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sparklethenpop's review against another edition
4.0
I know I'm a vegetarian, but I like to learn about other sides of every issue. In some weird way, I have to have some respect for a person who can raise their own meat, it says something that the eater is very aware and respectful of where her food is coming from. The fact that I don't think I could ever do that is one of the reasons that I am and probably will always be a vegetarian, I want to remember where my food is coming from, and it would be too painful for me to do that with meat. Yup, definitely still a vegetarian but it was really interesting to read such a perspective.
dayseraph's review against another edition
4.0
Friend is very forgiving of imperfect meat-eater actions but also judgmental of vegetarians - even though she tries to couch it in "but it's a totally valid choice!" backtracking. Regardless, she doesn't try to come off as an absolute expert but provides a lot of good information and resources as well as interesting arguments and suggestions for improving eating habits. A good resource and an easy read!
abanks617's review against another edition
Good book that made me think a little differently. It was nice to hear the opinion that you do what you can, and making all kinds of drastic changes at once isn't the only way to go from factory-bred buying to free range, organic, etc.
wanderaven's review against another edition
4.0
I have been a vegetarian for over twenty years now. For about the past three years, I have - for a couple of personal reasons - been considering eating meat again. Pretty much every website is extremely biased - either "If you're a vegetarian, you're an idiot!" or "If you're not a vegetarian, you're an idiot!" and one day about a month ago I was frustrated, thinking, "If only there was a book to help me think about this... relatively unbiased, to present a 'good' way to go about eating meat, if I so chose to." I fantasized that such a book would be called "Compassionate Carnivore" and I went to Amazon and put it in as a search... and this book was the result.
Friend is a farmer and you might think that she is biased. I honestly think that she tried her best not to be. She actually encourages readers to - if they cannot eat sustainable, humanely raised meat - forgo factory farmed meat for a vegetarian meal. Many people would believe that she could not truly love the animals she raises and then sends off to slaughter but this is a very black and white way of looking at the world and I personally felt the love, respect, and honour that she feels for the lives she cares for.
Friend explains her belief that a person who chooses a completely vegetarian lifestyle take themselves “away from the table” in making an economic vote in how meat animals are treated. It is only people who eat the meat of animals and yet also care about how they live and die who remain at the table to financially support the farmers who are earnestly trying to raise animals in a sustainable and humane manner. I appreciate her argument and gained a new perspective with her words. Upon finishing the book, I felt better educated and with many personal and spiritual questions to consider. I feel that if I choose to start eating meat again, I will feel that I’ve done it with knowledge and by making the choices that make the lifestyle change an acceptable one for me.
Friend is a farmer and you might think that she is biased. I honestly think that she tried her best not to be. She actually encourages readers to - if they cannot eat sustainable, humanely raised meat - forgo factory farmed meat for a vegetarian meal. Many people would believe that she could not truly love the animals she raises and then sends off to slaughter but this is a very black and white way of looking at the world and I personally felt the love, respect, and honour that she feels for the lives she cares for.
Friend explains her belief that a person who chooses a completely vegetarian lifestyle take themselves “away from the table” in making an economic vote in how meat animals are treated. It is only people who eat the meat of animals and yet also care about how they live and die who remain at the table to financially support the farmers who are earnestly trying to raise animals in a sustainable and humane manner. I appreciate her argument and gained a new perspective with her words. Upon finishing the book, I felt better educated and with many personal and spiritual questions to consider. I feel that if I choose to start eating meat again, I will feel that I’ve done it with knowledge and by making the choices that make the lifestyle change an acceptable one for me.
kairosdreaming's review against another edition
3.0
I read the author's first book, "Hit By A Farm", and really enjoyed it. This one however, felt forced and rushed to me, and I didn't find it nearly as informative or entertaining to read. The author raises some good points, but lacks the follow through to really make an impact.
