The Gist: Good afternoon VegNews Book Clubbers! I hope you guys are enjoying our discussion of Veganist by Kathy Freston so far, and I look forward to having more discussion about this informative read. Before I begin the summary and discussion, I want to make a special announcement—a reader Q+A with Kathy Freston! The wonderful author of Veganist, and our previous read, Quantum Wellness, has agreed to answer some questions from our readers at the end of the month. Please email me your questions for Kathy by Wednesday, March 16, and her answers will be posted along with the wrap up on Friday, March 25. I look forward to receiving them!

I asked you to read the next three "Promises" of Veganist for this week's discussion. The third "Promise," is that a vegan diet will provide you with a longer life, as long as you eat a balanced diet. As we all know, it is very easy to eat an unhealthy, junk-food-laden, vegan diet. A longer life is promised because a plant-based diet helps to prevent heart disease and Alzheimer's, and boosts overall quality of life. She also mentions other things you can do to help to prolong your life, such as regular physical activity, decreased alcohol consumption, and stress management. She concludes the chapter with Ruth Heidrich's story, who is a 75-year-old athlete who thrives on a vegan diet.

In the fourth "Promise," Freston says that adopting a vegan diet will help keep you out of harm's way, specifically from foodborne illnesses, such as E. coli, swine flu, and other viruses. I think this is especially important now, because of the rise of these illnesses, and the threat of a possible pandemic. Freston interviews Dr. Michael Greger on this subject, specifically about how factory farming has given rise to the threat of these foodborne illnesses.

Finally, the fifth "Promise," states that you will save money on a vegan diet. Specifically, being vegan protects your health, so you won't pay as much for health care. Also, you'll decrease your "environmental debt," because the resources that go into the meat industry are much more than expected. Of course, if you rely on a vegan diet that only consists of frozen processed meals, and other prepared foods, you will not save too much money, which Freston points out. So she concludes the chapter with some money-saving tips, such as buying in bulk, buying in season, and cooking for yourself with whole ingredients rather than processed.

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

1. What "Promise" has been most important to you so far, and why?

2. What's your number one money-saving tip as a vegan?

The Assignment: Please read Promise 6 to Promise 9 of Veganist for our discussion on Monday, March 14.

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

The Summary: Good morning VegNews Book Clubbers, and Happy Christmas Eve! We are now finished with our discussion of Quantum Wellness by Kathy Freston, and we will be taking a break all next week until the New Year, when we will begin our discussion of The Vegan Girl's Guide to Life by Melisser Elliott. Looking forward to it!

Earlier this week, I asked you to share any major obstacles you may have had in your life, and how you dealt with them. I also asked you to share your worldly aim. A few of you commented, and I enjoyed reading what you had to say! Some people definitely deal with obstacles better than others, so I think it's important to listen and learn from others in order to deal with these types of situations.

I just want to wish everyone a Happy Holiday and a joyous New Year. See you in 2011!

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

The Gist: Good evening VegNews Book Clubbers! We are in the final week of our discussion of Quantum Wellness by Kathy Freston. The book club will be taking a week's break for the holidays, and then we'll start back up on January 3 with our first week's discussion of A Vegan Girl's Guide to Life by Melisser Elliott. I hope you guys are looking forward to the new year as much as I am!

We read the last two parts of the book this week. Part four was about overcoming obstacles, specifically crises and addictions. A tragedy such as the death of a family member or friend can totally unhinge you, and Freston explains different steps you can take to get through these types of crises. She even thinks that by overcoming obstacles such as these, you can become a stronger person. She also says the same is true when facing addictions, such as being addicted to smoking, alcohol, or even a certain food, and gives steps to help fight and overcome these types of setbacks as well.

In part five, called "Making the Leap," Freston talks about being the change. First, you can do this by changing ingrained, unhealthy traditions, such as abuse within a family, or even just eating very unhealthily, and changing them to be more healthy and positive. This may not be easy to do, due to the fact these unhealthy traditions could be passed on unconsciously, so you really need to look deep inside in order to make the change. Freston also says it is important to recognize your worldly aims, and that in addition to you helping yourself, you should also find a passion that is outside of yourself and give to that, such as charity work or volunteering. She also talks about finding your authentic nature, and introduces the idea of a "Vision quest," which is kind of a meditation in nature to help you discover your deeper self. Finally, Freston brings up honoring the fellowship of all beings, explaining that we are connected with all beings on this Earth, so it is important to respect every single one of them.

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

1. Have you dealt with any major obstacles in your life, such as crises or addictions? What steps did you take to overcome the obstacle?

