Rio Hondo College Newspaper

El Paisano

Rio Hondo College Newspaper

El Paisano

Rio Hondo College Newspaper

El Paisano

“Eating Animals” intrigues readers in library

American writer, Jonathan Safran Foer’s non-fiction book “Eating Animals”, published in 2009, is an examination of the production of meat products and the effects that eating animals has on animal welfare, our bodies, the environment, and the global starvation rate.
Foer is best known for his earlier books, “Everything Is Illuminated” and “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close”; both which were adapted into films. Although Foer has gained commercial success, his career has been praised and criticized, and “Eating Animals” is no exception, receiving mixed reviews. It is no surprise because the subject matter of eating animals, being vegetarian or vegan is something that is regularly argued about with clear oppositions.
In the book when Foer finds out that he is going to have a child, he becomes very interested in what he, in his opinion, considers healthy or good enough for his future child to consume. With a baby’s wellbeing in mind he begins to research whether a vegetarian or meat eating diet would benefit his child by doing around three years of research of factory farms, slaughterhouses, agricultural methods, and the argument of animal rights and welfare.
“Eating Animals” is very well written, and whether the reader is pro eating animals or opposes it, the book is still entertaining. Although Foer presents his personal views on the matter, he also shows both sides of the arguments dealing with factory farming and slaughterhouses. This book isn’t a PETA PSA; the main focus isn’t just animal welfare and rights.
Within the book there are excerpts of testimonials from people on different sides of the omnivore and herbivore spectrum. This aspect helps show the reader the many opinions and views on the subject rather than just his own.
With such an argument though, I wouldn’t recommend this book to everyone, but I would highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in the pros and cons of eating meat or anyone who has flirted with the idea of become vegetarian or vegan.
“Eating Animals” is available at the Rio Hondo Library.

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