Catherine Friend runs a sheep farm with her partner Melissa. They are low scale farmers, and produce a small amount of sheep bound for the slaughter as compared to larger farms or factory farms. But because of her daily workings with these sheep, Friend decides to take a more in-depth look at the type of meat she's eating in other areas other than lamb. More specifically, she raises the question of whether she should be eating these creatures if they were not raised humanely. As she explores these questions she looks at research from factory farms, methods used to slaughter animals, and the diet of the average American when it comes to meat.
I'm not going to say that factory farms aren't painted harshly, because they are by Friend. She offers data and research to back up her claims and I don't disagree with her either. She also is careful to mention that just because someone is a small scale farmer, doesn't mean they treat their animals well. There is good and bad animal husbandry at all scales of farming. And she doesn't condemn the people eating factory farmed meat, but offers alternatives and says to start small with a goal to change personal consumption. It's easier to take baby steps instead of going full force into something. As someone who was a vegetarian for almost three years (but alas succumbed to bacon) I agree on many of her points. I've thought about going back to vegetarianism not because I don't like meat, but because I can't afford the types of meat I think I should be eating (sustainable, organic, and humanely raised). I like Friend's compromise in saying that just shoot for one meal a week that would have this type of ingredient to make it more doable.
While Friend has many good points, the book does appear rushed though. We're bounced about from facts, to Friend's own farm and animals, to different methods of slaughter, etc. and are never really set on one specific topic for a great amount of time. It's like she was just trying to get everything on paper and the format suffered a little bit. I found it hard to read continuously even though topics like this usually keep me hooked into a book. Additionally, some of the websites she mentions (but not all) didn't work for me when I tried to type them in. Considering the book isn't that old it is surprising, but such is the way of life in the internet world and books should be careful referencing websites because they can be short lived. I did like that she provided a list of questions to ask a farmer about when looking for humanely raised local meat. I fully intend on referring to those questions when I do have an opportunity to buy meat like that.
Some good facts but a very rushed book. It can also cause a lot of contention between farmers who practice the methods Friend doesn't like in this book and on the other side of the spectrum, her thoughts about compassionate carnivores may not sit well with vegetarians who believe any meat consumption is cruel. There really isn't one right answer for everybody though because as with religion, people's thoughts on food are volatile and everyone thinks that they have the right answer. This is one opinion out of many that seeks a middle ground between no meat and all meat.
The Compassionate Carnivore
Copyright 2008
261 pages
Review by M. Reynard 2013
More of my reviews can be found at www.ifithaswords.blogspot.com
Catherine Friend runs a sheep farm with her partner Melissa. They are low scale farmers, and produce a small amount of sheep bound for the slaughter as compared to larger farms or factory farms. But because of her daily workings with these sheep, Friend decides to take a more in-depth look at the type of meat she's eating in other areas other than lamb. More specifically, she raises the question of whether she should be eating these creatures if they were not raised humanely. As she explores these questions she looks at research from factory farms, methods used to slaughter animals, and the diet of the average American when it comes to meat.
I'm not going to say that factory farms aren't painted harshly, because they are by Friend. She offers data and research to back up her claims and I don't disagree with her either. She also is careful to mention that just because someone is a small scale farmer, doesn't mean they treat their animals well. There is good and bad animal husbandry at all scales of farming. And she doesn't condemn the people eating factory farmed meat, but offers alternatives and says to start small with a goal to change personal consumption. It's easier to take baby steps instead of going full force into something. As someone who was a vegetarian for almost three years (but alas succumbed to bacon) I agree on many of her points. I've thought about going back to vegetarianism not because I don't like meat, but because I can't afford the types of meat I think I should be eating (sustainable, organic, and humanely raised). I like Friend's compromise in saying that just shoot for one meal a week that would have this type of ingredient to make it more doable.
While Friend has many good points, the book does appear rushed though. We're bounced about from facts, to Friend's own farm and animals, to different methods of slaughter, etc. and are never really set on one specific topic for a great amount of time. It's like she was just trying to get everything on paper and the format suffered a little bit. I found it hard to read continuously even though topics like this usually keep me hooked into a book. Additionally, some of the websites she mentions (but not all) didn't work for me when I tried to type them in. Considering the book isn't that old it is surprising, but such is the way of life in the internet world and books should be careful referencing websites because they can be short lived. I did like that she provided a list of questions to ask a farmer about when looking for humanely raised local meat. I fully intend on referring to those questions when I do have an opportunity to buy meat like that.
