Here’s a great book about one family’s efforts to eat as locally as possible for a year, sort of. Whether or not they’re evangelical enough in their southwest Virginia locavory (I would have made the same call with regard to olive oil and coffee!), Barbara Kingsolver and her family definitely are certainly inspiring. Their efforts to produce their own food or buy it from their farming neighbors are simultaneously enlightening, informative, and motivating. I recommend this nonfiction account of their year as much as I would recommend any of Kingsolver’s novels. You’ll learn about heritage turkeys, kids running an egg business, the difficult of “going local” when going to college, why asparagus is such a uniquely springtime treat, and why certain dishes are impossible if you’re going to tie your eating to the seasonal availability of produce in your local “foodshed.” I learned a lot – and Kingsolver’s writing is a pleasure to sample. The book is co-written with her husband and eldest daughter, and I thought this made the whole book that much more enjoyable – it’s a family effort depicting a family effort. Top notch.
