Barbara Kingsolver, Steven L. Hopp, Camille Kingsolver - Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life

Pros: Non-fiction reads like fiction, memoir inspires, a message that encourages, humor and language, audio-version

Cons: Not long enough, her scale not possible for everyone but there’s something for anyone

The Bottom Line: Maybe you can't be a 100% locavore, but Kingsolver offers insight for reducing your global footprint as she plants seeds for wanting to follow her in some manner.  

Review: In Barbara Kingsolver's world the seasons are defined not by the movement of the moon or sun, but by the activity in the garden and kitchen. This investigative look into the possibility of living within her foodshed turned into an exploration her ...

Pros: True story of family living off the land with recipes and details

Cons: Facts get a little dry and boring

The Bottom Line: I would recommend this book highly for it's riveting tale of a family living differently than 99% of Americans today

Review: I am a junk food junkie admittedly. I wish that I wasn't. Late nights find me on the couch snacking on stuff that has no nutrients and/or is deep fried and full of cheese. Moving way out away from the stores I knew and loved....things got tough for me. ...

Pros: a powerful message delivered with style, grace, and humor

Cons: this isn't something everyone can do - but then it's not supposed to be

The Bottom Line: Can an American family spend an entire year without eating food grown more than 100 miles from home? The answer is a resounding and entertaining "Yes, we could!"

Review: Animal, Vegetable, Miracle - Barbara KingsolverHave you ever noticed that a cause hasn't made much of a ripple in this world until powerful people start making disparaging remarks about it? That realization struck me not long ...

Pros: Engagingly written, not preachy, fabulous recipes.

Cons: Having three narrators tends to break up the flow of the story.

The Bottom Line: Demand more organic and local produce in schools, restaurants, and workplaces. Better yet, start your own garden. The recipes are fabulous and are available at www.animalvegetablemiracle.com

Review: I first heard about Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life on NPR, where it had been selected as a summer must-read. As someone who shops organic at local farmer markets, this book struck a chord with me on many levels ...

Pros: An uplifting, heartwarming, humorous and yet educating book.

Cons: If you do not enjoy gardening, nature or green living, go away.

The Bottom Line: This would be a great book for anyone who would like to learn how to be better stewards of the earth regardless of where they live. 

Review: Before I talk about this book, do you know that Barbara Kingsolver was listed as the 74th most dangerous person in the United States?  Now if you have ever read a Barbara Kingsolver book, you are probably already laughing your pants off just as I ...

Pros: Very good description of growing and cooking your own regional food.

Cons: a little long

The Bottom Line: What is it like to farm and glean your own food for a year? This is a good description.

Review: Barbara Kingsolver, most widely known for her book THE POISONWOOD BIBLE, is 74th worst for America as written in a book a few years ago. Well, she is a liberal from Kentucky, well educated, and now knowledgeable about organic gardening, having taken her ...

Pros: Astounding detail; easily digestible.

Cons: The additional two authors' could have been inserted in clean breaks.

Review: This is book is much needed and a great work. Kingsolver is self deprecating at times and freely admits the limitations of her family project. The prose flows in much the same way we've come to expect from her fiction, smooth and intelligent. ...