The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals

Let me put it out front -- I'm an omnivore and nothing in the book changes that. What has changed is my entire way of looking at food. The book is loaded with information that makes one reconsider the mix of foods you eat. What I like is that it does this while not telling the reader precisely what foods to eat and what foods to avoid. Rather, the emphasis is on balance and on knowing something about where your food comes from. This is a subject for which too many authors become preachy, but not Pollan.

Do not, repeat, do not believe the majority of reviews about this book. I should've known better as I first read "Botany of Desire", and gave a review. I thought that book was interminable, and this is even worse. Don't get me wrong there is some information within the pages, however, it goes on and on, almost without end. I persisted till I was almost, but not quite finished, and just could no longer bear the boredom. I persevered through "The Corn", barely got through "The Grasses", and almost made it through "The Forest", but the story on Fungi got the best of me, and "The Perfect Meal" did me in. I actually put the book down and stated aloud, "enough - I can't take it anymore". Life is too short, and time too valuable to waste it on this tripe.

A very engaging look at the food industry. Mainly answers the questions: "What it is we're eating? Where it came from? How it found its way to our table?" But: "What should you eat?" is in the end left to you and a zillion diet books. How about just fish and vegetables? That apparently is what some Japanese mountaineers in their seventies are eating in preparation for an attempt to become the oldest people to summit Mt. Everest.

I have been reading a lot about food and nutrition and was really fastinated with the information in this book. It is a fun read but I was kind of worried that it might be sort of one-sided politically (many on the subject seem a bit one-sided and you wonder if you are getting the full story). The book seems refreshingly objective and dispassionate to me as far as the imformation about food, etc. It was made more interesting by Michael explaining his own person journey of discovery and his thoughts, feelings and self-examinations along the way. Get your older kids to read this book and they will never look at a McDonald's meal the same way again!

This book puts a light on how we grow our food and where our food comes from. Its highlights the dangers of eating some foods that we would normally eat everyday. I absolutely loved this book, I'm sure if you are interested in going organic this is a must read!