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A review by clarkminimized
The Buy Nothing, Get Everything Plan: Discover the Joy of Spending Less, Sharing More, and Living Generously by Liesl Clark, Rebecca Rockefeller
4.0
The premise of the Buy Nothing Project is that we cannot only save money and reduce waste by sharing freely with others, but we can also regain a sense of community that has been lost in many urban places. At the heart, this project is about "gift economies" and how giving and asking for what we need binds people together socially, where as goods exchanged for money divide people and are based on economies of scarcity. A gift economy, the authors argue, is based on abundance. We already have more than enough to go around.
I'm not sure if this book is for people who already love the Buy Nothing Project and who participate on Buy Nothing Facebook groups (like myself), or if it is for people who have never heard of it. The book does a great job explaining the power of gift economies and shows how we can actually get to know our neighbors again and support each other. It shows how we can save little and large items from going to landfills.
The book is weaker when it becomes a "listicle" and lists 50 things you can do to reduce waste and buy less. These long lists distract from the more powerful stories throughout and would have done better by being attached at the end as appendices. I found myself getting irritated reading about how I could make my own deodorant and my own yogurt. Practical ideas are great, but a list this long is just exhausting.
Even with its missteps, the philosophical core of this book is worth the time to read it. In my own Buy Nothing experience, I gave much a needed breastfeeding pillow to a new mom who could barely walk because birth was so recent. I had a woman come with her daughter to gather mulberry leaves from my tree to feed to the silkworm the daughter had brought home from school to care for for the weekend. I've shared lemons when my tree is overflowing with fruit. And I got a tractor-trailer tricycle that I put out as a gift from Santa for my children that they were so excited about that we went for a ride/walk around the neighborhood on Christmas morning. The Buy Nothing project is successful because it isn't just about stuff. It is about relationships with people who live right next to you and within a few blocks.
This book is not about decluttering or minimalism like some others you have read. It's not (just) about saving the earth. It's not (just) about spending less money. You can be a maximalist and into Buy Nothing, as the authors point out. This book is really about sharing, about the power of giving and asking for what you want. And this book is about gratitude. Isn't that what we could all use a little of in the new year?
Many thanks to Atria Books for the advanced copy of this book.
I'm not sure if this book is for people who already love the Buy Nothing Project and who participate on Buy Nothing Facebook groups (like myself), or if it is for people who have never heard of it. The book does a great job explaining the power of gift economies and shows how we can actually get to know our neighbors again and support each other. It shows how we can save little and large items from going to landfills.
The book is weaker when it becomes a "listicle" and lists 50 things you can do to reduce waste and buy less. These long lists distract from the more powerful stories throughout and would have done better by being attached at the end as appendices. I found myself getting irritated reading about how I could make my own deodorant and my own yogurt. Practical ideas are great, but a list this long is just exhausting.
Even with its missteps, the philosophical core of this book is worth the time to read it. In my own Buy Nothing experience, I gave much a needed breastfeeding pillow to a new mom who could barely walk because birth was so recent. I had a woman come with her daughter to gather mulberry leaves from my tree to feed to the silkworm the daughter had brought home from school to care for for the weekend. I've shared lemons when my tree is overflowing with fruit. And I got a tractor-trailer tricycle that I put out as a gift from Santa for my children that they were so excited about that we went for a ride/walk around the neighborhood on Christmas morning. The Buy Nothing project is successful because it isn't just about stuff. It is about relationships with people who live right next to you and within a few blocks.
This book is not about decluttering or minimalism like some others you have read. It's not (just) about saving the earth. It's not (just) about spending less money. You can be a maximalist and into Buy Nothing, as the authors point out. This book is really about sharing, about the power of giving and asking for what you want. And this book is about gratitude. Isn't that what we could all use a little of in the new year?
Many thanks to Atria Books for the advanced copy of this book.