Veganism Books

This book is a short but sweet introduction into becoming a vegan. It gives valuable information on the moral and health reasons for changing your lifestyle to the vegan lifestyle. The author gives good advice on how to explain to your relatives and friends your decision to change your lifestyle to veganism. It explores different types of vegetarian lifestyles as well as exploring the vegan lifestyle. A valuable "Where to go for help" section is included in the back of the book. This includes places to find food and clothing for the vegan. A few recipes are included in the book also. This book can be read in a short time and is easily understood.

A present-day Texas school district has a troublemaker on its hands. Fredrika Murchison-Kowalski, or Freddie for short, is a vegan and believes strongly in liberating animals, but she goes too far when she nearly burns down the school's football stadium trying to liberate the bull mascot. She is quickly shipped back to her native Chicago where she must live with her grandfather and her cousin Hans-Peter. They live in a traditional Eastern European neighborhood with lots of sausage, pets, and fur. On top of that her grandfather, or Opa, owns a deli/butcher shop where Freddie is forced to work. She is re-admitted into the prestigious Peshtigo School of Chicago. Her cousin desperately wants to get into the school because of its wonderful paleontology program. The vegan and the carnivore must learn to live in harmony to achieve both their goals.

The book was good and it presented two good arguments. I couldn't decide which I agreed with since I am a vegetarian but I am not a vegan. I also saw the culture involved with the meats eaten by the Polish. The book was written in a light, moving style and it did not dwell on any one thing for too long. I enjoyed the two points of view of both characters and some of the hilarity of Freddie's activism. It was a bit simple and not really too developed but it contained some really funny parts and some very true arguments. If you enjoy both giggles and gasping, you'll like this book. From being chased by bees to the emancipation of frogs to an accidental severing, this book certainly earns a `funny mark'.

Reviewed by a student for Flamingnet Book Reviews
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Preteen, teen, and young adult book reviews and recommendations

A great short introduction to veganism though i would suggest that you consult other books if you were wanting indepth information on any subject relating to veganism. The nutrition section needs some work, especially relating to certain nutrients but otherwise i think this is great as it covers the main reasons people decide not to support the animal industries and it is factually based.

If you are GENUINELY ready to lose weight or get healthy, you will love this book. This book is hilarious, and is written in a satirical girl-talk language that is designed to work on the insecure (but powerful) psychology of women. Especially self-loathing women. I bought the book 2 days ago, and I've already lost 5 pounds! This is 99% water and poo (there's a whole chapter on poo), but it's a start. They explain nutrition in an easy-to-digest (no pun intended) way that is relevent to young women. Loved it!!

I still have not received the item and it has been over a month. About 10 days ago I notified the seller and they did reply but had I not sent them a message I would have never heard from them. For all I know the item had been lost in the mail. I am very dissatisfied with the whole thing. I should have bought it from Amazon rather than an independant seller.

This book is basically a peta pamphlet cleverly disguised as a diet book. There is some good information on how to become a vegetarian, and good reasons to avoid meat and dairy products, but becoming a vegetarian (while it may be healthier) does not seem to have any weight loss effect. After reading the book I really wanted to see if it could work and stuck to only "Skinny Bitch" approved foods - after several weeks no difference whatsoever. It also bothered me that the book protests the cruelty of animals but seems to have no problem with the abuse of its readers. You will loose more self esteem from reading this book than you will weight. If you want to eat healthier, become a vegetarian and discover new ways to hate yourself, then this is the book for you, but don't buy it expecting to loose any weight.

Opens your eyes to what they put in food products and why you can't lose weight without knowing.

'Skinny Bitch'. I would not have guessed by the title that this was a book written by a couple of vegans, but I loved it! I have no problem with the language, being a foul-mouthed former Army chick myself. In fact, I loved the way they insulted my fat, disgusting *ss! Everything they write is the truth about the sick way I've been treating my body. As for veganism, having fallen off the wagon after 10 years of being a vegetarian, it was just the inspiration I needed to jump back on. The recipes were all foods that I enjoyed as a vegetarian, and reminded me that I really won't miss nasty, putrid flesh after a couple of weeks. Everyone who consumes animal products should read the chapter on factory farming. If you think it's too graphic and difficult to stomach, TOO BAD!! That's the reality of what you are doing to animals, yourself and the planet. In summary, this book excited me about getting healthy. I like the attitude with which it was presented. If I have one complaint, it is that processed vegan foods should be used sparingly, rather than as dietary staples. I would recommend this book to anyone who is concerned with having a healthy body, clean conscience and liveable planet.

This is an absolutely fantastic book. At first I was turned off by his description of the logical thought process that leads to the conclusion that cats can and should be vegan, because it seemed like he was talking down to me. But then I grew to like his simple, lay-man's descriptions and explanations - the detail that he spells things out to proves irrefutably that he is right and has thoroughly taken everything into consideration.

It's a short book, and is entertaining as well. I sometimes like to go back and read several pages again from time to time because I just love the comical yet convincing way in which he presents his arguments - it's Fantastic!!

