Customer Reviews

The Vegan Sourcebook (Sourcebooks)

5 star:		(53)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The cover-page promises that Joanne Stepaniak will tell "Everything you need to know about Vegan Ethics and Lifestyle Choices, Social Environmental and Psychological Perspectives, Household and Personal Care Products, Nutritional Guidelines, Recipes, Menus, and Substitutions, Resources, Organizations, and Publications." And it keeps every promise. The breadth of topics and issues it covers, joined with its thoughtful and penetrating review of vegan values, goals and principles, make this a milestone in books about veganism. Many books on this subject focus narrowly on eating exclusively plant foods. This creates the impression that veganism is just a regimen for people whose urgent concerns about their health lead them to adopt a strict vegetarian diet. From this narrow viewpoint, it is the choice of foods that defines and motivates veganism. While Stepaniak confirms diet as an essential element of vegan living, she holds fast to a much broader, deeper and more meaningful perspective. She presents veganism as a wide-reaching *lifestyle,* and characterizes her book as being about "living with conscience, conviction and compassion." The book is not limited to "why" a vegan lifestyle is such a benevolent force in the world. It provides an abundance of practical information on "how to" succeed in dealing with the concrete, day-to-day issues of vegan living. It deals as well with the more subtle-- and profound-- challenges of social interactions in a culture that shows little commitment to full-scale compassion for animals *or* for humans. Indeed, according to Stepaniak, vegan concerns with the alleviation of suffering and the display of gentle respect for living creatures must apply to *all* forms of sensate life... *including* our fellow humans. To hear her elaborate the principles of universal compassion in a gentle, kind voice that is totally lacking in strident, punitive and judgmental overtones, is to observe --in action-- the principles she is advocating. Her concerns for healthy, happy, gratifying living are further manifested in the chapters on food, where Virginia Messina, M.P.H., R.D. contributes an important section on vegan nutrition. Stepaniak provides menus for feeding grown-ups, teen-agers and toddlers, and offers fifty-two pages of her typically imaginative and delicious recipes. This book is a treasure-- a comprehensive source of information, inspiration and support for long-time vegans as well as for newcomers.

When my wife and I decided to go vegetarian in early April, 2001, we really had no plans on cutting out all animal products from our diets (eggs, animal milk, dairy cheese, etc.), but after reading more than one of Joanne Stepaniak's books, we committed to the more extreme step just days after we became vegetarians.

Who is Joanne Stepaniak, you ask? After writing at least a half dozen excellent Vegan cookbooks, and now authoring this unique sourcebook (I don't think there are any such others), Stepaniak has become one of America's most famous and authoritative Vegans. And with good reason! This impressively comprehensive survey should be subtitled "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Veganism ... But Were Afraid to Ask" and it's an amazing and engrossing read for Vegans and non-Vegans alike; I should know -- when I started on Page 1 I was not a Vegan ... well before I finished the book, I was.

Stepaniak covers the entire gamut of Veganism from the elimination of animal flesh and products from our diet (for health reasons, for environmental reasons, for moral reasons) to the total elimination of animal byproducts in other areas of our lives. But Stepaniak is also a realist who repeatedly recognizes the futility of taking such an ethic too far -- and she continually reminds her readers to see the forest for the trees (a refreshing characteristic sadly lacking in similar literature). And never for a moment did I detect any aggressive proselytizing, any holier-than-thou attitude, unlike other books on similar topics. Stepaniak's greatest trait is her ability to balance compelling arguments with gentle compassion and understanding and this is evident on every page.

To anyone interested in improving life on this planet, including their own, I can't recommend this book more highly.

I've been Vegan now for aprox. 2 months; during this time I've read about half a dozen books and numerous articles. This is by far the best book I've read so far!!! Let me explain:
Being new to Veganism is confusing as well as exciting, problem is, you have to search a lot to find answers, recipes etc..
Jo goes over all the essentials in her book starting out with what Vegan means, outlining out the origin when the Vegan society began and how it evolved into today's Veganism.
Also, she goes into WHY ingredients like milk,eggs, honey, etc.. are damaging. As well as how environmental issues affect animals as well as humans. Tough issues such as vivisection, zoos, circuses, experimentation, testing, etc.. are covered and well explained. A tough issue for me is career choices, she goes into a lot of the issues we all can and probably will experience as vegans.
The nutritional charts are an incredible resource, so many new Vegans (including myself) are dealing with the issue of "Am I getting enough protien..calcium...iron..etc...) Well, perfect book for you right here!!! I reference it almost daily.
Theres recipes and meal planning too! Vegan code of ethics, as well as AHISMA and what it means. It's obvious from this book as well as how much activism that Jo believes and cares about what she does. How we can see where we are and why "spherical compassion" is different from what we might think compassion means. I totally recommend this bookfor anyone as a good starting point for Veganism or even if you've been a Vegan for years you will DEFINATELY benefit from this book.

