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greenldydragon's review against another edition
1.0
I had to stop reading as Joel Salatin wrote with a style too preachy for my taste.
nj_14's review against another edition
3.0
I like the way Joel Salatin farms, but I don't agree with everything he says. Still, this book has a lot of food for thought (pun totally intended) and is worth reading.
mlludwig's review against another edition
informative
3.0
This definitely hits different post-COVID, and has lots of food for thought about the infrastructure of the food system in the US. As interesting as Salatin's experiences are for many of these issues, it would've also been nice to get more than anecdotal evidence for the broad brush strokes that were painted. Reading this book does make me want to learn more, but it was a difficult read given the unending condescension in the tone. How dare I, a WOMAN, bring shame to my ancestors by not knowing the myriad of ways to deal with an abundance of butternut squash?? I have clearly failed my family because I as a woman should know my duties to the kitchen (and no, I don't care that the majority of Salatin's food-buying customers are women, there wasn't any reason for such constant gendered language).
wildflowerfieldsforever's review against another edition
3.0
I have mixed feelings about this book... The thing is, I agree with most of what Salatin says. I've always enjoyed his outlook, but this is the first time I've read one of his books. I also understand where Salatin is coming from and I think that helps put a clearer lens on how he reacts to what he deems not "normal". However, I almost started a drinking game for every time he suggested a household "get rid of the parakeets and get a couple chickens. They're less messy and more useful". Chickens! Inside! oh my.
He does go through some of the outrageous hoops he has jumped through throughout the years to maintain his farm the way he finds most useful and productive. It's easy to see where and how he becomes disgruntled. And, again, I don't necessarily disagree with him; however, I also understand how this book won't be for some people as he does come across as prickly. It doesn't feel like there is much middle ground with Sataltin on many of his points.
Among other things, the book did reignite a desire in me to begin composting my kitchen scraps and waste. And maybe finally get a couple chickens. Someday. Outside. I'm not giving up my parakeets, though.
He does go through some of the outrageous hoops he has jumped through throughout the years to maintain his farm the way he finds most useful and productive. It's easy to see where and how he becomes disgruntled. And, again, I don't necessarily disagree with him; however, I also understand how this book won't be for some people as he does come across as prickly. It doesn't feel like there is much middle ground with Sataltin on many of his points.
Among other things, the book did reignite a desire in me to begin composting my kitchen scraps and waste. And maybe finally get a couple chickens. Someday. Outside. I'm not giving up my parakeets, though.
stormslegacy's review against another edition
3.0
Joel Salatin is someone very vocal in food politics, and quoted in many books. As the owner of Polyface Farm in Virginia, the sustainable example quoted by most food politics folks, he has a lot of wisdom to share. I do not agree with him on many issues, but there's a lot of his overall philosophy I can get behind. He believes in a sustainable system where animals can express themselves as nature intended.
That's pretty much where I stop following though. He is a creationist who firmly believes all government is harmful, despite the fact that without laws it is unlikely his business would survive a true free-market because it's such a small scale. There are a lot of statements in the book that are ignorant, and can easily be disproved. Some are just blatant. Many statements have a sort of truthiness to them, but then fall apart when examined. His solutions would not work for most people.
If you are just getting started in food politics I would NOT recommend this book to you. I would read Micheal Pollan, Marion Nestle, Catherine Friend or myriad other authors first. That said, if you have read other books and want to hear more, it is an excellent peek into the rural mind-set that is very common among the farmers that supply food to the farmer's markets. It also provides you with a rounder vision of how food connects people and the different philosophies that can coexist together.
That's pretty much where I stop following though. He is a creationist who firmly believes all government is harmful, despite the fact that without laws it is unlikely his business would survive a true free-market because it's such a small scale. There are a lot of statements in the book that are ignorant, and can easily be disproved. Some are just blatant. Many statements have a sort of truthiness to them, but then fall apart when examined. His solutions would not work for most people.
If you are just getting started in food politics I would NOT recommend this book to you. I would read Micheal Pollan, Marion Nestle, Catherine Friend or myriad other authors first. That said, if you have read other books and want to hear more, it is an excellent peek into the rural mind-set that is very common among the farmers that supply food to the farmer's markets. It also provides you with a rounder vision of how food connects people and the different philosophies that can coexist together.
leah_markum's review against another edition
4.0
Caution: this book is a thought-provoker. If you are not intellectually qualified to discern fact from philosophy and integrate that information into your brain without barfing it out because it challenges conceptions made from incomplete knowledge or pre-existing philosophical leanings, you will likely flounder in this book.