2. What is your worldly aim, and what do you do to achieve that aim?

The Assignment: Please read the introduction to chapter two of A Vegan Girl's Guide to Life for our discussion on January 3, 2011.

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

The Summary: Good afternoon VegNews Book Clubbers! I hope everyone enjoyed their week, and looking forward to a great weekend. We are in our second week of Quantum Wellness by Kathy Freston. Unfortunately, there was no discussion this week, and next week will be the final week of our discussion of this book, so let's make it a good one! I know it's a very busy time of year for everyone, but I would love to hear your thoughts.

See you next week, when we will discuss the rest of Quantum Wellness!

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

The Gist: Good morning VegNews Book Clubbers! We had a great discussion last week of Quantum Wellness by Kathy Freston, and I look forward to this second week of our conversation. This week, we will be discussing part three of the book, which consists of three chapters.

In the first chapter of part three, Freston talks about adopting a vegan diet, or at least a vegetarian diet. Like all of her suggestions in the book, she explains that it is better to take small steps, so that we don't feel overwhelmed. Obviously, I'm sure many of us are already vegetarian or vegan, but I think that her advice is very good. She talks about the connections of the food we eat with our health, environment, and also spiritual self, such as how the factory farming industry wreaks havoc on the environment through pollution and waste, as well as the pain and suffering that the animals go through to get to our plate. The choice to eat a plant-based diet is the most conscientious choice, she explains.

In the second chapter of part three Freston talks more about the vegetarian diet, and she answers several common questions and myths regarding the diet, such as how kosher meat is not really humane, that we as humans aren't really meant to eat meat, and the difference between being vegan and vegetarian.

Finally, in the last chapter of part three Freston tells us to balance our lives between the four Rs: regular, relate, rejuvenate, and reach. She explains that it is important to put your energy in all four quadrants, instead of one or two in order to reach quantum wellness. The regular quadrant is the normal routines of life, relate is our relationships with other people, rejuvenate is self-care, and reach is stretching yourself past the normal and making yourself better.

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

1. Are you vegan? Why, or why not? If you are a vegan, what was your number one reason for becoming one—health, environment, or spiritual?

2. What "R" quadrant do you put most of your energy into—regular, relate, rejuvnate, or reach? How do you plan on balancing all four in your life?

The Assignment: Please read the rest of Quantum Wellness for our discussion on Monday, December 20.

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

The Summary: Happy Friday, VegNews Book Clubbers! I hope you all enjoyed our first week of Kathy Freston's Quantum Wellness as much as I did. Have you all resolved to listen more astutely to your body's needs and make the right decisions when it comes to your own health and spirituality this weekend? It's inspiring to hear about all of your own experiences with cleanses in the comments to this week's discussion. A 21-day cleanse is a hard sell at the beginning of the holiday season, but I'm certainly planning to do my best.

What are your goals for a healthier you this weekend? Feel free to share while we all finish reading part three of Quantum Wellness for our discussion on Monday!

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

Reading List

Happy Wednesday VegNews Book Clubbers, and I hope you're enjoying Quantum Wellness 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 are our first three titles for 2011:

January: The Vegan Girl's Guide to Life by Melisser Elliott
February: Eating Animals by Jonathan Safron Foer
March: Veganist by Kathy Freston

Veganist is not yet out, but it will be hitting bookshelves early February, so just hold tight! I look forward to discussing these titles with you!

~VegNews Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

The Summary: Good afternoon VegNews Book Clubbers, and I hope everyone had a happy turkey-free Thanksgiving! Today, I'm going to wrap up last week's discussion on the conclusion of My Year of Meats by Ruth L. Ozeki, and then next week, we will begin to discuss Quantum Wellness by Kathy Freston. There's actually a correction for the homework—please read part one and two of the book for our discussion on Monday, December 6. I look forward to chatting about the book with you guys!

Last week, we discussed whether or not My Year of Meats is effective in teaching the readers the importance of vegetarianism. Second, Jane makes a comment in the book regarding ignorance, and how many people cultivate it in order to be protected from the horrors of the world, which we also talked about. It was a busy, holiday week, but I want to thank Kim for her wonderful comments!

I hope you guys enjoy the rest of your week and the first two sections of Quantum Wellness. See you next week!

