Gina Mallet (1938–2013)

I loved this book.

This book is sort of a combination of Fast Food Nation and The Omnivores Dilemma in that it looks at what our food consumptions and production used to be and now is, but it also mixes in a wonderful personal account as the author looks at this from her personal experience growing up in pre-WWII England and her experiences there to moving to America and how things have changed over the years.

It not only looks again at the unhealthy and unsustainable practices we now employ in our food supply network, but it also looks at how our relationship with food and eating have changed and not necessarily for the better.

As food science has increased our factual knowledge and overall productivity, we seem to have lost much of the pleasure and more practical knowledge of food, food prep and eating itself. We have gotten so caught up on the numbers and fears that the way our food is now produced inspire in us that food has almost become our enemy vs. a source of nourishment and please that it is alright to enjoy and I fear this is something we will never truly regain.

For all that this was not a gloom and doom, look how horrible the food industry is book.
It was truly more a fond and happy look back with family, culture and food using the current changes as more of a back drop than as the main centerpiece.… (more)