"The Vegan Sourcebook" is a thoroughly-researched and well-presented argument for eliminating meat, dairy, and eggs from the human diet and a persuasive appeal for each of us to try to live on this earth while making as little impact on other species and the environment as we can. In addition to the inventive, varied, and healthful recipes, the author details many inhumane processes which result in the foods and consumer products--many of them seemingly animal-free--which most of us bring home every time we go shopping. What surprised me most upon reading this book and discussing it with my 81-year-old grandmother is the amount of information my Grams already knew about our food supply. Why is it that, at nearly forty years of age, much of what I found shocking in this book was news to me? Apparently, the agri-businesses (and others) have been fairly successful in keeping much of what they do to produce our food a deep, dark secret. Vegan or vegetarian or meat-eater, all readers will find much of value within the covers of this book.

Having had a difficult couple of years since my son was born and my husband left me, I was living as a vegan on "autopilot" but no longer had that feeling of passion for the subject that I used to. In fact, when people asked why I don't use dairy products, I would mumble something vague, so lost in my other worries had my veganism become.

_The_Vegan_Sourcebook_ has got me feeling inspired again. In an intelligent, compassionate way, she neatly summarizes all of the problems with animal products--the cruelties done to the animals, the environmental devastation, the oppression of the human workers on factory farms and in slaughterhouses (a subject omitted from many other vegan books), and the damage to health. Not only does she discuss the negatives of animal products, she emphasizes the positives of veganism, with inspiring quotes from a diverse array of vegans which really humanize the vegan movement.

The nutrition section by Virginia Messina is positive but realistic, with all the information you need to plan a sound vegan diet for yourself and your family (though I would have prefered more emphasis on the importance of breastfeeding). This is a book that vegans will want to refer to again and again, and show to their nonvegan family members, friends, and health professionals.

I have been a vegetarian for 10 years but said many times that I would never become vegan. I didn't see why I should, it just seemed too extreme when being vegetarian was beneficial enough to animals, right? A friend recommended this book to me, and after reading just a few chapters I was enlightened. I had no idea the dairy industry was just as cruel as the meat industry, or that the meat industry even gets its low-grade chicken and beef from the dairy farms. I immediately transitioned into vegan, and it's not something that I regret. I can't look at eggs the same way!

Aside from the background information on the various animal industries, the information included in this book is priceless. It covers everything from how veganism started to "hidden" animal by-products, to living compassionately even when you have unwanted pests (rodents and insects!). This is the #1 source you'll want if anyone ever gives you a hard time about being vegan!

Note that you shouldn't read this if you're dead set in your ways and don't want to know the grim truth about the meat and dairy industries.

I saw this book in a store and happened to take it home. A semi-vegetarian and huge dairy-lover, I had been toying with the idea of going vegan for years, but never really meant to do it. I thought this book would give me ideas on how to cut back on dairy while keeping a balanced diet. When I first skimmed through the book, I decided that Veganism was not for me--it was too difficult. But then, as I read it through cover to cover, I completely changed my mind. I will never be able to forget what I have learned in this book; because of it, I have begun to change my life.

This book shows how beautiful sincere compassion can be.

As a vegan, I found this book to be most enlightening about aspects of veganism I had never understood—specifically zoos and circuses. I didn’t understand why they were wrong. How naïve I was! This book addressed this and many other questions I had in a thoughtful and lucid manner.

Joanne covers every aspect of vegan living, from clothing to household products to diet. If you have questions about being vegan, this is the book to read, and of course Being Vegan. Interspersed through the book are quotes from other vegans that serve as inspiration while reading through the tough parts of this book (i.e. those that explain how animals are treated.) I found these quotes to be very helpful.

Regardless of whether or not you are already vegan, compassion shines through every page of this book. I’d find it hard to believe anyone could still not be vegan after reading it. If you *are* vegan, this book will reinforce your faith (so to speak) and provide valuable information and delicious recipes (always a plus, right?)

And on another note, I’ve had the pleasure of speaking with Joanne on the Grassroots Veganism site... and she is truly as beautiful as her writing makes her seem. If you have some time, come visit us there. It’s a fantastic atmosphere for new and old vegans alike. It’s inspiring.

This book will remain on my shelf indefinitely. It has enriched my life in ways I can’t begin to express here, and only other vegans can understand how much I mean this. I know my life will be better for having read this. How many books can *you* say that about?

And one last thing, I like how Joanne clarifies to the reading public that veganism is not a diet. Veganism is a lifestyle of compassion. Read this book and you will know why.

Buy it. Buy it now.

Thanks Joanne.

This book is priceless, an absolute jewel and is quite possibly the best book of its kind on living a compassionate, cruelty-free life that I've ever seen or read anywhere. It's a veritable encyclopedia of vegan knowledge, a treasure trove of information on adopting/maintaining this wonderful lifestyle. This book should be required reading in elementary school and beyond. Buy this book now and see for yourself!

I received this book as a Christmas gift last year and read it in a whirlwind. I wish I'd read this book when I was little; veganism seemed the logical choice years ago but there were still so many questions that were unanswered in terms of information about animal cruelty, adequate nutrition, ethics, etc. Ms. Stepaniak answers them all by giving specific and oftentimes unbelievably sad accounts of what really happens to animals. I have a feeling that if everyone read this book, complacency and denial would disappear and in its place would appear courage and action.