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

The Gist: Good afternoon VegNews Book Clubbers! It is the final week of reading My Year of Meats by Ruth L. Ozeki, which we have now finished. Also, it is the week of Thanksgiving, meaning a short week for many of us, so instead of wrapping up our conversation this Friday, I will post the wrap up on Monday, November 29. That will give us a week off next week, and then we will begin to discuss December's book, Quantum Wellness by Kathy Freston. In addition, the next three books for the first quarter of 2011 will be announced next Monday, along with the wrap up. I'm looking forward to a great New Year with the VegNews Book Club!

Back to My Year of Meats, a lot takes place in the last several chapters of the novel. Jane is off to Colorado while pregnant to film a slaughterhouse for the next episode of My American Wife! The wife of the ranch's owner, Bunny Dunn, is Jane's cover, due to her being the typical American wife—blonde and big busted. Bunny has a five-year-old daughter, Rose, who rubs Jane and the rest of the crew the wrong way. They later realize that the little girl is already developing as a woman, which is obviously incredibly early. The reason for it happening is because Gale, the son of the ranch's owner, and operator, is feeding the cattle illegal DES as well as many other terrible things, such as other hormones, dead cattle, and even the excrement. The hormones being used have poisoned the little girl, causing her to go through puberty very early.

When Jane and the crew go to the film the slaughterhouse, it is very intense, and they get great footage. Unfortunately, Jane is knocked unconscious after witnessing the slaughter of a cow, due to the commotion. When she comes to, she finds out that she has lost her baby. She blames herself, even though the main reason for its death was due to her abnormal uterus.

Akiko also finds herself in a hospital after fainting from loss of blood, due to her husband raping her. While there, she realizes that she is pregnant, which inspires her to begin a new life. She finds out that her husband will be in the US until a certain time, and she decides to leave the night before he gets back, and she heads to New York. She contacts Jane on her way who meets her, and helps her to get her new life started, by introducing her to two of the families featured in My American Wife!—the Boudreoux family in Louisiana, and the lesbian couple, Lara and Dyann. Akiko decides to settle in New England, in a small town close to the two women.

Jane takes some time to deal with the death of her baby, but then sets her mind to editing the footage saved from the slaughterhouse, making it into a feature documentary. At first, she thinks that no one would want to see it, but after sending a copy to Bunny Dunn, the media has a feeding frenzy to get their hands on the tape. Jane is able to sell the film, giving her some hope that the problems of the meat industry will be exposed.

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

1. Do you think this book is affective in teaching the readers the importance of vegetarianism? In other words, if you were not yet a vegetarian/vegan, would you have been affected by this novel? Why or why not?

2. In Chapter 12, Jane says,"If we can't act on knowledge, then we can't survive without ignorance. So we cultivate the ignorance, go to great lengths to celebrate it, even." Do you agree with this statement? Why or why not?

3. Violence is clearly a theme in the novel. What parallels did you draw between the depictions of violence toward women and violence toward animals?

The Assignment: Please read the part one and two of Quantum Wellness by Kathy Freston for our discussion on Monday, December 6. Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig

The Summary: Welcome VegNews Book Clubbers to the conclusion of our second month of the VN Book Club, in which we are discussing the final chapters of Skinny Bitch by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin. We will be taking a break next week, but will start right back up on September 7 where we will begin talking about the first five chapters of The Jungle by Upton Sinclair. I hope you guys are as excited as me to read this classic novel about the atrocities of the Chicago meatpacking industry in the early 20th century, and hope that the extra week gives you plenty of time to read.

Back to our discussion on Skinny Bitch! I first asked how you maintain a positive attitude, and the answers mainly focused on exercise, particularly yoga, but Changeintomule even mentioned being a part of CrossFit, which is awesome! Personally, I have started to ride my bike much more, specifically to work and back, which has really changed my mood for the better. I also feel much more focused during work, and even at home.

Finally, I asked about your thoughts on some controversy of the tone of the book, as well as if you think that "skinny" equals "healthy." This question definitely spurred different answers and opinions, both negative and positive. I think that it's important to have these types of discussions, because these are the issues that matter most. The book can be interpreted in a variety of ways depending on your outlook. If you consider yourself a feminist, there is some troubling language in the book that does not help the cause. But if you look at it in a casual matter, it could be read as a close friend giving it to you straight.

Please feel free to share anymore thoughts on Skinny Bitch in this post's comments section. It was a great month of sharing and I look forward to discussing The Jungle!

I would also like to announce the books we will be reading for the next three months of the VegNews Book Club, beginning with October:

October: Animal Camp by Kathy Stevens
November: My Year of Meats by Ruth L. Ozeki
December: Quantum Wellness by Kathy Freston

I'm very excited about this lineup, and I hope you are, too. Have a great weekend!

~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig