There were things I really liked about this book and things I didn't like about it. I am a vegetarian who is striving to move to a totally vegan diet and I really liked the premise of this book. I thought it would really help me make the transition and do it inexpensively.
In a way, it did help me. The first 29 pages of the book are very helpful - packed with info on shopping inexpensively for vegan food. The rest of the book contains a 7 day menu [3 meals per day] and recipes. The author is clear and concise without being preachy. I found her writing easy & enjoyable to read.
But, in another way, I felt kind of ripped off. The first 29 pages were full of info and were great reading, but they weren't worth the price of the book by a long shot. The recipes were OK - some of them are extremely simplistic [like the one for oatmeal: water, oats, salt. Put it in a pot and cook it]. I did not find many recipes that I found appealing - in fact, I doubt I'll try any recipes in the book [other than oatmeal, which I already eat on a regular basis....]. So, it was kind of frustrating - it took me less than 45 minutes [literally] to read this entire book [it is a slim volume, even padded with simple recipes]. I really did not feel I got my money's worth out of the book - I could have done better spending one hour on the internet googling vegan meals and tips.
I also felt that the claim that you can eat vegan for $4 a day was a bit exaggerated. For one thing, the portion sizes she gives are extremely small - for example, on day one you are supposed to eat half a cup of oatmeal for breakfast [and that is it.] For most people, one half a cup of plain oatmeal would not be enough to get them through till lunch. Can you imagine a 180 lb guy trying to get by on that? I can't. The lunches and dinners seemed very slim on serving size too - I think most people would probably end up having to increase what she counts as a full meal just to get enough calories. She does not include calorie counts in her menu plan, but looking at them, I'd guess the menu plans have 1,000-1,200 calories planned per day, which isn't enough for most healthy, active adults. [that is "famine level" caloric intake according to the World Health Organization].
I also felt the prices she said she was getting on the items she includes were awfully low - I am a long time frugal shopper and I have never seen prices as low as the ones she was quoting on some of the products she recommends. I'm a bit skeptical that anyone could really eat what she's recommending for $4 a day. [She also assumes a well stocked pantry in that calculation - such as spices on hand that aren't counted in the cost].
Now, that said, I DO believe that eating the way she recommends is FAR less expensive than eating the average American diet, even if she has exaggerated the inexpensiveness of it. This is still a far superior way of eating - both health wise and financially.
So, I truly felt conflicted by this book - 29 pages of good info and some recipes that were somewhat helpful, but not worth the price of an entire book IMO. I wish there had been MORE to this.
In summary, this book was helpful, but it could have been so much more helpful!
- Amazon Business : For business-only pricing, quantity discounts and FREE Shipping. Register a free business account
