Book Review

Skinny Bastard

By Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin
Review by Tammie Ortlieb

If you're looking for a Skinny Bitch without all the ribbons and bows pick up a copy of Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin's latest, Skinny Bastard. A little more locker room talk, a lot less powder puff, Skinny Bastard does for the guys what Skinny Bitch did for us girls. Understand me now--this is a no hand-holding vegan manifesto. In the pages of this shoot from the hip ultimate nutrition guide, you will learn how to eat for working out, how to do your part for the environment, and how to head off the big three--heart disease, diabetes, and prostate cancer. Most of all, you will learn how to "get rid of that gut once and for all while still enjoying food."

Sure the authors care about poundage and looks. Sure they care about the earth and all who live on it. Absolutely they want to spread the vegan message. But mostly they want the reader to "quit eating crap and abusing yourself!" Coffee? No. Soda? No. Organic eggs and dairy? Have you not been listening? And the queen Skinny Bitches themselves tell you why these foods rot your body, wreck your waistline, and wreak havoc on your most manly organs and secretions.

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But girls, just know that it's ok to peek. Not only will you find the typical Skinny Bitch info--myths about dairy and protein, the truth about what's in your meat, and the low-down on bowel movements--but also a bit more man-specific kind of stuff as well. And since this is a family magazine, we won't go into the details here. Rest assured, though, as with all of Freedman and Barnouin's books, Skinny Bastard is jam-packed with facts, research, and loads of resources.

The authors wrap up this little treasure with a great guide of acceptable (meaning, of course, vegan) packaged foods, a month's worth of menus, and a handful of factoids on everything from onions to yoga (check out the FYI chapter!). They provide guidelines on how to obtain various nutrients and what those do for the body. They suggest cookbooks, information books, food websites, restaurant guide sites, and sites on where to buy all kinds of vegan stuff. Could this transition get any easier?! Just wondering girls, when can we grab a copy of Skinny Bastard in the Kitch?

Tammie Ortlieb is a freelance writer and adjunct instructor with a Master's Degree in Developmental Psychology. She resides in southwest Michigan with her omnivorous husband, four veg kids, and small menagerie of pets. Tammie writes for various vegetarian sources, mostly on being okay with your vegetarian self. She's a book nerd, a research nerd, a health nerd, and a huge glass of soymilk half full kind of creature. Visit her blog at www.middle-agedveganchick.blogspot.com.

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