The short of it: this is the story of a small-time, 100% locally based farmer. He gives examples and philosophies from those examples on the hows and whys of modern agriculture--an unhealthy industrial paradigm--and the hows and whys of traditional agriculture--a better capacity for a healthy industrial paradigm. This is not a stereotypical food book of a hippie broadcasting his or her ideals. Joel Salatin does make philosophical statements as he does not take an academic approach to this book (though he does include some statistics), but he grounds the book by his experiences trying to compete in an industry essentially reserved for big companies and his, frankly, ingenious yet pragmatic alternatives.
The long of it: This book has had some negative reviews. There is a reason for this, and you'll see it in personal interactions if you're the sort to ask questions and speculate: most people don't like it when you step on their toes. Most people like things simple. They like to not have to think about non-leisurely things. They don't like to be told to take a step back and ask questions. They don't like to consider something that they took for granted.
Joel Salatin likes to step on toes. He doesn't write with a "my way or the highway" attitude, but he does expect those who pick up the book to contemplate the things we prefer to let others--even strangers--think about and act upon. It's okay. It's a book. It can't kill you. We can only learn if we challenge our existing ideas. There is no requirement to agree with him, but there is a requirement to see things from a different perspective.
Joel Salatin is an old-fashioned farmer: he has poultry, swine, and bovine commercial livestock and grows his own self-sustaining crop garden. Save for the egg mobiles the chickens live in at night, these animals are free ranging. Three-quarters of his property is forest. He and another farmer run a local abattoir (meat-processing facility).
He expresses non-agriculture-related philosophies built from the life he has lived at times that will irk the average reader. (We all have perspective limitations, and his include assuming that all video games are bad and science destroys spirituality, yet simultaneously and he respects what science is capable of as long as it's not tainted by economic influence.)
At such times I wanted to rate this book a two or a three. However, rest assured this man has the inside story on the hows and whys of the small-time farmer failing in our modern culture and how we can be far more ecologically and economically more responsible. His insights are no-nonsense and his "alternative" ideas are so common sense you want to cry for the human stupidity (or laziness) that led our society to live in a non-responsible manner. This information is so valuable I wish everyone, consumers and workers in the industry, would read and openly consider. If anything, the advice in this book is built on experience, not the hippie idealism that most books in this genre follow without considering the pros and cons of their philosophy and others.
The short of it: this is the story of a small-time, 100% locally based farmer. He gives examples and philosophies from those examples on the hows and whys of modern agriculture--an unhealthy industrial paradigm--and the hows and whys of traditional agriculture--a better capacity for a healthy industrial paradigm. This is not a stereotypical food book of a hippie broadcasting his or her ideals. Joel Salatin does make philosophical statements as he does not take an academic approach to this book (though he does include some statistics), but he grounds the book by his experiences trying to compete in an industry essentially reserved for big companies and his, frankly, ingenious yet pragmatic alternatives.
The long of it: This book has had some negative reviews. There is a reason for this, and you'll see it in personal interactions if you're the sort to ask questions and speculate: most people don't like it when you step on their toes. Most people like things simple. They like to not have to think about non-leisurely things. They don't like to be told to take a step back and ask questions. They don't like to consider something that they took for granted.
Joel Salatin likes to step on toes. He doesn't write with a "my way or the highway" attitude, but he does expect those who pick up the book to contemplate the things we prefer to let others--even strangers--think about and act upon. It's okay. It's a book. It can't kill you. We can only learn if we challenge our existing ideas. There is no requirement to agree with him, but there is a requirement to see things from a different perspective.
Joel Salatin is an old-fashioned farmer: he has poultry, swine, and bovine commercial livestock and grows his own self-sustaining crop garden. Save for the egg mobiles the chickens live in at night, these animals are free ranging. Three-quarters of his property is forest. He and another farmer run a local abattoir (meat-processing facility).
He expresses non-agriculture-related philosophies built from the life he has lived at times that will irk the average reader. (We all have perspective limitations, and his include assuming that all video games are bad and science destroys spirituality, yet simultaneously and he respects what science is capable of as long as it's not tainted by economic influence.)
At such times I wanted to rate this book a two or a three. However, rest assured this man has the inside story on the hows and whys of the small-time farmer failing in our modern culture and how we can be far more ecologically and economically more responsible. His insights are no-nonsense and his "alternative" ideas are so common sense you want to cry for the human stupidity (or laziness) that led our society to live in a non-responsible manner. This information is so valuable I wish everyone, consumers and workers in the industry, would read and openly consider. If anything, the advice in this book is built on experience, not the hippie idealism that most books in this genre follow without considering the pros and cons of their philosophy and others.
kristy_gardner's review against another edition
3.0
Love Joel Salatin. His clever and inventive ways with language bring food politics into a whole other barn yard. Well worth the read if you're interested in learning more about the American food system - what's normal and what's just plain messed up (read: messed up IS the new normal).
kobowden's review against another edition
2.0
It’s hard to get through. He goes off on six different tangents and then says “hold that thought” before getting back to the main point. I have no idea what’s going on.