You know me. I've been honest about books being reviewed on here, whether I didn't like them (Journey to the Center of the Earth) or was meh (The Marriage Plot) or super-enjoyed it (Bossypants).
I'm not exaggerating when I say that reading The Kind Diet, by, yes, Alicia Silverstone, changed my life and the way I eat. Silverstone is vegan (I'm not vegan, but eat limited animal protein and dairy), and has written a book about the way she lives. The first half of the book lays out her "nasty foods" including meat, dairy, white sugar and processed foods. I've read books about healthy eating and why veggies are better for us and the environment than an animal protein-based diet, but this is the first one that really hit home for me. Because it's vegan, not vegetarian, I finally realized that dairy/cheese isn't the wunderkind that I thought for so long. She made two points that stuck with me: no other animals drink other animal's milk ("Pandas don't drink gorilla milk...dogs don't drink goat milk" p. 35), and dairy is designed to make us fat (babies drink it to make them fat and happy, and calves turn into 400-lb cows after drinking their mother's milk). It clicked for me, and I haven't had a fifth of the dairy I used to since reading this book.
I don't want to get preachy, but reading this book has helped me lose weight (went down a size and have easily maintained it), feel happier, and totally love all the delicious food I get to make in the second half of the book. JP and I have been more adventurous about the foods we eat (tempeh, wheat berries, collard greens), and don't have to spend as much money at the grocery store or time in the kitchen cooking roasts, pork, etc. Our dinner plates look beautiful with colorful veggies and new spices.
If you'd like to make a change, or even just feel curious about incorporating more vegetables and whole grains into your diet, you've got to pick up a copy of The Kind Diet. It just might change your life, too.
