo, Ostrich, Rattlesnake, Turtle"
Hey, you forgot opossum and rat!
Most fruits are recommended because of course you can forage for them. Okay, I'll buy that.
Most vegetables are recommended too. But did our hunter forager ancestors grow vegetable gardens?? I'm getting confused!
Now what do we avoid...let's start with dairy...any and all dairy. Okay, I don't imagine our prehistoric ancestors were out milking the wild buffalo, so I'll buy this.
But we also have to avoid grains?? Including barley, buckwheat, corn, millet, oats, rye, and wheat. I'm confused again. Our prehistoric ancestors had gardens to grow pumpkins, squash, turnips, tomatoes, eggplant, cucumbers, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, bell peppers, etc. but they couldn't grow barley, even though Wikipedia tells me that barley "contributed to the broad historical patterns that human history has followed over approximately the last 13,000 years."
Man has been eating barley for 13,000 years, yet it doesn't count as Paleo??
Also off limits are legumes, including all beans, peas, and lentils? What gives with this? If our prehistoric ancestors could grow all the other garden vegetables, why couldn't they throw a few beans and peas into their gardens? Beans and peas are some of the easiest things to grow! They are also easy to forage and gather!
Then we get a quiz to help us decide "What Kind of Caveman Are You? (I am not letting my husband see this quiz!)
Then we get wonderfully helpful hints for starting our new Paleo diet, including such amazing advice as "get all the forbidden foods out of the house."
Oh, I never would have thought of that!
Then come sample menus, with variations for weekdays, weekends, and entertaining. We even get a few recipes, including "Caveman Trail Mix"!
And then, well that is it. The end of the book. A short 76 page introduction to the Paleo diet.
So, while this was a slightly interesting, I still don't see why there are all these glowing, amazing, 5-star reviews? But, okay, whatever.