The Summary:  Good afternoon everyone! I hope everyone's excited about the long weekend coming up—I sure am. Due to Monday being Memorial Day, discussion will be posted Tuesday, May 31, and it will be our first of the June read, Fear of the Animal Planet by Jason Hribal. I have already started reading, and it's very interesting. I hope you guys like it as well!

This week's final discussion of The Bond by Wayne Pacelle was great—thanks to all those who commented! It seems like everyone is very optimistic about the book in general, as well as the future of the animal-rights movement. There will always be wins and losses when it comes to important issues, but it's good to always stay positive.

I want to take this time to announce that next month will be the final month of the VegNews Book Club. It's been a full year of discussing fantastic books, and I want to thank everyone who has participated. We hope that you still continue to read books with animal-rights messages, as it's always important to stay informed. Thanks again for a great year of the VegNews Book Club, and have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend!

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

The Gist: Good afternoon, and welcome to the fourth and final week of our discussion of The Bond by Wayne Pacelle. Next week, we will begin our discussion of Fear of the Animal Planet by Jason Hribal, which seems like a very interesting read. Be sure to get your copy, so you can join in.


We finished the book by reading the entirety of Part Three this week, which includes two chapters. There is also a small section entitled "Fifty Ways to Help Animals," which literally states 50 ways to help, such as adopting a vegetarian/vegan lifestyle, writing letters to the editor regarding animal-protection issues, and just registering to vote. All of part three is mainly about creating a more humane world, and in chapter seven, Pacelle first states different cruelties that are still going on in the US and world, and tells about the people who defend these ways. The cruelties he talks about mainly encompass the use of animals for food, clothing, and sport. Organizations, such as the USDA, support the factory farmers because that's where the money is, and the National Rifle Association (NRA) defends all types of hunting, even the hunting that really isn't hunting—pigeon shoots, for example—because they believe it is a human right. Pacelle explains that is not about rights, but tradition and an unwillingness to change, that keeps these cruelties going.


In the final chapter of part three, Pacelle discusses how we could go about developing a more humane economy. He reiterates the fact that most cruelties stem from our not wanting to change and move away from tradition, even though once we do, the humane way is always the best option. He opens the chapter talking about when he went whale watching with a group of animal advocates, and relates how whale watching is now the norm in the Northeast, just a little more than 100 years ago the norm was whale hunting. So many inhumane practices are insufficient and costly, such as animal testing, but due to the fact that it's the norm, it is still happening. However, things are getting better, and small changes are being taken to help animals. Such changes include the development of chemical birth control to stem the population of wildlife, and possibly even dogs and cats in the near future. Also, the use of new and improved scientific methods to test the toxicity of chemicals in consumer products, without testing them on animals. It is changes like these that are helping us move in the right direction towards a more humane world.


The Discussion: Here are three discussion points to help get the conversation started. I look forward to hearing from you!


1. What are your thoughts on the use of chemical birth control to keep the population of animal wildlife at bay?


2. Pacelle says that at the World Animal Forum in May 2010, they made several resolutions, including the worldwide ban on factory-farming practices by 2050. What do you think of these goals? Do you think they can be reached?


3. Overall, how did you like The Bond? Would you recommend it to a meat-eating friend? 


The Assignment: Due to the holiday weekend, next week's discussion will begin on Tuesday, May 31. Please read the introduction, Prologue, and chapter one for our discussion. See you then!


~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

The Summary:  Hello VegNews Book Clubbers, and happy Friday! We are now at the end of the third week of our discussion of The Bond by Wayne Pacelle, in which we talked about companion animals and wild life, specifically National Parks, and if you have ever visited one before. Thanks for the responses! All who responded have an animal friend with unique backgrounds. I appreciate you sharing your stories with everyone. Regarding National Parks, most of you have visited one of these spectacular places, and have had great experiences there. I would love to go visit more myself—they are truly the wonders of the US.

We have one more week of our discussion of The Bond, which I look forward to talking to you about next week. Please have the rest of the book finished by then. Have a great weekend!

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

The Gist: Good afternoon VegNews Book Clubbers! It's a rainy day here in San Francisco, and I hope you guys are experiencing some nicer weather. We are now in our third week of discussing The Bond by Wayne Pacelle, which I hope you guys are enjoying. This week, we will be talking about chapters five and six.

