Book Reviews

First there’s a small sense of betrayal. Mark Bittman’s cookbooks are reliable foundational items for any culinary collection, offering satisfying recipes described in a reassuring voice. His latest book, Animal, Vegetable, Junk, A History of Food, from Sustainable to Suicidal … [Read more...] about Human Sustenance: Sustainable Or Suicidal?

Over the past few years, we've enjoyed spotlighting the national awards for children's literature created by the American Horticultural Society (AHS) and the Junior Master Gardener Program (JMG). This past November, AHS and JMG honored four children's books with their Growing … [Read more...] about Guide To Winter & Spring Reading From American Farmland Trust Includes 2 Picks For Children

As you make your way through this well-reasoned, well-researched, densely written book, you may hear the sound of a scream, a crescendo of pain that builds from introduction to index. In my case, it turned out to be coming from the inside of my own head. We know, or have … [Read more...] about American Democracy Undermined By Powerful Monopolies With Big AG, A Prime Example: BREAK’EM UP

Although she was born in Albany in upstate New York, Elizabeth Zunon (a multi-talented artist, jewelry maker, chocolate lover and author/illustrator of children's books, spent her childhood in Abidjan, in the Ivory Coast (Cote d'Ivoire) in West Africa. Zunon's first, of now three … [Read more...] about Connecting To Family Roots In West Africa While Baking A Chocolate Cake In A Gently-Told Story For Young Children

If you care about how your food is grown and distributed and you care about social justice, the one book you must read right now is Farming While Black: Soul Fire Farm’s Practical Guide to Liberation on the Land by Leah Penniman (Chelsea Green Publishing, White River Junction, … [Read more...] about Rooting Social Justice In Power & Knowledge Over How Your Food Is Grown & Distributed