the omnivore's dilemma

Between the books you all picked for this week's buzzworthy challenge on food writing and the picks over on Yum's summer reading list, my stomach is growling. I can't wait to read a bunch of these, but I think I'll have to do it with a tall glass of lemonade and a yummy snack nearby. Here were a few of the great picks; after a jump, you can see a widget with all of them.

The $64 Tomato
Subtitled "How One Man Nearly Lost His Sanity, Spent a Fortune, and Endured an Existential Crisis in the Quest for the Perfect Garden," this book was picked by Linda McP, who wrote: "William Alexander narrates the story of his love/hate relationship with his garden and his battle with the forces of nature to grow his own produce. The title comes from his cost-benefit analysis of how much it cost him to grow ONE tomato once the cost of animal traps, Velcro tomato wraps and steel edging for his garden were factored in. But, he concludes that there simply isn't a price tag that can be put on the pleasure of growing fresh garden produce for your own table."

A Thousand Days in Venice
smorzalli picked this intriguing book, and here's what she had to say about it: "This true story of an American chef who leaves behind her life and career to marry an Italian is romantic and full of beautiful descriptions of Venice and food. It also includes recipes for some of the featured dishes!"

Lots more food writing, so read more

The Omnivore's Dilemma was one of last year's most talked about food books and yet it didn't have a single recipe in it. In fact, it didn't have any kitchen tips either. So what was it about and what made it so popular?

Author Michael Pollan uses his tome as a way to explore the way we deal with food, or actually, the way we don't deal with food. As he travels up and down the food chain, it is obvious that he clearly believes our society has become greatly distanced from our food. The meat we purchase in the grocery store is shaped like a slab, not an animal. His disgust at the factory farming industry is very clear and his words are sometimes frightening to digest. Whether you're a full-fledged meat eater or a long-time vegetarian, The Ominvore's Dilemma will definitely make you think twice about how you consume food.

Have any of you read it? If so, what did you think?