Chapter five is all about companion animals, the bond we share with these animals, and the hidden cruelties of the commercialized pet industry. Pacelle begins with the story of Katrina, the devastation that it imparted to New Orleans, and how it separated many people from their companion animals. He talks about the rescue effort, and relates some of the individual stories of people being reunited with their animals. He uses the Katrina rescue story to show the connection we have with our animal friends, and how it is not easily broken. He then goes on to talk about where we get our companion animals from. Many people get their animals from puppy mills, which are terrible places, and exist only to make a profit. HSUS actually has led raids on puppy mills and discovered terrible conditions, such as dogs being stacked in wire cages, and being neglected. Many of these dogs come out of puppy mills with health conditions for the rest of their lives. Pacelle urges readers to adopt from rescue shelters. He talks about how rescue shelters are continually trying to adopt no-kill policies, but it is hard to do so due to the fact that there are so many homeless animals.

In chapter six, Pacelle talks about animals in the wild, and the human-animal interaction when it comes to the wild. At a young age, Pacelle was a ranger for the Student Conservation Association, which largely led him to where he is now. He says that at that time he was able to really connect with the environment around him, and he acquired a very strong respect for the wild. In the chapter, he talks about some instances—including the Yellowstone bison, Alaskan wolf hunting, the Canadian seal hunt, and hunting in general—where humans have shown a complete lack of respect for the wild, and what he has done, along with HSUS, to try to make things better.

The Discussion: Here are two discussion points to help get the conversation started. I look forward to hearing from you!

1. Do you have a companion animal? If so, where did you rescue them from?

2. Have you ever visited a National Park? Which one, and what was your experience like?

The Assignment: Please read the rest of The Bond for our discussion on Monday, May 23.

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

The Summary:  Happy Friday everyone! First of all, it seems that Blogger has been experiencing some problems, so unfortunately, some of our discussion has been removed, but we hope they will be recovered. It was a really good discussion, in which we mainly talked about Michael Vick, and how Wayne Pacelle came to the decision to work with him in HSUS' campaign against animal fighting, and whether we agreed with his decision or not. I also brought up the fact that since Vick's release from prison for his dog-fighting ring, he has been allowed to play in the NFL once again, which was very upsetting because playing in the NFL is a privilege, and one that Vick should have lost. We definitely had some heated comments regarding these issues, which totally makes sense. The situation with Vick was very upsetting for many, and not just animal activists. As we all know, animals that are more domesticated—dogs and cats in particular—are regarded very differently than other animals. When the violence of Vick's dog-fighting was exposed, it definitely struck a cord with most people—it's very hard to fathom that type of cruelty.

I want to thank everyone again for participating in this week's discussion, and sorry once again for the maintenance issues with Blogger. I look forward to our discussion next week, in which we will be talking about the next two chapters of The Bond.

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

The Gist: Hello VegNews Book Clubbers! I hope you had a great Mother's Day weekend, and enjoying your reading of The Bond by Wayne Pacelle. We still have some copies of the book on the VN Store, so if you don't have one already, be sure to pick one up!

For this week's discussion, we read the next two chapters, which are in the second part of the book. The first chapter talks about the abuses of the Hallmark/Westland Meat Packing Company in Chico, Calif., in which HSUS investigated and helped to shut down. Pacelle also relates HSUS's fight to pass Proposition 2 in California, which addressed some of the worst confinement practices in factory farming. In 2008, the proposition passed, which was a huge step for the humane treatment of animals.

In the second chapter, Pacelle talks about the cruelties of animal fighting, specifically dog and cock fighting. Specifically, he talks about his work with Michael Vick, the NFL football player who ran a dog-fighting ring in Virginia, until it was raided in 2007, and Vick was sentenced to prison for 18 months. Near the end of his sentence, Vick contacted Pacelle and expressed interest in working with HSUS to help it's anti-dog-fighting campaign. Pacelle was very skeptical at first, but explains that he saw an importance in working with Vick to help get the message across about the cruelty of dog fighting, especially to the impoverished youth of America, who are more prone to these types of activities. Vick is still working with HSUS, and by the end of 2010, he had spoken to 10,000 kids in communities that are at risk.

The Discussion: Here are two discussion points to help get the conversation started. I look forward to hearing from you!

1. Do you think that it was a good idea for HSUS to work with Michael Vick after he did such cruel things to animals? Why, or why not?

2. As Pacelle mentions, animal fighting is very low on the radar for most people, even though it is quite prevalent. Why do you think this is?

The Assignment: Please read the next two chapters of The Bond for our discussion on Monday, May 16. And don't miss Pacelle on The Today Show tomorrow!

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

The Summary: Good afternoon VegNews Book Clubbers! Thanks for a great first week of conversation, in which we are discussing The Bond by Wayne Pacelle. Being the president of HSUS, Pacelle deals with animal-rights issues every day, which I'm sure gives him many stories to tell. I'm glad he wrote a book to share his experience with others, and to further help the cause.

