Meghan’s Comments (group member since Mar 08, 2008)

Meghan’s comments from the GoodReviews: The Official Book Review Contest group.

Thank you for the update; however, I have to agree with the other posts...I wish you guys would keep it around! I understand the problem with the participation though; I'm looking forward to what you come up with in the future!

Thanks so much Rivka! I will edit my post now to include the correct link :)

Thanks to Rivka - I'm able to post the correct link to my review: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

My actual review (4 out of 5 stars):

In a time when reading is a somewhat escapist activity, when people prefer reading for pleasure than reading for knowledge and when mindless entertainment is the oft-chosen occupation of our leisure; I find myself in the minority in that I enjoy learning something new from what I read. In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto by Michael Pollen is no exception to that idea; I enjoyed what I learned from reading it.

That is not to say that I didn’t have my qualms about the book at first: would it be too scientific, too hard to understand; would it be belittling or scolding about my eating habits; would it focus all on the negative, have a lot of bitter discussion but no positive solutions? I found that I was pleasantly incorrect about my qualms and “An Eater’s Manifesto” is none of these.

Pollen’s approach is a little deceptive, but in a subtle and pleasing manner, more sly or coy than deceptive. The introduction reads as a conversation between friends, casual tones peppered with highbrow humor. Mild paranoia ensues in section one, bordering on a conspiracy theory involving the government, food companies, marketers, journalists and scientists. The second section compounds on these ideas while adding a negative undertone reaction to the blatant decline of our country’s health. Then section three comes in like a breath of fresh air, full of promise, hope and steps for improvement.

Had Pollen ended his manifesto after section two, the book would have just been another critical (in all senses of the word) look at our food’s history and current state of affairs. Thankfully, his prose came full circle and the tenor of the last section resembled that of his introduction. Offering advice as though he were speaking to a close friend, Pollen makes the idea of implementing his proffered solutions seem easy, even enjoyable. And the light-heartedness of the tone in this section serves as a welcome juxtaposition to the somewhat stale and arduous reading of the previous two sections (I blame the footnotes; anything with footnotes brings to mind the textbooks of college and will forever be associated with difficult reading).

What I enjoyed most about In Defense of Food – aside from the turns of phrase which actually made me laugh out loud (one in particular referring to the neurons in our digestive tract, “we’re not really sure what they’re up to”) – is that it not only made me think about the content of the book, it made me think about the content of my life. Minus my current dabbling in reading self-improvement books, I have been an avid consumer of fiction and fiction rarely requires me to reflect on my life (though I will glean some new piece of knowledge on most occasions). I was actually quite uncomfortable in this conclusion originally – after all, who wants to realize that they’re mindlessly agreeing with what the media tells them and is simultaneously living (eating) a lifestyle that will more likely than not kill me in a very unpleasant way – but I believe that this is the first step in truly making a change in your lifestyle, for who would bother making a change if you were comfortable?

It was nice to read that someone else agrees with my idea that food should be enjoyed and that it’s worth paying more for better food even if there is less of it. I cannot tell you how many arguments I have had with my fiancé about what he regards as a waste of money and how food is strictly meant to fuel your body in response to my preference for actually enjoying my meal and getting more satisfaction than when I eat simply to “fuel” myself. Maybe I should move to France.

Although Pollan presents his statistics in the one of the most understandable manners I have read, I would have preferred an easier narrative throughout sections one and two of this book. These contain the most vital information, but if other readers are anything like me, they sort of skimmed in some passages because there was no real break in the scientific mumbo-jumbo to give a layperson’s understanding of what was being presented. Don’t get me wrong; Pollan interprets the jargon quite well in his summaries, but they were too far apart from the original context and therefore I had forgotten what he was talking about. Section three was his redemption; although his original message was never lost: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”