Some good facts but a very rushed book. It can also cause a lot of contention between farmers who practice the methods Friend doesn't like in this book and on the other side of the spectrum, her thoughts about compassionate carnivores may not sit well with vegetarians who believe any meat consumption is cruel. There really isn't one right answer for everybody though because as with religion, people's thoughts on food are volatile and everyone thinks that they have the right answer. This is one opinion out of many that seeks a middle ground between no meat and all meat.
The Compassionate Carnivore
Copyright 2008
261 pages
Review by M. Reynard 2013
More of my reviews can be found at www.ifithaswords.blogspot.com
skepticalmoose's review against another edition
5.0
This is all the annoying things I've been saying to everyone for years, in convenient book form. Now, instead of ignoring me, my friends and family can ignore my recommendation to read this book. YAY!
deltadave's review against another edition
3.0
An interesting perspective from the farmers point of view. Time will tell if humane husbandry, and the higher costs associated with it, is viable economically. In the mean time it is quite difficult to find meat products in the Los Angeles area that conform to this ideal. The other practical problem with this approach is that of demand - in order to support the current supply of meat in the US we would have to utilize every inch of land not used for crops for livestock pasture. Not sure how people would feel about clear cutting forest or draining wetland to create pasture. Seems a bit impractical. My overall impression is the same - well intentioned, but wishful thinking and, ultimately, impractical.
millertimereads's review against another edition
4.0
I was totally charmed by this author from the beginning. As someone who has wrestled with the morality of eating meat for awhile, it was a great exploration of the options along the spectrum -- from eating factory meat without concern to committing to veganism. Friend has very realistic suggestions for finding humanely raised meat in your community. When I started reading this last fall I was eating meat, now I'm not, but I like having a bit more information and feeling like if I go back the other way on the spectrum I have a little more information on how to make ethical decisions.
bloodravenlib's review against another edition
1.0
Part of the reason I disliked this book may be that it was just not the book for me at this time as a reader. Part of it may be that much of the arguments Friend makes are things I have seen in other books such as Fast Food Nation and Supersize Me. I will admit that I skimmed parts of the book due to the repetition. It is not that I disagree with the arguments; it's just that I have seen a lot of the stuff before, so I did not really need to see it again. The memoir parts, to be honest, had a little bit on the "Pollyanna" tone. I think she makes a valid point: that you can be a carnivore and be compassionate about the meat you eat; more importantly, be very aware of where your food comes from and try to choose more compassionate and healthy alternatives. But a lot of the message is repetitive throughout the book (yea, I got it the first time). The recommendations at the end, while noble, are fairly unrealistic to the average person. I mean, how many folks do you know can afford to buy a whole hog or steer, let alone have a place to store all the butchered meat? I think the idea of buying your meat directly from a sustainable farmer is a good one, but as I said, not necessarily realistic, which, noble as it is, is where things fall apart for this book. And while Friend says people should just not choose to not do anything, there are no realistic alternatives, or they would take way too much work. I know I would not be able to buy even a quarter of a steer (an option in some places), let alone have the place to store all the meat. As much as I dislike factory produced meat, personally at least, I do not have too many options to go the more natural route the author suggests. The whole thing is a bit too much on the idealistic side, which is a pity because there are some good points in the book. Overall, not a book I would recommend.
dandreamelissa's review against another edition
4.0
Catherine Friend is insightful, funny, and never preachy, which is rare for a food book like this. I was educated more about how bad some factory farms can be on the animal and what to look for when buying meat (ie: grass fed, pasture raised)
It is a tad dated even though this was only published several years ago, so I would like to see an updated version wit new stats.
It is a tad dated even though this was only published several years ago, so I would like to see an updated version wit new stats.