Talk About “Animals” With Colleen Patrick-Goudreau
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Colleen Patrick-Goudreau of Compassionate Cooks has just started a new book club. It is a club that reads books about animals, but they are literary books. The first is “Animals”, a novel by Don LePan. This little book is set more than 100 years in the future, and imagines some of the worst possible outcomes for the way we live today. Most importantly:
* Factory farming, with its over-reliance on antibiotics and intense crowding, resulted in huge extinctions of farmed species. A by-product of these extinctions was the extinction of pet species, like dogs and cats.
* Chemical poisoning of the atmosphere, water, and food results in the birth of many defective babies.
Over time, the defective babies come to be called “mongrels” and over further time people start to think of them as less-than-human and even not-human.
Where this takes us you might well imagine. The story is a compilation of “documents” by two different people, one the story of a mongrel and his two families and one the explanatory notes by one of the family members, filling us in on the history.
The discussions (there will be two – one in person and one online) should be interesting and provocative, to say the least!
To sign up and get involved in the discussions, go to Colleen’s site. The online discussion is on Oct. 12 so there isn’t much time – but it’s a small book. Find a copy at amazon.com or betterworldbooks.com or possibly paperbackswap.com or a local bookstore. Read more about the book at the author’s website.
I am only about 30 pages into this book and cannot put it down. Ok – I put it down about 5 minutes ago to get a cup of coffee and type this comment. I downloaded it onto my Kindle. It is easy reading and eye-opening. I’m hoping many non-vegans pick this up. Don’t forget to checkout the footnotes as you flip the pages.
Thanks, Convenient Vegan–and Vegan Traveller, for your kind comments about Animals: A Novel. You may find it interesting that the process of writing (and rewriting)the book pushed me a long way towards veganism; I surely hope it works much the same way for many readers.
Interesting that you find the footnotes interesting; quite a few of the reviews have felt the book is marred by too many of these. Certainly readers should feel free to skip them and get on with the story if they don’t find them interesting!
This is a great site–glad to have discovered it. The rate of slaughter graphic is really arresting. All the best
Don
I hadn’t thought about downloading it! Foolish of me.
Thanks for the great comments, both of you. I am one who found the footnotes and extra comments annoying but I read them so I could understand the full story better. I would have liked the information to be integrated a little better into the main story somehow, but I understand why it was done this way. I am sure this aspect will be part of the discussions of the book.
Sounds like a great book!
.-= So I’m Thinking Of Going Vegan´s last blog ..why Mad Men gives me hope =-.
Thats horrible why would they do that to animals? I dont eat meat so to me thats discusting.
As a musician I much appreciated your article in the AAVS magazine. I intend to get your book on ANIMALS. I have a program all about animals with text and we try to perform for shelters etc. To get donations for the various causes. I would like to talk to you about this if you wish. Either by em or phone 508 399 6140. I live in Seekonk Ma. border line or Prov. R.I. thank you for being you and doing what you do for a better life for all animals. Jacqueline
I would like to give you more info. on my animal program. How can I EM you thank you J. D.
Jacqueline, I think you really want to talk to Eccentric Vegan, otherwise known as Elaine. She is the main force behind this website. I write occasional articles, like this one.
Perhaps you’d like to write an article for the soapbox about your program? Write to Elaine at admin@vegansoapbox.com with your ideas.