This is Michael Pollan.
He is adorable.
He is the soup du jour right now of many a food movement: farm-to-table, organic farming, sustainable farming, non-GMO farming, and so on.
About two years ago, I read The Omnivore's Dilemma. It is a fascinating take on the food industry that isn't written in response to lobbying and circumspect scientific studies. It's honest and contemplative (much like the way food should be, perhaps?).
And, I dig his writing. I'm a sucker for the journalist-academian-editorialist. (Tangent...read The Soloist by Steve Lopez.) Seriously, he's adorable.
I recently wended my way through A Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto and zipped through Food Rules: An Eater's Manuel, the latter one which really should be read along with the former. Now, it's on to The Botany of Desire, and though only done with the introduction, I'm already getting coffeehouse-and-latte chills at his delicious writing. Reading his writing is like having a conversation with a favorite professor, which is utterly fantastic.
My only complaint in all that I have read so far, one that is unilaterally ignored, is that he never takes geography into account. Some of us just can't utilize a fabulous California farmer's market. I'm still waiting for someone to solve the riddle of how to eat well, quasi-affordably, outside of a major city, when you don't have the ability to maintain your own garden.
Regardless, there's a whole lot of genuine in his writing. It really helps to temper the feelings of guilt and/or disgust that you have when you think about some of the garbage that is in your own fridge/freezer/pantry as you're reading it. He should really preface his writing with "I'm only telling you this because you're a friend, and I want to help..."
Did you notice that I slipped in the California part? He also teaches at UC Berkeley. Be still my heart. It is all a'flutter.
3 comments:
Now I am oh so curious. In this case, I suppose it's good that I have four (yikes!) months to read things about food and whatnot. Smashing.
After you read The Botany of Desire I would truly recommend the film of the same title. I found it to be stunningly beautiful videography. Did you also read "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" by Barbara Kingsolver? It is of a similar vein and I like the eggs in a nest recipe from that one.
I read Kingsolver's work around the same time that I first read Pollan--about 2 years ago. I know that there are a lot of Kingsolver fans, especially among women, but I'm not one of them. However, I did like this the best of what I've read of hers (probably because it's non-fiction!).
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