Top 10 Books for Earth Day
Greenberg investigate the four fish that account for the largest portion of American’s seafood diet: salmon, sea bass, cod, and tuna. As he discovers how we have gone from an entirely wild fish population to a fish supply that is both wild and farmed, readers will discover interesting facts about these seemingly simple fish. The consequences of overfishing, the global fish market, and the health of our oceans are all skillfully explored. A compelling read, this book will give everyone something to think about at the Friday Fish Fry.
To fulfill a lifelong dream, Alexander build a backyard garden and orchard. In the ensuing months, he battled the elements, wildlife, pesky neighbors, and his own physical limitations to produce food for his family. After doing the math, he realized that each tomato cost him $64. This book is for anyone who has tried to grow a garden and found the frustration, sweat, and tears to be overwhelming. A good read for city slickers and suburbanites who shudder at the thought of growing their own food.
Hamilton profiles three different farmers and the ways they are resisting agribusiness. These families, include dairy farmers, ranchers, and a farmer who does something truly radical: he grows food for his family first and the market later. Hamilton allows these farmers to become fully realized characters that help to illustrate the value in small scale agriculture and the challenges facing the small family farm. Of particular interest to Wisconsinites, she profiles a Texan member of the Wisconsin based Cooperative Regions of Organic Producer Pools. At the end of this book, readers will not only have learned something about the struggles of farming, but will have come to care for these three families.
Hayes defines a radical homemaker as someone who structures their life in order to honor ecological sustainability, social justice, community engagement, and family well-being. This book explores the rise of this movement, by people from all walks of life finding ways to take back their lives and local economies. Included are stories of growing and preserving your own food, local meat production, and a multitude of other ways to change one’s life. The book also explores the historical and theoretical basis of this movement. This is a fascinating read for anyone looking to slow down, engage, and change their lives—and the world.
Josh, an ad exec and bestselling author, and his partner Brent, physician and vice president of Martha Stewart Omnimedia, stumble upon a beautiful 19th century mansion on a weekend trip. Instantly smitten, they decide to buy the place—and the farm that comes attached. As they struggle to learn the intricacies of farm life, these two must also struggle with a long-distance relationship, money troubles, and a herd of goats. The writing is superb, and by the end you will feel just as invested in the Beekman Mansion and Farm as the owners.
Long an eco-minded writer, Kingsolver and her family decide to move to a rural Appalachian farm and eat only food they or their neighbors grow. This raises some serious questions: can a family of four survive a winter on root vegetables and canned goods? Does Kingsolver have the strength to kill her chickens? Is it worth it to go without coffee for a full year? These questions have sweet, often surprising answers. Complemented by recipes and essays from her husband and oldest daughter, this book looks at one family’s attempts to walk the walk of food activists.
Before he devised rules for eating, Pollan was a gardener with a keen sense of history and place. He traces the histories of four plants: the apple, the tulip, marijuana, and the potato. Through these histories, he shows us both how humans shape plant life and how plants shape humanity. Both informative, sweet, funny and fascinating, Botany of Desire is one of Pollan’s best.
The town of Hardwick, Vermont is like many towns in rural America: poor, abandoned by manufacturers, with a declining population. However, a group of local farmers are creating a vibrant business industry around local food. Hewitt investigates the many ways local farmers, chefs, and businesspeople are taking advantage of the local and organic food movements to revitalize this small town. Hewitt acknowledges that some aren’t wild about the movement and don’t think it is a great boon for the town, but he has an obvious bias. As a model for future food movements and markets, Hardwick is an interesting example and this book is a good read for anyone who cares where their food comes from—and who it affects.
Novella and her boyfriend move to Oakland, CA and find themselves living in a rough and tumble neighborhood populated by drug dealers, the homeless, and a Buddhist monastery. In the midst of this, Novella turns an abandoned lot into a true urban farm, with gardens, chickens, ducks, geese, rabbits, and even pigs. The idea of urban farming may not be new, but Novella’s adventures are so sweet and funny that it is easy to see how this hard, strange lifestyle is attractive to so many.
In short but literary passages, Leopold describes nature in Wisconsin month by month. Some editions of this book are beautifully illustrated. Leopold worked as a forester and became a professor at UW. This is a classic that started the environmental movement.