I asked three questions last Monday to get the conversation started, and I want to thank Sock and Amy D. for participating this week! First, I asked if you think we could ever fully mend the broken bond between humans and animals. Both Sock and Amy D. agreed that we will never be able to fully mend it, but we can take steps to make it better. I then asked what you thought of Pacelle's writing style, and both readers have been really happy with it, and the fact that it is very straight-forward and realistic. I definitely agree—I find his style to be very easy to read. Finally, I asked for you to share your thoughts on HSUS, and both answers were extremely positive. As we all know, even within movements, there are differences, and in the past I have heard some people talk negatively about the organization. I think that they fear the fact that it is so big, and a bit more mainstream than other animal-rights organizations. It's important to remember that this is not a bad thing—HSUS has been able to make some very big strides in the animal movement because of its size and influence.

I want to wish everyone a happy weekend and happy reading! We will be discussing the next two chapters of The Bond this coming Monday, May 9.

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

The Gist: Happy Monday, VegNews Book Clubbers, and welcome to the start of May! I honestly can't believe we're in the fifth month of 2011 already, but I guess I need to accept it. We have now started our reading of The Bond by Wayne Pacelle, president of The Humane Society of the United States. This week, we will talk about the Preface, Introduction, and Part One of the book, which make up about the first 100 pages.

In this week's section, Pacelle discusses the connection between humans and animals. He explains how humans take that connection for granted and use their power over animals in a negative way, such as the use of animals in circuses, experimentation on chimps, the horse meat trade, and the slaughter of more than 50 billion animals for food.

Pacelle talks about his own experiences with animals, as well as the history of the human/animal relationship. The relationship can go in two very different directions—one direction being kindness, and the other being cruelty. We are able to treat our companion animals with such love and affection, but then eat a hamburger, which is made from another domesticated animal that was horribly abused until the moment of its death. Pacelle acknowledges these two varying relationships, and claims that it is time to take only one path—that of kindness.

He then goes on to discuss how animals are misunderstood, and are denied basic rights due to the power humans hold over animals. For example, we know that animals are intelligent, but they are denied this intelligence because it's a way for human beings to justify their cruelty toward other species. However, Pacelle writes that this view of animals is beginning to change for the better—as we can see with the increasing interest in vegetarianism, the many animal sanctuaries popping up, and the successes of HSUS itself. Additionally, he stresses that we have a moral obligation to help animals, since they can't speak out on their own.


The Discussion: Here are three discussion points to help get the conversation started. I look forward to hearing from you!

1. Do you think we will ever fully mend the broken bond between humans and animals? Why, or why not?

2. What do you think of Pacelle's writing style and voice?

3. What is your view of The Humane Society of the United States? Do you think they are doing a sufficient job of helping animals?

The Assignment: Please read chapter 3 through chapter 4 (two chapters) of The Bond for our discussion on Monday, May 9.

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

The Summary: Good afternoon, and happy Friday! I want to thank everyone for a great discussion of Vegan's Daily Companion by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau this month. I don't know about you, but this month went super fast for me, and I can't believe it will be May next week. Be sure to have the Preface, Introduction, and Part One of The Bond by Wayne Pacelle read for next week's discussion—I'm sure it's going to be a great and informative read.

I hope you guys enjoy your weekend, and I'll see you next week!

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

The Gist: Hello everyone! I am reporting from San Diego, Calif., where I am taking a brief vacation. I just recently went to Pokéz, which has excellent vegan Mexican fare—it was delicious. If any of you have any other restaurant suggestions, I'd love to hear about them!

We have now finished Vegan's Daily Companion by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau, which was a fun and light read, and a book that is definitely a keeper. I look forward to going back and trying out the recipes and various tips! We will begin our discussion of The Bond by Wayne Pacelle next week, beginning on Monday, May 2—pick up a copy from the VN Store if you don't have one already.

The Discussion: Here are two discussion points to help get the conversation started. I look forward to hearing from you!

1. What is your favorite book by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau, and why? If not this one, why not?

2. Have you tried any of the recipes from the Saturdays and Sundays? Which ones, and how were they?

The Assignment: Please read the Preface, Introduction, and Part One of The Bond for our discussion on Monday, May 2.

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

Reading List

Happy Thursday VegNews Book Clubbers, and I hope you're enjoying Veganist by Kathy Freston. This is a special post to bring you some very exciting news: the next three books that we will be reading! Without further ado, here is our lineup for the next three months:

April: Vegan's Daily Companion by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau
May: The Bond by Wayne Pacelle
June: Fear of an Animal Planet by Jason Hribal

Fear of an Animal Planet will step away from the vegan diet realm, and into the subject of animals in captivity, which I think is another important issue to discuss in regards to animal rights. I am very excited about all three of these reads, and I look forward to discussing them with you!

~VegNews Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig