Slow Food Revolution: A New Culture for Eating and Living [Hardcover]

Carlo Petrini (Author), Gigi Padovani (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 17, 2006

Founded in Italy in 1986 by charismatic Italian gourmand Carlo Petrini, Slow Food has grown into a phenomenally successful movement against the uniformity and compromised quality of fast food and supermarket chains. With nearly 85,000 members in 45 countries around the world, Slow Food has developed from a small, grassroots group into the most influential gastronomic movement in the world. Known as the "WWF of endangered food and wine," Slow Food not only focuses on a slower, more natural and organic lifestyle that complements nature, but also works to preserve dying culinary traditions, conserve natural biodiversity, and protect fading agricultural practices threatened in this age of mass consumerism. The book takes the reader on a gastronomic journey through the practices and traditions of the world's ethnic cuisines, from the artisanal cheeses of Italy to the oysters of Cape May and the native American turkey. It includes testimonies from Slow Food representatives—such as Alice Waters of Chez Panisse—illustrating exactly what they are doing—and what still needs to be done—to preserve them.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Carlo Petrini is the founder and driving force of Slow Food, and was recently acclaimed as a great innovator in Time magazine's list of "European Heroes." Gigi Padovani is a journalist for La Stampa and the author of Nutella: An Italian Myth.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 312 pages
• Publisher: Rizzoli (October 17, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0847828735
• ISBN-13: 978-0847828739
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 1.5 x 8.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #250,053 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #79 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Agricultural Sciences > Sustainable Agriculture

More About the Author

Carlo Petrini is the founder of the international Slow Food movement, which was established in 1986 and now has more than 70,000 members in 45 countries around the world. Slow Food is committed to celebrating and preserving biological and regional diversity in food, and to promoting taste education, as well as supporting local agriculture and economies in our increasingly homogenous world.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Slow - Slower - Slowest, February 27, 2007

By 

Stephanie Assmann (Sendai, Japan) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Slow Food Revolution: A New Culture for Eating and Living (Hardcover)

The Slow Food Movement is a response to Fast Food and the homogenization of food. The movement seeks to rediscover the conviviality of food, aims to preserve regional cuisines, and addresses agricultural issues. This book offers a good account of the development and the complex structure of Slow Food. The authors clearly lay out the philosophy and objectives of the movement and discuss a variety of food-related topics such as biodiversity, genetically modified food and food in relation to socio-economics. The book is augmented by a well selected bibliography, a glossary and a chronology of the movement. A personal interview with Carlo Petrini, the founder of the Slow Food Movement reveals more about Petrini's own relationship to food and raises controversial issues such as the contribution of Slow Food to the battle against hunger in the world.
However, quotations are sometimes too long and the first two chapters of the book that describe the roots of the movement contain a lot of detailed and excessive information. From chapter 3 onwards, the material gets much richer in content. Terms such as biodiversity and genetically modified food could be explained in more detail. The overall tone sometimes lacks objectivity and the title "Slow Food Revolution" doesn't seem quite adequate for a movement which is growing, but is probably not going to "revolutionize" eating habits. A more detailed discussion of how the philosophy of Slow Food can be integrated into daily life would be useful in this book.
I can recommend the book to anyone who is interested in discovering more about alternative approaches to food. For me it has been an inspiration to reflect upon my personal eating patterns and I've gained some knowledge about nutrition and agriculture. The authors invite their readers to re-think conventional eating habits while highlighting food as a way to experience conviviality and pleasure.

4 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars to much words, May 14, 2007

By 

Carlos Murguia Perez "oso" (Mexico, DF) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Slow Food Revolution: A New Culture for Eating and Living (Hardcover)

Very nice edition, great information, but to many words spoiled, to many useless anectdotes.