A recent
article in the New York Times features a new book about womyn's empowerment, veganism, and healthy doses of "fun." Titled "
Skinny Bitch in the Kitch" it is marketed as a cookbook for vegan womyn who are still "normal." The author puts it thusly,
We are normal girls. We like reality TV and purses, all the fun stuff. But we just happen to know that most of what normal girls put in their bodies on a daily basis is barely even food.
It is a strange combination which takes veganism out of its traditional political context, isolates the health and animal rights aspects, and inserts it into the "normal" American womyn's life. Here is another choice quote to illustrate further,
You know how you feel when a tall, thin, pretty woman walks by and something inside you wants to say, ‘That skinny bitch!’ The book takes that envy and anger and gives you a new place to put it.
In other places the author repudiates the association of thinness with health, but it is not apparent from the title and most of the statements describing the cookbook. I would like to see these kinds of issues discussed further, which I have not seen even on the blogs. For instance, I've not seen a mention of this on
Feministing or anywhere else (let me know if I am wrong).
For those looking for great vegan cookbooks,
Vegan Vittles is still my favorite, but I just got the new
Veganomnicon and it packs a wallop! I am looking forward to trying out this treasure trove of recipes and perhaps reporting back on them. If you have other suggestions or opinions about the Skinny Bitch phenomenon, leave them in the comments.
Labels: books, feminism, health, veganism
