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redchippednails's review against another edition
1.0
I originally read this book about a year ago. I had never researched food animal welfare and was mesmerized by the books philosophy and attitude. Unfortunately I felt like I couldn't live up to the books standards of dietary purity and became a lapsed vegan.
Recently I've become more health conscious through my own motives of happiness and wellbeing. Reading other books on Veganism and food politics I can now look back and say that Skinny Bitch's patronizing tone and puritanical diet regime is a horrible way to postulate the Vegan lifestyle. It's advertisement for water fasting and eating nothing but air and fruit for breakfast promotes the myth that all vegans are closeted anorexics. More than that, it promotes such unhealthy practices as normal and cleansing. You can't get skinny by eating vegan alone. Yes, you re far more likely to eat those yummy fruits and veggies that are so good for you, but there are other things like vegan chocolate cake and my beloved peanut butter that will sustain you and keep you going throughout the day. Many of Skinny Bitch's menu options will have you eating less than 1000 calories per day, which is unhealthy even for the strictest of calorie counting diets.
This book hides self-deprivation behind a mask of environmentalism and self-indulgence. Go read How it all Vegan by Tanya Barnard & Sarah Kramer, or The Way We Eat by Singer & Mason and then come talk to me.
Recently I've become more health conscious through my own motives of happiness and wellbeing. Reading other books on Veganism and food politics I can now look back and say that Skinny Bitch's patronizing tone and puritanical diet regime is a horrible way to postulate the Vegan lifestyle. It's advertisement for water fasting and eating nothing but air and fruit for breakfast promotes the myth that all vegans are closeted anorexics. More than that, it promotes such unhealthy practices as normal and cleansing. You can't get skinny by eating vegan alone. Yes, you re far more likely to eat those yummy fruits and veggies that are so good for you, but there are other things like vegan chocolate cake and my beloved peanut butter that will sustain you and keep you going throughout the day. Many of Skinny Bitch's menu options will have you eating less than 1000 calories per day, which is unhealthy even for the strictest of calorie counting diets.
This book hides self-deprivation behind a mask of environmentalism and self-indulgence. Go read How it all Vegan by Tanya Barnard & Sarah Kramer, or The Way We Eat by Singer & Mason and then come talk to me.
skynet666's review against another edition
3.0
Amusing little book by two over the top vegetarians...or vegans, I forget which. It's written in a funny tone and I agree with a lot of what they had to say, but they go overboard in trying to give all the gory details of how animals are slaughtered etc. in an attempt to get you to never want to touch the stuff again. I wish it worked, but I'm can still eat all of it and it doesn't bother me a bit.
heyitstessbridges's review against another edition
1.0
I do not recommend this book. I understand that she is telling her readers to face the facts. But having to quit caffeine, sugar, eat organic only and switch to a vegan diet is a lot to expect someone to do. I understand that too much sugar isn't good, but in moderation makes more sense. I have been a vegan for a month and still finding my groove. I still want to enjoy some things in life. But if I was to convince someone to go vegan I would not suggest this book. Good information, but take this book with caution. It can be a bit graphic in some parts talking about the environmental conditions of some animals.
schinko94's review against another edition
1.0
Normally I wouldn't even give a book like this the time of day, but I recalled it being quite popular when it was released, so I thought I would give it a try.
As expected, it's full of a bunch of nonsense. It gives some good practical advice (stop drinking sugar and diet soda, duh), but you absolutely do not have to eat organic or vegan or vegetarian in order to lose weight. Organic food is expensive, GMO's are not the devil, and you can find an awful lot of vegetarian food that isn't great for you either.
I get what the author was trying to go for--A no-nonsense tone, and some lofty suggestions about what qualifies as healthy eating/exercise. However, it really kind of falls flat. The tone is at times condescending, and this book is certainly not super useful for anyone who isn't a white, middle-class woman.
As expected, it's full of a bunch of nonsense. It gives some good practical advice (stop drinking sugar and diet soda, duh), but you absolutely do not have to eat organic or vegan or vegetarian in order to lose weight. Organic food is expensive, GMO's are not the devil, and you can find an awful lot of vegetarian food that isn't great for you either.
I get what the author was trying to go for--A no-nonsense tone, and some lofty suggestions about what qualifies as healthy eating/exercise. However, it really kind of falls flat. The tone is at times condescending, and this book is certainly not super useful for anyone who isn't a white, middle-class woman.
angyb424's review against another edition
1.0
Eh, never finished it. It's basically telling you to be a vegan and I was put off by it, even though I appreciated their writing style. I can't not eat meat, sorry :P
kam9903's review against another edition
4.0
I could never follow that diet, but I loved reading about it!
ktbug44's review against another edition
4.0
I love that they shed light on the dairy and meat industries.
