Book Club

For our May book club, we are reading a book so well-known it almost needs no introduction. Still, even a contemporary classic like The Omnivore's Dilemma deserves to be revisited, especially in light of how much impact it has had in the few years since it was published. It's on the book club agenda, in fact, because Linden Hills received so many requests to read and discuss Pollan's seminal work. We will be meeting at the Linden Hills Co-op on Wednesday, May 29th from 6:30 p.m.

As an increasing number of people are questioning the health of our current US food system, as well as those that consume from within it, more and more eaters are paying attention to the foods they eat. Hungry not only for the, “who, where, and how” of their food, consumers are questioning the integrity and effectiveness of the systems weʼve put in place to regulate, control, and protect our food supply as a whole.

After January's great book club meeting, we at SGT are really looking forward to our next bookish get together this month. We will be meeting at the Linden Hills Co-op on Wednesday, March 27th from 6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. to discuss Folks, This Ain't Normal: A Farmer's Advice for Happier Hens, Healthier People, and a Better World, by the radical farmer and writer Joel Salatin. You might recognize Salatin as the chicken farmer with a mobile chicken coop from Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma and also from the documentary Food, Inc. Salatin is the owner of Polyface Farm in Virginia, an innovative operation that focuses on sustainability and seasonality. 

It was a cold night, but a hearty group came out to Linden Hills Co-op last week to discuss Wendell Berry's Bringing it to the Table for the latest meeting of the SGT Book Club. The book, an anthology of some of Berry's best-known and best-loved essays, was a winner, to say the least. The book is divided into three parts -- Farming, Farmers, and Food -- and the discussion ranged over all of these aspects, as we looked at Berry's writing and ideas specifically and also talked more generally about our own experiences with local food and farming and our own ideas and concerns for the future.

The SGT Book Club is back, and we want you to come join us! We will be meeting at the Linden Hills Co-op on Wednesday, January 30th from 6:30 - 8 p.m. to discuss the legendary farmer, writer, and activist Wendell Berry. Berry's writing is not only beautiful, but also incredibly thought-provoking; he does not pull any punches when it comes to his (very strong) beliefs about our society. We would love to see you at what is sure to be an engaging discussion.

For the January book club, we'll be reading Bringing it to the Table: On Farming and Food, an anthology of many of Berry's best-known and best-loved essays. But if reading a whole book is too much for you (and we know it's short notice), we've also found some essays that are available in full online (free) that will give you a good taste of Berry's writing: 

Now that the weather is turning cooler and school is back in session, the SGT Book Club is back, with not one but two books. In Minneapolis, the book club will be discussing Marion Nestle’s Food Politics: How the Food Industry Influences Nutrition & Health; in Bemidji, the book club will be discussing David Agus’s The End of Illness.

Meetings are open to all, whether you finish the whole book or just have fresh ideas about our food or health system that you want to discuss. So come on out and join us for a lively discussion!

Its July and yes, we all know its been hot. Minnesotans are notoriously aware of the current state of things, especially when they are not in the realm of perfect, sunny and 70. It is appropriate then, that for July, our book clubs have been reading a book by local author Atina Diffley, who is well connected to the weather extremes that effect our lives and our food. However, she might have a bit of a different perspective:

This month, our book clubs are going in divergent directions with two excellent reads. We hope that you can make it to one of the meetings to discuss them, but even if that is not an option, we encourage you to look deeper into these great works.

In Minneapolis, the SGT book club that meets at the Linden Hills Co-op will be reading the Dirty Life. They will be meeting on Wednesday, June 27th from 6:30-8:30 in the Community Room. This extremely entertaining read has been previously reviewed by SGT writer Merie Kirby. Here is an excerpt from her review:

Spring is just about the perfect time to be reading a book that might just inspire you to turn that little plot of unused ground into something productive. You certainly don't have to live in Oakland California, although as you find out in this excellent read, it might make it much more interesting. Of course if you are as bold a spirit as is author and urban farmer Novella Carpenter, you find your own way to make things happen, education included.

This month, the book club gets ambitious with Oran Hesterman's Fair Food: Growing a Healthy, Sustainable Food System for All. I say this because if you know anything about Hesterman and his Fair Food movement, it is no small deal. He is out to change the whole system. Well, perhaps not even change, but start over and build something new. When something is as dysfunctional as the American food system, indeed, it makes very little sense to try and fix it from within. There are times when something should just be thrown on the scrap heap...according to Hesterman, this is the time for action, our food system isn't going to fix itself.