What I've Read: Milk

First the goddess divine handed me a book called "Cocaine." I thought maybe she was giving me a hint. Was I supposed to start a coca cartel? I read the unabridged history of the famed drug, and I was compelled. Here was a book that was nonfiction but read like fiction. Good page-turner, nice twists and written with a voice that I just didn't want to stop reading more of.

After that book, I started hunting around for similarly written nonfiction books. I discovered "Salt" and never found a cooking product more fascinating. Other books soon followed of a similar vein, like "Thunderstruck" and "American Lightning." So now when I am in need of something to read, I am always looking for these kind of nonfiction books.

Mom picked up on my love of this type of writing and got me "Milk" for Christmas. Took me awhile to get around to it, but I finally tackled it. And it didn't take long. Not that it is the book's fault, but while the first 70 or so pages is a nice history of how milk came to dominate (somewhat unnecessarily) the American food culture, most of the book is just recipes.

I'm not saying you shouldn't read it, but true foodies and chefs will appreciate it more than the casual reader will. I feel there was more to learn about the milk producing regions, how chemistry has altered what we consider "milk" to actually be, and I know for sure that there was more to read about how the marketing of milk has created this false perception of milk being a must-have staple of a person's diet. I love milk, and I won't stop drinking the fair trade, organic stuff I pay a premium for, but "Milk" could have made me think more about this essential food item that cultures globally rely upon.