Good Books

Justin Frerick unravels the tangled history of today’s agriculture industry, while simultaneously pursuing the answer to a very personal question: What happened to the vibrant, diverse Iowa he once called home? The book documents how 7 families have built enormous power and wealth, as they succeeded in dominating America’s animal and plant agriculture industries.

I always look forward to new editions of this series. Each year, a guest editor chooses their favorite food-related essays. 2023 was my favorite so far. Edited by Mark Bittman, it is full of beautifully written essays, many addressing dysfunctions within our food system.

Richard Oppenlander addresses the basics of how our food system depletes resources and pollutes the planet. Chapters on air and water pollution, the decimation of rain forests, nutrition, and animal cruelty (thoughtfully titled, “Not-to-Read Chapter”) provide the facts and figures, and, together, tell a compelling story of how we can heal the planet by changing what we eat.

Author Anna Lappe’s mother, Frances, forced us, in 1971!, to look at the impact of what we eat on our health and the planet with her best-selling book, Diet for a New Planet. Diet for a Hot Planet zeroes in on how what we eat is contributing to climate change, and tells us what to do about it, ending with “Seven Principles of a Climate-Friendly Diet.”

One of my favorite novels, ever. It’s a juicy, poignant story of a New York-based documentary filmmaker who spends a year making shows for a Japanese TV series, My American Wife!. A great read.

Food writer Alicia Kennedy chronicles the history of plant-based eating, from hippies making tempeh to Walmart’s frozen plant-based pizzas. Along the way, she addresses the role our capitalist food system plays in white supremacy, inequality, animal cruelty, and climate change.

Though I am a big fan of sisters Margaret and Irene Li — who I consider the Dumpling Queens of Boston — I hesitated to buy this book because it does not address plant-based eating. But what it does address is food waste,  a leading cause of greenhouse gas emissions and climate change. It is not hyperbole when I say this book changed how I cook; i.e., using parts of vegetables I never considered using, what I do and don’t throw away, what and how I compost.

Sociologist Nina Guilbeault traces the history of the vegan movement (“cult to cool”), with a focus on what veganism looks like today. Chapters on “The Vegan Mafia” and the push to create meat in a lab, make this a compelling read for anyone who grapples with how to eat ethically.

Vegan educator Ed Winters makes a case for veganism, arguing that it must be our future, in order for the planet to survive.

Novelist Jonathan Safran Foer turns to non-fiction, arguing that saving the planet involves personal sacrifice of comforts like eating meat.