I love that they didn’t discuss calories or no carbs or any other lame diet fab stuff. They discussed actual ingredients of foods and vitamins and minerals.
I hate that they fat shamed many times and that the suggest menu in the back of the book implies they want you to eat like 1,000 calories a day! Also, they’re obsessed with soy and I’m not sure we need to eat as much as they suggested
also, this book was written 15 years ago...
I love that they didn’t discuss calories or no carbs or any other lame diet fab stuff. They discussed actual ingredients of foods and vitamins and minerals.
I hate that they fat shamed many times and that the suggest menu in the back of the book implies they want you to eat like 1,000 calories a day! Also, they’re obsessed with soy and I’m not sure we need to eat as much as they suggested
also, this book was written 15 years ago...
tenacity's review against another edition
1.0
Already a vegetarian by the time I read this book, I was expecting some compelling evidence for taking the next step and becoming vegan. I applaud these girls for their evident passion in their beliefs, but their preachy boot-camp style 'shouting' I heard from the pages did nothing to sway my attitude. I don't see the point in taking so many food groups from your diet (meat, dairy, sugar) and replacing them with 'fake steak' and other highly processed meat alternatives.
I also question what readers outside of the States get from this book. Aside from the fact the US has completely different food industry regulations, the food lists in the back are completely useless to me here in Australia, as none of the brands are available here.
I also question what readers outside of the States get from this book. Aside from the fact the US has completely different food industry regulations, the food lists in the back are completely useless to me here in Australia, as none of the brands are available here.
vegantrav's review against another edition
5.0
My fellow vegans will love this book. Meat-eaters will, I hope, be convinced to switch to a vegan diet, but they are probably more likely to hate this book or to stop reading it because it makes them uncomfortable.
Initially, the book seems like just another diet/health/fitness book with the the authors pontificating on why sugar and food additives are bad and organic food is good. However, Skinny Bitch is atypical in that the authors write in a very, very conversational tone, and this is definitely not G-rated material. I laughed out loud when, on the very first page, they tell us, "You cannot keep eating the same shit and expect to get skinny." There is also a liberal scattering of "fucks" and "fucking" and other variations of "fuck." But, other than the language, the book does, at first, seem to be a very traditional health and nutrition book.
Then we come to the chapters on meat and dairy and the diatribes against factory farming and modern industrialized agriculture. For those of us in the vegan and animal rights community, there is nothing really new here, but it is ever and always depressing to read again about the vile, despicable manner in which animals are treated. If you've ever read Peter Singer's classic Animal Liberation, you will find that the Skinny Bitch authors give what can be described as a very condensed but highly informative summary of Singer's book, detailing many of the same cruel and abusive practices to which animals are subjected.
The book also provides many resources for vegans: websites, books, lists of non-vegan ingredients that are hiding in various foods.
This is a highly informative book written in a somewhat unusual style, and it is a quick and easy read. (I easily finished it in a day.) If you take the ideas of these authors seriously (and you should), you will not only find yourself living a much healthier lifestyle, but you will also be a better person because you will, hopefully, adopt a vegan diet and thus stop contributing to the vile, horrific treatment of animals.
Initially, the book seems like just another diet/health/fitness book with the the authors pontificating on why sugar and food additives are bad and organic food is good. However, Skinny Bitch is atypical in that the authors write in a very, very conversational tone, and this is definitely not G-rated material. I laughed out loud when, on the very first page, they tell us, "You cannot keep eating the same shit and expect to get skinny." There is also a liberal scattering of "fucks" and "fucking" and other variations of "fuck." But, other than the language, the book does, at first, seem to be a very traditional health and nutrition book.
Then we come to the chapters on meat and dairy and the diatribes against factory farming and modern industrialized agriculture. For those of us in the vegan and animal rights community, there is nothing really new here, but it is ever and always depressing to read again about the vile, despicable manner in which animals are treated. If you've ever read Peter Singer's classic Animal Liberation, you will find that the Skinny Bitch authors give what can be described as a very condensed but highly informative summary of Singer's book, detailing many of the same cruel and abusive practices to which animals are subjected.
The book also provides many resources for vegans: websites, books, lists of non-vegan ingredients that are hiding in various foods.
This is a highly informative book written in a somewhat unusual style, and it is a quick and easy read. (I easily finished it in a day.) If you take the ideas of these authors seriously (and you should), you will not only find yourself living a much healthier lifestyle, but you will also be a better person because you will, hopefully, adopt a vegan diet and thus stop contributing to the vile, horrific treatment of animals.