In Defense of Food

An Eater's Manifesto

By: Michael Pollan

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 6 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

#1 New York Times Bestseller from the author of This is Your Mind on Plants, How to Change Your Mind, The Omnivore's Dilemma, and Food Rules

Food. There's plenty of it around, and we all love to eat it. So why should anyone need to defend it?

Because in the so-called Western diet, food has been replaced by nutrients, and common sense by confusion—most of what we’re consuming today is longer the product of nature but of food science. The result is what Michael Pollan calls the American Paradox: The more we worry about nutrition, the less healthy we see to become. With In Defense of Food, Pollan proposes a new (and very old) answer to the question of what we should eat that comes down to seven simple but liberating words: "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." Pollan’s bracing and eloquent manifesto shows us how we can start making thoughtful food choices that will enrich our lives, enlarge our sense of what it means to be healthy, and bring pleasure back to eating.

©2008 Michael Pollan (P)2008 Penguin Audiobooks

Critic reviews

"Michael Pollan [is the] designated repository for the nation's food conscience."—Frank Bruni, The New York Times

"In this slim, remarkable volume, Pollan builds a convincing case not only against that steak dinner but against the entire Western diet."—The Washington Post

"A tough, witty, cogent rebuttal to the proposition that food can be reduced to its nutritional components without the loss of something essential . . . [a] lively, invaluable book."—Janet Maslin, The New York Times

Still compelling 10 years on

This book was suggested to me by step father. I was skeptical. It was published nearly 10 years ago. Our culture sells the notion that eating advice is constantly evolving. This book challenges that notion and cuts through the noise. The recommendations are easy to remember. Bon appetite!

Good book boring reader

As usual Pollan writes a meticulously researched book that is both engaging and thought provoking. The reader, while competently and clearly articulating, doesn't seem to personally connect with the material. .

great

great listen. really makes you question the way you have thought about food. will be changing my eating habits

A must read

Excellent book with a vision of balance in regards to food and health. Very simple concepts that have been forgotten by our culture. I think this is a must read for every person struggling with weight, diabetes, heart disease and other health problems, but also for everybody who would like to be reminded of simpler times in terms of food and wants to maintain a healthy, balanced lifestyle without depriving him/herself from the pleasures of real food. This is one of the best books I’ve read that touches this topic so truthfully and with a transparent point of view, without incentives to become a current trend. Absolutely amazing! Thank you to Michael Pollan for all this research and for such a well-written book!

Timeless Truths

This is the second book I’ve read by Pollan and he has a way of making the complex simple. In this book, I appreciate his timeless approach to food, and the depth of data he includes, while also making the content interesting. It sometimes went a little deeper into the scientific than some would probably enjoy, but I like those things, and I think he did it in an entertaining way.

The performance was good. I did listen at a faster pace, which might skew my view of that slightly, but overall, it was well done.

Great food for thought!

This nutrition author asks such vital and interesting questions of his reader!! I’ve learned so much!! And I love the narrator, too!! I’m going to find more books by this author to listen to!!

pretty good. .

Good Ideas, well written.
Gets a little repetitive at times. Especially since many of the points that are raised should be obvious to most people.

practical

Loved the guidance it gave on how to eat and what to eat. After reading I know went to make a garden to grow in my appreciation of my food.

Loved the book, but not the narrator!

I found the book extremely informative and thoughtful. It has completely revised my approach to food. However, I found the narrator’s voice to be sarcastic and judgemental in tone. At times I had to tune out his intrusive tine in order to absorb the words and information. A different narrator would greatly improve this audible book.

Voice actor is super annoying

Great book! But this actor clearly thinks he’s in a Shakespeare play, complete with vaguely British fake accent. So distracting.