Just this week I started skimming Skinny Bitch (the original diet book, not the sequel cookbook), and I was shocked at how sensible and how political it was. I've never read a diet book before (for the simple reason that I'm not overweight), but the hype over Skinny Bitch intrigued me, so I put the book on hold at the library months ago.  I was #321 in line and figured I'd never actually get my hands on it, but finally a dog-eared copy made its way to the reserve counter with my name on it.

I thought the book would be ridiculous and mockable. But as I skimmed through the first 45 pages (that's as far as I've gotten), I couldn't believe how sensible the advice/abuse is:  stop smoking, stop drinking all soda, stop consuming sugar substitutes like NutraSweet and Equal, drink green tea instead of coffee, look for wines without sulfites, eat complex carbohydrates, beware the high fructose corn syrup and sugar in virtually all processed foods -- and that's just the beginning. Even more surprising were the pages on the shady, corrupt dealings that lead the FDA to approve aspartame. And the warnings about pesticides. And the strident vegan message, complete with tales of grossness from factory farms. I would have expected none of that from the packaging.  Brilliant branding by Freedman and Barnouin.  

Of course, the writing style is still ridiculous and mockable. A sample:

The first thing you need to do is give up your gross vices. Don't act surprised! You cannot keep eating the same shit and expect to get skinny. Or smoke.  Don't even try some pathetic excuse like, "But if I quit smoking, I'll gain weight." No one wants to hear it. Cigarettes are for losers. They are so 1989 and totally uncool.

But hey: If they're getting people worked up about industrial agriculture and disgusting chemicals in our food, you go, girlz!

Why is bad food writing such a favorite american vice? I live in Northern California in a city with a better farmers market than yours (unless you live in Berkely or San Francisco). I can get things fresh and cheap that you've never even seen. Yet food writing in the US remains focused on calories and morals and is devoid of joy.

The best book on food ever written in english is "The Art of Eating" by the late M.F.K. Fischer She understood what it is about food that fascinates better than anybody else has ever done.

Slow down. A meal shouldn't be hours of slavery for one person and minutes of whining and shoveling for everyone else. Consider making and serving the vegetables first, with some bread and THEN  getting the entree or even preparing it if it's a saute.

If we are going to eat we should damn well sit down and there should be a place for us to sit at that is sacred to that purpose. The kitchen table should be solid enough to work on and easily cleaned for service.

Look, really look at the crap you pile into your shopping cart. Can you actually see any food or are you looking at cardboard, metal and plastic painted shiny food colors? Can you feed yourself for one day without the microwave?

Argueing over the meat vs. vegan option is just stupid when we eat individual meals alone in front of the tv either way. If it all got to your house in a mountain of shrink wrap do you really think it's nourishing you? Are you really going to survive on the pretty recipes in cookbooks when you can't make brown rice without the automatic cooker?

My verdict: more food porn. You'll look at the book and then try four recipes and shelve it. Kama Sutra for vegans, the pictures are interesting but your body won't go there. No I didn't read it; these things are as alike as any two fleas and about as useful.

Next.

Put the Carbon Back