 Book Info | |||
 | |||
| |||
 enlarge picture |
Chew On This: Everything You Don't Want to Know About Fast Food | ||
| Author: | Eric Schlosser | ||
| ISBN: | 0618710310 | ||
| Format: | |||
| Publish Date: | |||
 |
 |
 |
|
| |||
| Book Review | |||
| |||
| |||
|
Kids love fast food. And the fast food industry definitely loves kids. It couldn't survive without them. Did you know that the biggest toy company in the world is McDonald's? It's true. In fact, one out of every three toys given to a child in the United States each year is from a fast food restaurant. Not only has fast food reached into the toy industry, it's moving into our schools. One out of every five public schools in the United States now serves brand name fast food. But do kids know what they're eating? Where do fast food hamburgers come from? And what makes those fries taste so good? When Eric Schlosser's best-selling book, Fast Food Nation, was published for adults in 2001, many called for his groundbreaking insight to be shared with young people. Now Schlosser, along with co-writer Charles Wilson, has investigated the subject further, uncovering new facts children need to know. In Chew On This, they share with kids the fascinating and sometimes frightening truth about what lurks between those sesame seed buns, what a chicken 'nugget' really is, and how the fast food industry has been feeding off children for generations. Featuring cover art by M. Wartella. Chew On This: Everything You Don't Want to Know About Fast Food FROM OUR EDITORS In this book, bestselling author Eric Schlosser directs insights from his groundbreaking expos?, Fast Food Nation, to the preteens and adolescents who comprise the fast food industry's biggest market. Focusing on topics of special interest to young readers, Schlosser and his journalist coauthor, Charles Wilson, go behind the scenes to slaughterhouses, factories, and restaurant chains to present some eye-opening -- and occasionally stomach-churning -- facts about fast food and its impact on health, economy, community, and more. Kids will learn fascinating tidbits of information, like who invented the hamburger, why french fries taste so good, how TV commercials target kids, and what happens to your body when you eat too much junk food. Most important, they'll learn how to make informed decisions about their buying and eating habits and how to take a stand against the most seductive and unhealthy aspects of our culture. FROM THE PUBLISHER Kids love fast food. And the fast food industry definitely loves kids. It couldn't survive without them. Did you know that the biggest toy company in the world is McDonald's? It's true. In fact, one out of every three toys given to a child in the United States each year is from a fast food restaurant. Not only has fast food reached into the toy industry, it's moving into our schools. One out of every five public schools in the United States now serves brand name fast food. But do kids know what they're eating? Where do fast food hamburgers come from? And what makes those fries taste so good? When Eric Schlosser's best-selling book, Fast Food Nation, was published for adults in 2001, many called for his groundbreaking insight to be shared with young people. Now Schlosser, along with co-writer Charles Wilson, has investigated the subject further, uncovering new facts children need to know. In Chew On This, they share with kids the fascinating and sometimes frightening truth about what lurks between those sesame seed buns, what a chicken 'nugget' really is, and how the fast food industry has been feeding off children for generations. Featuring cover art by M. Wartella. FROM THE CRITICS Publishers Weekly The author of Fast Food Nation partners with Wilson to serve up a stinging, often startling expos on this country's pervasive, lucrative fast-food industry, for young people. The book's scope is exhaustive and sometimes exhausting, starting with a history of the hamburger, the advent of drive-in restaurants and the debut and mushrooming of McDonald's. The text dwells on this chain's effective if manipulative marketing campaigns aimed at children, noting that its outlets disperse more than 1.5 billion toys annually. The book also covers the plight of fast-food restaurant workers; the steep mark-up on fast-food items; the low nutritional value of many school cafeteria menus featuring fast food; and the fast-food industry's ample contribution to America's obesity epidemic. Making for sometimes unpleasant though undeniably edifying reading is a lengthy account of how the animals that provide fast food meats are fed, slaughtered and processed. In some cases, the subtitle's promise comes through in inadvertent ways, as the narrative provides perhaps an overabundance of details. But in the end, Schlosser and Wilson leave readers with a powerful suggestion that "the solution starts with you," urging them to consider the ramifications of placing an order at a fast-food counter, thereby setting into motion "the ripple effect near and far." Many who have digested the information dished out here will do as the convincing authors hope: head for the exit. Copious endnotes document sources of statistics and statements. Ages 11-13. (May) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.
| |||
