The Value of Nothing [Hardcover]

Raj Patel (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins Canada (2010)
• ISBN-10: 1554686229
• ISBN-13: 978-1554686223
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.7 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,929,223 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

RAJ PATEL is a Fellow at the Institute for Food and Development Policy (also known as Food First), a leading food think tank, and a visiting scholar at the UC Berkeley Center for African Studies. He has written for the Los Angeles Times, The Guardian and The Observer, is a regular contributor to NPR and independent media outlets, and though he has worked for the World Bank, WTO and the UN, he's also been tear-gassed on four continents protesting them. Visit his website at www.rajpatel.org

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Stimulates thinking and evaluating, February 11, 2011

By 

Doris E. Reichert "Whatawonderful worldit cou... (Hawaii) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Value of Nothing (Hardcover)

Some good points in the book but I do not agree with everything he writes.
Oh yes I would give the book to my Grandchild and then start to discuss about it.
I find the book has too many examples,"verzettelt" therefore a bit confusing, and too one-sided to prove his point.
Overall: Too much to the left, yet a good and valuable book to read.

1 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing Read, April 2, 2010

By 

Graham White "Graham" (Glenboro, Manitoba, Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Value of Nothing (Hardcover)

I watched the author speak about this book on a morning Canadian TV show and it sounded interesting, so I bought it. In the interview he mentioned how a Big Mac, after adding in all the hidden costs relating to the energy and pollution costs from cow to table, is actually around $200. This part is covered in a few short pages in the book. He mentions that "Pesticide contamination, nutrient runoff and greenhouse gas emissions are compounding the environmental debt of industrialised agriculture" and I agree. This argument is expanded on somewhat. He tells the interesting story of the Volkswagen share price defying gravity during the recent economic meltdown, causing short sellers to panic and endure great losses. However,in its entirity the book is far too academic and philosophical for the average reader, in my opinion. It does make some interesting points but takes too long to make many of them.