The Family Dinner: Great Ways to Connect with Your Kids, One Meal at a Time [Hardcover]

Laurie David (Author), Kirstin Uhrenholdt (Author), Maryellen Baker (Photographer), Jonathan Safran Foer (Afterword), Dr. Harvey Karp (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 3, 2010

The producer of An Inconvenient Truth, Laurie David's new mission is to help America's overwhelmed families sit down to a Family Dinner, and she provides all the reasons, recipes and fun tools to do so.

Laurie David speaks from her own experience confronting the challenges of raising two teenage girls. Today's parents have lots to deal with and technology is making their job harder than ever. Research has proven that everything we worry about as parents--from drugs to alcohol, promiscuity, to obesity, academic achievement and just good old nutrition--can all be improved by the simple act of eating and talking together around the table.

Laurie has written a practical, inspirational, fun (and, of course, green) guide to the most important hour in any parent's day. Chock-full chapters include: Over seventy-five kid approved fantastic recipes; tips on teaching green values; conversation starters; games to play to help even the shyest family member become engaged; ways to express gratitude; the family dinner after divorce (hint: keep eating together) and much more. Filled with moving memories and advice from the country's experts and teachers, this book will get everyone away from electronic screens and back to the dinner table.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Film and TV producer David (An Inconvenient Truth) enlists more than 50 child-care experts, writers, celebrities, activists, musicians, and chefs--including Nora Ephron, Maya Angelou, Judge Judy, Michael Pollan, Sheryl Crow, and Alice Waters--in support of family mealtime rituals. Mother of two girls, David presents a grab bag of child-friendly ideas from her trial-and-error experiments before and after divorcing actor Larry David: creative table settings; quick weekday meals and leftovers; cooking with kids; table games; reading selections and discussion topics; and ways for divorced parents to establish food traditions. For the recipes, Uhrenholdt draws on her Danish heritage and global flavors. It may take effort to entice young children with artichokes and edamame, most will likely enjoy composting and gardening; while teens may balk at table games, David knows how to snag an audience with viable alternatives to enemies of health and togetherness (TV, computers, cellphones, factory farm–produced foods, soda, plastics, etc.). She tempers her earnest tone with whimsical flourishes (poetry, quotes) and nostalgic reminiscences from contributors. Parents willing to adjust busy schedules to raise healthy, conscious, and confident children will find David's ideas practical and enjoyable, her passion irresistible. (Nov.) (c)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

"The Family Dinner is a great, fun cookbook, but it's so much more than that-- it's an empowering recipe for joy, health and healing." (Dr. Dean Ornish )

"If you can muster the energy for only one tool to raising a healthy family, make it having family dinner. This book will help you make those meals easy, fun, and of lasting impact." (Tom Hanks, Actor, Producer, Dad )

"I, like Laurie, truly believe in the sanctity of the evening meal and the health benefits of sitting down and eating together are the cherry on the top!" (Dr. Philip Landrigan, Dean for global health, Mount Sinai School of Medicine )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Grand Central Life & Style; 1st ed edition (November 3, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446565466
• ISBN-13: 978-0446565462
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 1 x 10.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (67 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #26,870 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #33 in Books > Parenting & Relationships > Family Activities

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Family Dinner, October 19, 2010

By 

Jill Hansen - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Family Dinner: Great Ways to Connect with Your Kids, One Meal at a Time (Hardcover)

This book is a Home Run for anyone trying to get their kids to eat better (and with less meat). My teenagers ate the black bean burgers after complaining "it wasn't a burger" and actually asked for seconds! This is so much more than a cookbook, it is a guide about how to have more fun with your kids and make dinners something to look forward to. I personally like the gratitude section in the book where everyone goes around the table and says what they are grateful for. The pet peeve and idiosyncrasy game Laurie suggests can be a real eye opener about the people you know and love! I would highly recommend this book to anyone with kids or grandkids.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must have book.... in every kitchen... and around the table..., October 28, 2010

By 

Sylvie S - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Family Dinner: Great Ways to Connect with Your Kids, One Meal at a Time (Hardcover)

This book is one of a kind.... Not the kind that sits on the shelf but the one that will be passed around the table... The one that will get dirty by being around the kitchen.. The one that could finally break the ice and teach that food is not your enemy... Embrace the simplicity of it and have fun with it!!
I know what I'll be giving for Christmas!!! Thanks Kirstin and Laurie.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars No more solitary grazing at odd hours, October 16, 2010

By 

Monina - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Family Dinner: Great Ways to Connect with Your Kids, One Meal at a Time (Hardcover)

"The Family Dinner" should be number ONE on any bridal registration list. And, search no further, it is also the best present for a baby shower. You can even give a copy to the grandparents. This cook book works for all ages. It is informative, easy to use, fun to browse, bursting with healthy recipes and original tips. Furthermore, if you are looking for advice on a good divorce, check out page 188.
As the French say: "à table!"...this book will bring everyone to the table...and make them stay there...the family dinner matters.