Book Club

I've decided to start a monthly book club discussing books that have anything to do with food. May's book of the month: Food Rules by Michael Pollan

Food Rules: An Eater's Manual by Michael Pollan

Image courtesy of Penguin.ca

Food Rules contains the basic principles and findings of In Defense of Food (which if you haven't read already, you should) but in a more accessible form (without the focus on history and research). It includes everything Michael Pollan has learned about eating well and presents it as a set of 64 rules, or guidelines, really.

Pollan sets out to answer the question of what should we eat and does so with three simple sentences: Eat Food. Not too much. Mostly plants. Food Rules is divided into three section, each encompassing one of these ideas. The rules are thoughtful, easy to remember, and often humorous. While many are founded in science, Pollan doesn't rely on learning the science to learn how to eat. Instead he chooses things like Avoid foods you see advertised on TV (#11) or Spend as much time enjoying the meal as it took to prepare it (#51).

Everyone who eats should read this book. It's the best diet plan you will ever follow. While it may not open your eyes to the food industry as fully as Pollan's other books, it will pass along basic principles that help you make daily decisions about what you eat.

I couldn't recommend it more. As far as I am concerned, it should be in the Grade 9 curriculum of every high school in the country.