The author's intent was good, but I didn't care for all of the profanity in the book. There were also quite a few minor typos throughout, which don't affect the message but I find annoying and distracting when I'm reading. What I didn't like about the message was the authors's take on veganism from a purely ethical standpoint, while dismissing or minimizing other reasons people might have for choosing veganism (like environmental or health reasons). I wouldn't consider myself an ethical vegan, though the atrocities I know happen every minute in animal agriculture keep me from "cheating." For someone who is or is considering going vegan for ethical reasons, this book could be helpful, but might be off-putting to those who have other reasons. They do have a lot of good information in here, though, about things to consider when going vegan.

I am sorry to say that I went un-vegan while reading this book. Not because of the book but, due to certain events, I have accepted dairy. In a way I'm kind of sad because, being vegan, you really DO feel like a freak. A freak without a ship to sail on. That is until you meet Bob and Jenna Torres, your new captains. They will guide you through some pretty solid information about veganism and animal rights and, although I no longer ride with their beliefs, I definitely recommend this for anyone on the fence. Or even for vegetarians and omnis just to get a look at the bigger picture of where your food (and clothing and cosmetics and furnisings and etc) comes from. Outstanding work.

This book is a great read, but is sort of hub literature for reading further into ethical veganism. The married couple who wrote the book have PhDs and know their shit. Its also really nice because its written from people with a punk ethics background that approach veganism from an AR stand point rather than a health stand point. Lots of good tips on how to handle situations as well as tips for eating out and on the road. I could have used this book while I was traveling. Has a great resources section in the back as well as suggestions for further reading. Highly recommended for anyone outside the know.

I bought this book hoping that it would offer a lot of information and advice for how to round out a vegan diet. That was definitely not what this was about. It was more of a lengthy rant on the ethical virtues of veganism (health benefits excluded). I think what makes this difficult is that it continues in the narrative of "holier than thou" food politics that make it so hard for other people to understand, and accommodate, vegan diets. The rants themselves are fine, although polemical, so know what you're getting into before picking this up.

A WONDERFULLY-ENGAGING CONSIDERATION OF "PRACTICAL" VEGAN ISSUES

The authors wrote in the first chapter of this 2005 book (now available in a revised edition) that "the death of animals for pure enjoyment is wrong... eating animals is nothing more than death for the sake of taste." (Pg. 4)

They explain the difference between eating living PLANTS, and eating living ANIMALS, by suggesting that you place a head of broccoli and a pig side-by-side, and touch them with a hot poker: the broccoli "doesn't scream... and it shows no reaction to the poker because it has no central nervous system or pain receptors," whereas the pig "screams out in pain and runs away." (Pg. 30)

They also reject those who object to "animal rights" because animals are "irrational," or because they can't speak, arguing that "we give rights to very young children who are also 'irrational' and who cannot speak." (Pg. 57)

Most refreshingly, they deal frankly with many of the common objections to veganism, such as eating honey ("[If you] feel like watching vegans attack one another mindlessly, pop on over to one of the forums... and put up a post titled 'IS HONEY VEGAN?'"; pg. 100); eating at restaurants or on the road (pg. 114-123); coffee (pg. 199; they note, "We are die-hard coffee drinkers"); feeding pets meat (pg. 123-125); cosmetics and toiletries (pg. 133-137); and even tattoos (pg. 140; they note that co-author "Bob is somewhat of a tattoo aficionado").

This is a wonderful book for anyone who is already vegan, or who simply wants a frank discussion about it.

I have been vegan for a few years now, but I admittedly haven't done the kind of reading about veganism that I need to. This book was so enlightening, so thorough, so informative, and just a really great read, too. I didn't agree with everything in this book, but it definitely solidified and also challenged my own beliefs and habits. Be aware, there is cussing in this one, there are many very strong opinions, and the authors don't take things lightly when it comes to how animals are treated. I strongly encourage everyone to read books like this especially if you aren't vegan, but know it's not for the faint of heart! If I hadn't already been vegan, this book would have made me one in seconds for sure.

Autorzy to prawdziwi „Vegan Freaki”, bo zdecydowanie nie tak powinno się promować weganizm!

Książka ma być niby z humorem, ale, według mnie, agresywnie odnosi się do wegetarian,
byłych wegan oraz innych ludzi. Nawet wegan! Bo jedyny i słuszny powód przejścia na weganizm (według autorów) są zwierzęta. Wcale nie ma ludzi, którzy chcą zadbać o swoje zdrowie na pierwszym miejscu. Mam teraz wrażenie, mówiąc, że jestem na diecie roślinnej jestem jakiś poziom niżej od „jedynych i słusznych wegan”.

„Wegetariańskie decyzje konsumenckie w rzeczywistości tylko przyczyniają się do cierpienia i śmierci tych, na których rzekomo ci zależy.” Tylko? Czyli zrezygnowanie z mięsa nic nie daje?
„Weganizm oparty jedynie na pobudkach ekologicznych jest nieporozumieniem, bo nie uwzględnia podstawowych założeń.” Myślałam, że jakiekolwiek zmniejszenie cierpienia zwierząt z byle jakiego powodu jest drogą w dobrą stronę, ale jednak nie. Według autorów trzeba zmienić swój styl życia TERAZ i tylko dla zwierząt, a przecież sporo osób eliminuje produkty odzwierzęce stopniowo i jest to jak najbardziej okej! Nie wszyscy też od razu wiedzą jakie są skutki produkcji mięsa, jaj czy nabiału. Jeśli zainteresują się chociaż jednym aspektem to jest duże prawdopodobieństwo, że przez to znajdą informacje na temat innych.

