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Veganist: Lose Weight, Get Healthy, Change The World (2011)

by Kathy Freston(Favorite Author)

3.74 of 5 Votes: 1

ISBN

1602861331 (ISBN13: 9781602861336)

languge

English

genre

Memoir & Autobiography

publisher

Weinstein Publishing

review 1: "Who's the audience?" I ask in my best Maddie Hayes impression. This book presents a conundrum of sorts: This book is best meant to convert people to the lifestyle, but a name like "veganist" is only going to attract people who already believe in the lifestyle or are already sympathetic. In the rare instance it attracts the curious, it may be very understandable but it is far too preachy; the entire book is an argument for veganism and not the best one at that.Some might find it a good thing that it is so focused on her "ten promises" for veganism, ranging from health to ethics in its reasoning. The downside with attracting bigger audiences is that this book cannot help you much in the way of converting to the lifestyle (the one good point she makes in the book I can put h... moreere: through her disclosure of her own journey, she emphasizes that it doesn't have to be all-or-nothing but a slow conversion, as hers took place over several years). This is not to say she has no information on handling conversion. She has a small chapter with a few hints at the end and a menu plans/shopping guide. However, I hated these things as they were very region specific (she mentions specific products or shopping at particular chains that may be widely available in the US; all I know is it is not available here, therefore not helpful to me and I cannot comment on its primary region). As well, I didn't think the generic (not product specific) suggestions were all that creative.Largely, I must say she is quoting the same propaganda as everyone else, even the same experts, so I found the information tiring. As well, it is a weak argument for being so one-sided: she presents information with no acknowledgement of the other side or conflicting information, nor does she necessarily present long-term solutions (I tirelessly always must make the same argument: once we end unethical factory farming, what happens to these animals that no longer have a niche in the wild nor survival skills?)I am not saying it is a n entirely bad book; it's not. It is just nauseatingly preachy and I don't see it has having wide appeal (I believe the people it will appeal to, well, you don't need to preach to the converted). However, due to lack of audience and bad marketing (a different name and/or styling/sizing of the subtitle would have helped), I can completely see why I picked it up on a clearance table.
review 2: I'm about halfway into this and have read more than enough to know what I think of the book.This might seem like a good, accessible, and quickly-readable (but -very- shallow) overview of the issues that prompt folks to go vegan, but I take issue with it for several reasons.First, she makes unrealistic promises about weight loss. Veganism is not a magic get-out-of-calories-free card and eating vegan will NOT guarantee you to lose weight at all, much less rapidly and effortlessly, as the author repeatedly states. She does at least acknowledge vegan junk food and caution against excessive refined carbohydrates, but she fails to acknowledge the extent to which our genetics and other external factors play into weight. She edges dangerously into the territory of fat shaming or at least implying that all people who make good food choices will naturally and effortlessly have socially sanctioned bodies and be in good health.Second, she makes overstated health claims, particularly with respect to preventing or even curing cancer. Yes, a vegan diet will generally reduce cancer odds, but there is no such thing as immunity; vegans can and do get and die from cancer. Fortunately, she very clearly makes a point of saying she is -NOT- blaming anyone for disease (in direct contrast to the nasty and infuriating implications in Skinny Bitch, which I despise, but that's another rant...).Finally, she fails to back up many health, nutrition, environmental, and scientific claims with citations. Many of the things she notes may well be entirely accurate, but failing to cite good research undercuts / weakens the case. Also, when she presents controversial or unsubstantiated claims as fact, I believe this is particularly detrimental because folks who are swayed by that information may very well do a 180 when they find contradictory information ("if that's not true, is any of this?") or realize her claims cannot be well-substantiated. less

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