VEGETARIANISM: A Way of Life Foreword by Isaac Bashevis Singer

by Dudley Giehl ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 1, 1979

In this general summary of the arguments for vegetarianism, Giehl attacks the by now much-punctured ""protein myth""; traces an alleged link between meat-eating and war (the argument is buttressed with quotations from Plato, the Bible, and the CIA); and reviews the health, environmental, and ethical issues which of late have often been brought to our attention (most ably in Vic Susman's 1978 Vegetarian Alternative). Quotations from famous vegetarians in history, reviews of the status of vegetarianism in world religions, and a roundup of vegetarian organizations in various countries give this the air of an introductory textbook on the subject, but it is clearly the animal rights issue that most interests Giehl and brings out the true believer in him. (Though allowing, in his introduction, for a variety of vegetarian beliefs and diets, he later dismisses mollusk-eaters as ""heretics"" and scorns the view expressed by Peter Singer in Animal Liberation that it is worse to eat eggs and dairy products.) With an introduction by Isaac Bashevis Singer, who gave up meat at the age of 58, this contains much fuel and comfort for the likeminded and none of the hasty misinformation common to recent bandwagon productions. For others, Susman's presentation is more disarming.

Pub Date: June 1, 1979

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Harper & Row

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1979

Categories: NONFICTION