I picked up this book originally simply because I don't just believe hearsay, I must be given and argument that I feel is worth my time. I was apprehensive, as would be expected. Why do people go about spewing information that they simply heard from somebody that is not an expert? While Gillen is not a DVM, he sells vegan cat food for a living and at this point in time probably has many cats living with him. Note: Living. They are vegans (or mostly, considering the story of his male cat with ailments unable to be treated at the time he wrote the book.) and ALIVE. Seems as though this guy might have some experience, rather than just one observation of a cat chasing a feather on a stick therefore leading one to the conclusion it is a vicious carnivore that can only be sated with meat.

I once believed that cats were doomed to eat meat forever, and so I have been reluctant to adopt one myself. Yes, I would not have a cat simply because I cannot support even the smallest corners of the slaughterhouses. Now I'm convinced that I can save a kitten's life and farmed animals as well.

I highly recommend this book to all vegans, all pet-lovers, and especially those vegan pet lovers that are still sitting on the fence. This book even sites PURINA for an argument pro-vegetarian cat food.

Also, vegans, why isn't your dog a vegan yet? That's not even worth writing a book about. Dogs make better vegans than humans because they don't complain and their food is already balanced to be healthy. If you're a vegan, your dog can be too, it doesn't make sense otherwise. I don't have a vegan dog, but I know a couple, and they have better breath too. ;)

There's a great deal of preaching but very little science in this book. Mr. Gillen cannot cite a single controlled study that conclusively demonstrates that a vegetarian (or vegan) diet supplemented with additives (taurine, in this case) is safe and healthy for cats. While it is possible with the correct knowledge and ingredients to formulate a diet for cats that excludes meat products, in the hands of a careless or uninformed person such an attempt will only lead to illness, blindness and an early death for a cat.

Mr. Gillen makes quite an issue of the fact that his stand on vegetarianism is a moral decision. For a moral choice to be genuine, it must be voluntary, and it appears that Mr. Gillen has yet to find a cat that has made the same moral choice he has. Forcing an animal with over fifteen million years of carnivorous evolutionary behavior built into its system to accept a diet that is completely unnatural to its physiology is is no moral triumph; it's simply another instance of anthropocentric totalitarianism - of trying to make animals more like US because WE believe we're the inherently superior organism.

Mr. Gillen would serve the ecosystem better if he would concentrate his efforts solely toward humans, and leave the smaller animals to make their own moral decisions.

Overall, this is probably the best psychotherapy book around for Vegans who need to redirect their frustrations from humans (who have a choice in their eating ethics) to their pets (who don't). Jed has written a reasonably sound guide that enables any conscientious food-fascist to coerce his or her pet into accepting meals that they would never even SNIFF if they were given a choice.

If you harbor a need to bully a helpless animal into accepting a completely unnatural diet in order to compensate for your feelings of inadequacy at being unable to convince anyone else in your life of the superiority of the Vegan lifestyle, this is the book you've been waiting for.

.. and he or she will tell you that cats are indeed obligate carnivores. I wholeheartedly agree with the reasoned points in the review titled "Well-intentioned but wrong-headed" (or something to that effect): while vegans (and vegetarians) may be conflicted about feeding meat to their cats, you are doing your cat/s a great disservice by depriving them of meat. Supplementing a cat's vegan diet with taurine will still not address their nutritional needs: cats need a very high-protein (animal protein), low carbohydrate diet, and a vegan diet cannot provide this, even when supplemented with taurine. I am no fan of factory-farming, and am a strict vegetarian, but compromising a cat's health is not an acceptable form of protest against the pet food- and meat-production industries. I'd recommend purchasing free-range organic meat and preparing your own cat food (see "The Natural Cat" for recipes), rather than depriving cats of the animal protein they must have in order to be healthy. That our cats need meat is an uncomfortable contradiction for vegetarian/vegan cat owners, but given the incredible problems with cat overpopulation, abuse, and neglect in this country, I believe taking in, and caring well for cats is the ethical choice, even if they need to eat meat.

Skinny Bitch in a Box
I could really do with out the Robin Williams unplugged version but certainly understand it is used for effect. I can not get it to play on my home computer nor my dc player so I am left to try to get as close to my speakers at work to hear it. I have tried a couple recipes and they are tasty.
I suggest reading Thanking the Monkey by Karen Dawn and Speaking Up for Animals by Kim Smallwood.

These girls don't hold anything back! it's the Tell All book of all Tell all Books!!! This book is about how we all should be living. It's a Must read. & Very easy to read in REAL language not some doctors or high mighty person in there language that you'll need a dictionary to understand.

If you can get passed the swear words there are some enlightening bits of information about the U.S.'s food sources in this book. It's worth the read and it makes you think twice when you go grocery shopping. I recommend it. Also some great, simple recipes in 'Skinny B*&% in The Kitchen'.

I am not surprised at those who have trashed this book. This book is well written and researched. All of the facts/studies are referenced. The book is written in a "in your face" way to get you mad, and to question our government. It does advocate going veg, but it also gives advice to those who want to keep eating meat. If you care about your health, and the health of others...READ THIS BOOK. Get over the fact that there is "potty language" in the book. It's called "Skinny Bitch"! Did you really think that the language would be all hearts and flowers?

I never expected to be so moved. Meat-eaters will, of course, feel personally threatened by this book. Relax. Read. Learn. Thank you for a fabulous book!