The Vegan Monologues

Loved this book... really! Bought four extra copies for Christmas presents for non-vegan friends. The book is funny at times, serious at others, and the stories will make you smile. It's a short, easy read (and a great gift for those you are trying to gently nudge into a kinder lifestyle).

Wonderful snippets about life as a vegan, but I was pleasantly surprised that the book covers much more ground, including touching essays about friends and family. Would make a great gift.

Once I started reading The Vegan Monologues, I couldn't put it down. Shaberman's voice, a combination of wit and uncompromising honesty, kept me captivated throughout the delightful (and often delectable) journey of essays related to his uncompromising stance as a vegan and human observer. The theme of veganism in the first section, "Is that a Carrot in your Pocket?," pulls the essays together, yet still allows for the thought provoking diversions that color Shaberman's memories and further develop the poignancy of his experiences in the second section, "Twigs and Seeds." Lines like "Tofu is to a vegetarian like duct tape is to a handyman" highlight the mass appeal of Shaberman's book, as his words connect his vegan lifestyle to the practices of "carnivores" with humorous and surprising accuracy. Readers of all dietary lifestyles are able to fully appreciate Shaberman's approach, finding a comfort level that is appropriate, yet still tantalizing. Shaberman's ability to find accessible language that pushes past the conventional experience is original and refreshing. In a manner that reflects his own self described subtle method of proselytizing, the reader learns about the nuances of vegetarianism "through their own actions" of reading and consuming Shaberman's carefully prepared and textured words.

I accidentally bought this book. Or, rather, it was an impulse buy. Or both. I was Google-ing something else (I can't remember what), and somehow this book showed up in a Google search. And then I bought it. I couldn't resist. But the point of this meandering story is that: this very short collection of essays is brilliant and highly entertaining! I loved every single essay. They are hilarious and poignant, educational and, well, completely the opposite of that. The very first essay actually made me tear up (for a few seconds) reading about the author's partner's dying cat (I had to have a dramatic vegan moment, mais oui!), and then I laughed again two sentences later when Shaberman reaches for his inhaler (I don't want to give away too much). This book took me less than two hours to read from cover to cover. I didn't want it to end, of course; but I also felt more than a little bit appreciative of the fact that the author didn't stick any fluff in this collection--choosing quality over quantity (I didn't just think this quality was simply rare, I thought it was extinct!). To borrow an ad jingle, The Vegan Monologues is good to the last drop. Plus, it's cheaper than the vegan Chinese take-out the author is apparently obsessed with---with less fat. I recommend that you, too, commit an impulse buy, right away.