Bestselling book “Eating animals”: A new approach to life without meat
American novelist Jonathan Safran Foer has achieved great success with his latest book. “Eating animals” may well be about to encourage a new generation of vegetarians – most of all those, for whom a meat-free diet has been an occasional habit to this point. Safran Foer is campaigning for awareness that the indifferent mechanisms of the global food industry cannot be bypassed with a half-hearted approach. The work has just been published in English-language paperback and various translations.
 The worldwide success of this book is bound to have many reasons. The 33-year-old, who is mostly known for his debut novel “Everything is illuminated”, is neither trying to be an investigative journalist nor a self-styled moral authority. As in his previous books, Safran Foer opts for mix of various writing styles: on the one hand there is an abundance of facts that pin down the status quo of current industrial meat and fish production – on the other it is a very personal piece of literature, which revolves around a lifelong back and forth of the author himself. This approach kicks the door wide open for non-vegetarians, in a way hardly any other standard work on this topic is able to.
Non-fiction and coming-of-age novel
By doing this, the man once hailed a literary prodigy manages to do quite a few things: he takes the reader on a fascinating and readable life journey while straightening up very commonly sustained delusions on consumption at the same time. As if passing by, essayistic elements fill up a blatant gap in the present discourse of philosophical ethics, in which neither animal rights nor animal welfare maintain a noteworthy place. But also farther reaching effects of the constantly rising meat consumption – such as massive damage caused to the environment – are being talked about here. And fish aren’t excluded either: the harm done by the fishing industry is contrasted with remarkable insight into the behavioural biology of fish.
An inviting read
Safran Foer is not making things easy on himself in this book – much to the advantage of the reader. “Eating animals” has turned out an utterly recommendable, very readable book that delivers more than just food for thought: it is capable of shifting the reader’s perspective. With autumn approaching, this FOUR PAWS book recommendation is an experience, which should be approached without fear, but with plenty of curiosity.
Jonathan Safran Foer: „Eating Animals“, Little, Brown (US) as well as Hamish Hamilton (UK, both Hardback); New Penguin Paperback out now.
03.09.2010
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