Ruth Reichl author of Delicious!
"Before Tomatoland, I thought I knew about the American way of farming. Barry Estabrook proved that I was wrong, painting a devastating portrait of what was really taking place out in the fields. It changed the way I cook and eat. Pig Tales is even more illuminating, a window into the world of pigs and pig farmers that every American omnivore needs to read. You will never look at a piece of pork in quite the same way."
Alice Waters
"A beautiful and clear-eyed examination of the world of pigs and pig farming. With his engaging prose and soulful, riveting stories, [Estabrook] illuminates the complexities of the pig industry and the desperate need for reform."
Ruth Reichl
"Before Tomatoland, I thought I knew about the American way of farming. Barry Estabrook proved that I was wrong, painting a devastating portrait of what was really taking place out in the fields. It changed the way I cook and eat. Pig Tales is even more illuminating, a window into the world of pigs and pig farmers that every American omnivore needs to read. You will never look at a piece of pork in quite the same way."
Nature
"Cogent, level-headed."
Raleigh News & Observer - Peter A. Coclanis
"Excellent…a more balanced and nuanced complement to muckraking works on similar subjects by Upton Sinclair (The Jungle) and, more recently, Eric Schlosser (Fast Food Nation)."
EatingWell - Jim Romanoff
"Masterfully blends storytelling with succinct explanations of policy and science…a must-read."
Wall Street Journal - Christopher Kimball
"Estabrook, a reporter of iron constitution and persistence, has dug deep into the truth about the American pork industry without losing his sense of humor and humanity. Gruesome on one hand; funny on the other."
Seattle Times - Steve Weinberg
"Estabrook demonstrates his skill with words to tell compelling true stories…authoritative yet approachable."
Cathy Barrow
"Estabrook turns his keen journalistic eye to pig production . . . [and] provides balance in the engaging tales of farmers and processors who are thoughtful and eminently human. . . . [A] must-read."
Michael Ruhlman
"Estabrook puts his substantial reporting, storytelling, and writing talents in the service of the pig. He documents the horrors perpetrated in America on this miracle creature, but he also describes the ways to break away from those horrors. . . . Pig Tales appalled me, terrified me, and then filled me with hope."
Marion Nestle
"Estabrook tells two powerful stories here. The first is about the appalling ways in which Big Pig raises animals. . . . The second is about how skilled animal husbandry and respect for the intelligence of pigs produces . . . a far more satisfying life for farmers and pigs alike. Pig Tales is beautifully written. It is also deeply touching."
Nature Lib
"Cogent, level-headed."
From the Publisher
"A thoroughly researched, deftly written piece of investigative journalism." ---Kirkus Starred Review
From the Publisher - AUDIO COMMENTARY
"A thoroughly researched, deftly written piece of investigative journalism." —Kirkus Starred Review
Kirkus Reviews
★ 2015-02-04
Former Gourmet contributing editor Estabrook (Tomatoland: How Modern Industrial Agriculture Destroyed Our Most Alluring Fruit, 2011) presents a journalistic exposé of the pork industry with the same skill demonstrated in his exploration of the tomato industry.The saga is difficult to resist after the opening sentence: "A pork chop nearly got me thrown in jail." The threat originated from an irritated judge in a small-town Illinois courtroom, where the locals had filed a lawsuit against a gigantic pork producer running an industrial hog facility causing such a stench and other unpleasantness that their rural way of life had been diminished beyond redemption. Estabrook escaped jail time, but the judge expelled him from the courtroom due to a momentary exchange between the journalist and a plaintiff's attorney. Numerous important books have appeared in the past decade about the evils of industrial slaughterhouses. In that sense, Estabrook's book might seem like a retread, but it stands out because of its narrow rather than broad scope. He examines pork production only; no beef, chicken or sheep enter the narrative. The author is clearly appalled by the conditions he documents in a variety of large-scale facilities, but he presents the evidence with a subtle touch and rightfully allows the villains an opportunity to explain their practices. Heroes emerge in almost every chapter—e.g., hog producers who care about humane treatment, lawyers who represent rural residents on quality-of-life issues, government inspectors of slaughterhouses who try to enforce the law only to be castigated by their bosses, who are often in cahoots with corporate titans. A journey to Denmark showed Estabrook how sanitary, humane practices can produce excellent pork. Unfortunately, though, as in other realms, he discovered that many Americans don't see the value of learning from other nations. A thoroughly researched, deftly written piece of investigative journalism. Estabrook and his partner still eat bacon, but they are careful about the source of the pork.