„Od czasu publikacji pierwszego wydania nasze opinie i poglądy trochę dojrzały.”, „Jest ona pod wieloma względami bardziej dojrzała, zarówno w treści, jak i w formie.” A jednak temat edukacji seksualnej to nadal temat tabu i w rozdziale o wegańskich prezerwatywach i gadżetach czytamy: „Mówiąc poważnie, jeśli jesteś osobą bardzo wrażliwą albo młodocianą, to lepiej przejdź do następnego rozdziału.” Serio to napisali dojrzali, uczeni ludzie?

W podrozdziale „Zapomnij o organizacjach, zacznij działać sam” według autorów „działając samodzielnie lub w niewielkiej grupie przyjaciół masz takie możliwości dotarcia do ludzi, jakich nie posiada żadna, ani duża, ani mała organizacja”, ponieważ „ogromne organizacje wchodzą w układy z przemysłem”, a te utrzymujące się z darowizn ŻEBRAJĄ o te właśnie darowizny. Ogólnie wszyscy są źli i wrzucamy wszystkich do jednego worka.

Są też niby śmieszne komentarze w stylu:
„Określając siebie mianem „wege”, dajesz ludziom do zrozumienia, ze twój umysł nie posiada zbyt wielu funkcji wyższych.”,
„Nawet nie pytamy czy jest taki [weganin], który chciałby pocałować osobę, która właśnie zjadła rybę.”,
„Módl się, żebyś nie siedział koło osoby, która postanowiła zjeść fastfoodowego hamburgera.” (o podróży samolotem),
„W rezultacie stają się byłymi weganami, zaliczającymi się do szczególnie irytującej odmiany uprzykrzeńców, dla których Dante powinien był wymyślić dziesiąty krąg piekła.”
Może kogoś to bawi, mnie nie. Nie tego się spodziewałam po doktorach.

Poza tym, zastanawiam się, dlaczego w tym wydaniu postanowiono dodać zdjęcia zwierząt. Są one totalnie losowe i nie mają żadnego powiązania z tekstem. Po co ten żubr lub foka, gdzie w książce nie ma o nich żadnej wzmianki? Mogli sobie to darować i bardziej zająć się korektą, bo kilka błędów zauważyłam (np. masło glee zamiast ghee, iść po najmniejszej linii oporu).

Irytowało mnie też wspominanie typu „o tym w rozdziale czwartym”, „więcej w rozdziale czwartym”. I tak wiele razy! Strasznie czekałam więc na ten rozdział. Jak się skończył, to w następnych znowu przekierowywali do tego czwartego! :D

Podsumowując, męczący jest styl i powtarzanie jak to zabijamy zwierzęta i torturujemy je (co jest oczywiście prawdą), i ciągłe obrażanie wszystkich, i zostań weganinem teraz i tylko dla zwierząt, bo ty nie jesteś najważniejszy. W ten sposób nie zachęcimy innych do zmian nawyków żywieniowych i poprawy świata.

As a vegan of 2 years I thought that this book was very interesting. It was funny and made some good suggestions on how to deal with non-vegans judging you. I also like the books they suggested and plan on reading a few of them as well. The only thing that I didn't like about the book was that it made you feel like it you weren't rich enough to do all the things they stated you were a bad vegan. Like if you were still wearing your old leather boots, rather then immediately going out and buying new vegan boots which can be expensive. The rich elitist tone where it came to spending money was annoying, but the rest of it was great. So I'd just look past that "veganer then thou" bits cause there is some great tips.

This book went into my could not finish list because I don't want to read another word. It is condescending and negative, and this is coming from someone who is already vegan. I would NEVER give this book to someone I was trying to convince to go vegan. Some great choices would be Skinny Bitch and Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer, which both deal in facts that speak for themselves and not snarky, judgmental opinions. This couple needs to crawl back into their tiny, close-minded hole and stop publishing forever.

21 savage

A great guide for those getting started in veganism. I haven't had a chance to check out edition 2, but I am excited about all the updated info that I have heard buzzing about.

I read this book several years ago when I was waffling between vegetarian and vegan. I am currently trying to reread it. Their tone can be a little frustrating. It covers a lot of good stuff, though. But it just seems very poorly written and immature for a couple with Ph.D.'s. There's also several typos throughout the book, which usually don't bother me but there were enough to where it stood out. I did learn a lot about abolitionist veganism from this book, and there actually is a lot of good information on finding food at ethnic restaurants and dealing with family members in a non-explosive way. I would highly recommend this but only if you feel like you can take the semi-angry vegan mood that this book has and don't get offended by anything. I don't get offended by much and this book still ground my gears a little. If you ever listened to their podcast back in the day, you will totally love this.