Born in Kentucky in 1955, Kingsolver is a well recognized author who has won several awards such as the Bellwether Prize for Fiction and the National Humanities Medal. She has published many successful books such as The Poisonwood Bible, Prodigal Summer, and The Lacuna. She currently resides with her family on a farm in southern Appalachia.
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle is a book with a very interesting layout. Barbara Kingsolver tells the main story about her families struggles and triumphs that came with achieving their "year of local" nutrition goal. Between witty narrative Kingsolver provides the reader with her personal research and insights on specific vegetables, food marketing tricks and rules to a farmer's lifestyle.
Her husband, Steven L. Hopp inserts short essays about the political and environmental education of eating local. Hopp gives dozens of resources where interested readers can find out more information on the subject at hand.
Kingsolver's daughter, Camille also contributes to the book by including essays from a millennial's point of view on eating local and helping out on the family farm. She also includes delightful recipes and sample menus for each vegetable in its' season.
The three points of view blend beautifully into one thick book of valuable information on everything from gardening to cheese making. In fact, there were several times where I caught myself taking notes on all the information I was learning through this book.
I loved the fact that Animal, Vegetable, Miracle covers everything a person can need to learn more about organic eating and shopping local for groceries. From the practical day-to-day experiences of what a local diet looks like to the research that backs up and supports the families reasons for making this commitment, I learned how achievable a goal like this can be, even for a young adult such as myself.
When I was about half way through the book, I got the urge to watch the popular documentary, Food, Inc. I was pleasantly surprised to find that everything I had been reading in Animal, Vegetable, Miracle lined up perfectly with the research presented in Food, Inc. This reassured me that the research was steady and the actions were compliable. In fact, I recommend watching the documentary with the book if you read it.
Overall I feel that this book helped me achieve a new way of thinking about how I eat. It isn't about being an environmentalist or cursing meat, and it's definitely not about slamming the government and living in a dirt house. Animal, Vegetable, Miracle is about learning the process of food from the farm to your plate, and appreciating your meals for what they are rather than paying five bucks for a cardboard burger you scarf down and never stop to ask what it is or where it came from.
Although Kingsolver was speaking of food when she explained this, I have learned to see it apply to every purchase I make. Take Christmas for example. I bought 90% of my gifts via Etsy, so I could support other artists like myself. Every gift I bought came handmade from someone trying to make a living doing creative things. By supporting these individuals I voted yes to personal businesses, no to mass produced good and yes to more art and independent artists. What we spend our time and money on does make a stand for something. Find out what you are voting for when you chose to swipe your card at your grocery store or favorite restaurant. You just may be inspired to make a positive change in your lifestyle, which will make a positive change in your local economy, and ultimately leave a ripple of hope in the world.
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