Imagine spending an entire year reading one book. One could engage in this delightful experience with this collection of "thoughts, facts, humor, science, and surprises, " one for each day of the year. As the author explains in his introduction, his collection of items is based on these premises:
" 1. A vegetarian diet is healthier than a meat-based one.
Day 1 begins with an extensive list of famous vegetarians while Day 365 concludes the volume by noting "factory farming has ended the era of the cowboy." In between those two entries we are presented with quotations by people like Gandhi, Paul McCartney, Seneca, Dostoyevsky, Albert Schweitzer, and others. Statistics abound. On Day 141 we discover that a Gallup Poll reported one out of five restaurant eaters search for restaurants serving vegetarian food. Health information is provided on Day 141 where we learn that vegetarianism lowers the risk of ovarian cancer while Day 126 points out that what we eat has a strong influence on whether we develop stomach cancer. Day 141 offers advice on how to become a vegetarian. Factual information is supplied in tidbits like the word "salad" coming from the Latin salus meaning "to bring health." The light, humorous touch is prevalent with entries like Day 324 that states, " The Golden Arches may lead to the Pearly Gates," a statement by a doctor involved in the Framingham Heart Study. Interspersed through the book are cartoon-like line drawings by John Wincek. 365 REASONS TO BE A VEGETARIAN is a delightful book that can be read in one session or made to last a whole year. Through extensive research, Parachin has collected a trove of information that he shares in this entertaining and quite inexpensive volume, a book that can be referred to again and again.
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