Hang on for the ride: with characteristic poetry and pluck, Barbara Kingsolver and her family sweep readers along on their journey away from the industrial-food pipeline to a rural life in which
they vow to buy only food raised in their own neighborhood, grow it themselves, or learn to live without it. Their good-humored search yields surprising discoveries about turkey sex life and overly
zealous zucchini plants, en route to a food culture that's better for the neighborhood and also better on the table.
Part memoir, part journalistic investigation, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle makes a passionate case for putting the kitchen back at the center of family life, and diversified farms at the
center of the American diet.
Editorial Reviews
Editorial Reviews
“Charming, zestful,
funny, and poetic…A serious book about important problems.” —Washington Post Book World
“Engaging…Absorbing…Lovely
food writing…[Kingsolver] succeeds at adopting the warm tone of a confiding friend.” —New York Times Book Review
“Animal, Vegetable, Miracle makes an important contribution to the
chorus of voices calling for change.” —Chicago Tribune
“A profound,
graceful, and literary work…Timeless…It can change who you are.” —Boston Globe
“Homespun,
unassuming, informed, positive, inspiring…Unstinting in its concerns about this
imperiled planet.” —Seattle Post-Intelligencer
“[Written] with
passion and hope…This novelist paints a compelling big picture—broad and ambitious,
with nary an extraneous stroke.” —Rocky Mountain News
“Kingsolver dresses
down the American food complex…These down-on-the-farm sections are inspiring
and…compelling.” —Outside
“Equal parts folk
wisdom and political activism…This family effort instructs as much as it
entertains.” —St. Louis Post-Dispatch
“Full…of zest and
sometimes ribald humor…Reading this book will make you hungry.” —Raleigh News & Observer
“Provocative…Kingsolver…evokes
the sheer joy of producing one’s own food.” —People
“An impassioned,
sensual, smart, and witty narrative…Kingsolver is a master at leavening a
serious message with humor.” —St. Petersburg Times
“Kingsolver…adds
enough texture and zest to stir wistful yearnings in all of us…[A] vicarious
taste of domesticity.” —Christian Science Monitor
“A terrific effort.
The delight for readers…is the chance to experience the rediscovery of
community through food.” —Oregonian
“If you’re interested
in learning more about healthful eating, you’ll want to read…Animal, Vegetable, Miracle.” —Charlotte Observer
“Loaded with terrific
information about everything from growth hormones to farm subsidies.” —Entertainment Weekly
“Kingsolver carries
us along in her distinct and breezy prose.” —Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
“[This] is a book
that, without being preachy, makes a solid case for eating locally instead of
globally.” —Richmond Times-Dispatch
“Other notable
writers have addressed this topic, but Kingsolver claims it as her own…Self-deprecating
instead of self-righteous.” —Charlotte Observer
“[Kingsolver is] a
master storyteller, and even those who’ve heard this tale before will be
captivated.” —Daily News
“Animal, Vegetable, Miracle is a chronicle of food feats…I’m
inclined to agree with most points Kingsolver makes.” —Chicago Sun-Times
“Kingsolver, who
writes evocatively about our connection to place, does so here with characteristic
glowing prose. She provides the rapture.” —Miami Herald
“Charming…Literary
magic…If you love the narrative voice of Barbara Kingsolver, you will be
thrilled.” —Houston Chronicle
“As satisfying and
complete as a down home supper.” —Tuscon Citizen
“The book is so
jam-packed with information that listeners will want to take notes.” —AudioFile
“I defy anyone to
read this book and walk away from it without gaining at least the desire to
change.” —Bookreporter.com
“Kingsolver elegantly
chronicles a year of back-to-the-land living with her family in
Appalachia…Readers frustrated with the unhealthy, artificial food chain will
take heart and inspiration here.” —Kirkus Reviews
“[Kingsolver’s] tale
is both classy and disarming, substantive and entertaining, earnest and funny.
Kingsolver is a moralist, but more often wry than pious.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“[Kingsolver] records
in detail a year lived in sync with the season’s ebb and flow. Starting with
spring’s first asparagus, summer’s chickens, and the fall’s surfeit of
vegetables, Kingsolver’s family consumes what they and their farming neighbors
produce. Writing with her usual sharp eye for irony, she urges readers to
follow her example and reconnect with their food’s source.” —Booklist
“Faithful, funny, and
thought-provoking…Readers—whether vegetarian or carnivore—will not go hungry,
literally or literarily.” —BookPage
Barbara Kingsolver is the author of more than ten New York Times bestsellers, including works of fiction, poetry, essays, and creative nonfiction. Her work has earned literary awards,
including the National Humanities Medal, our country’s highest honor for service through the arts, as well as the prestigious Dayton Literary Peace Prize for her body of work. She is the founder of
the PEN/Bellwether Prize.
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