Michael Pollan Popular Books
Michael Pollan Biography & Facts
Michael Kevin Pollan (; born February 6, 1955) is an American author and journalist, who is currently the Knight Professor of Science and Environmental Journalism at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism.Pollan is best known for his books that explore the socio-cultural impacts of food, such as The Botany of Desire and The Omnivore's Dilemma. Early years Pollan was born to a Jewish family on Long Island, New York. He is the son of author and financial consultant Stephen Pollan and columnist Corky Pollan. Pollan received a B.A. in English from Bennington College in 1977 and an M.A. in English from Columbia University in 1981. Career The Botany of Desire In The Botany of Desire, Pollan explores the concept of co-evolution, specifically of humankind's evolutionary relationship with four plants—apples, tulips, marijuana, and potatoes—from the dual perspectives of humans and the plants. He uses case examples that fit the archetype of four basic human desires, demonstrating how each of these botanical species are selectively grown, bred, and genetically engineered. The apple reflects the desire for sweetness, the tulip for beauty, marijuana for intoxication, and the potato for control. Throughout the book, Pollan explores the narrative of his own experience with each of the plants, which he then intertwines with a well-researched exploration into their social history. Each section presents a unique element of human domestication, or the "human bumblebee" as Pollan calls it. These range from the true story of Johnny Appleseed to Pollan's first-hand research with sophisticated marijuana hybrids in Amsterdam, to the alarming and paradigm-shifting possibilities of genetically engineered potatoes. Pollan is critical of industrial monoculture claiming it leads to crops less able to defend themselves against predators and requiring large amounts of pesticides and fertilizers which upsets the natural ecosystem. The Omnivore's Dilemma In The Omnivore's Dilemma, Pollan describes four basic ways that human societies have obtained food: the current industrial system, the big organic operation, the local self-sufficient farm, and the hunter-gatherer. Pollan follows each of these processes—from a group of plants photosynthesizing calories through a series of intermediate stages, ultimately into a meal. Along the way, he suggests that there is a fundamental tension between the logic of nature and the logic of human industry, that the way we eat represents our most profound engagement with the natural world, and that industrial eating obscures crucially important ecological relationships and connections. On December 10, 2006, The New York Times named The Omnivore's Dilemma one of the five best nonfiction books of the year. On May 8, 2007, the James Beard Foundation named The Omnivore's Dilemma its 2007 winner for the best food writing. It was the book of focus for the University of Pennsylvania's Reading Project in 2007, and the book of choice for Washington State University's Common Reading Program in 2009–10. Pollan's discussion of the industrial food chain is in large part a critique of modern agribusiness. According to the book, agribusiness has lost touch with the natural cycles of farming, wherein livestock and crops intertwine in mutually beneficial circles. Pollan's critique of modern agribusiness focuses on what he describes as the overuse of corn for purposes ranging from fattening cattle to massive production of corn oil, high-fructose corn syrup, and other corn derivatives. He describes what he sees as the inefficiencies and other drawbacks of factory farming and gives his assessment of organic food production and what it's like to hunt and gather food. He blames those who set the rules (e.g., politicians in Washington, D.C., bureaucrats at the United States Department of Agriculture, Wall Street capitalists, and agricultural conglomerates like Archer Daniels Midland) of what he calls a destructive and precarious agricultural system that has wrought havoc upon the diet, nutrition, and well-being of Americans. Pollan finds hope in Joel Salatin's Polyface Farm in Virginia, which he sees as a model of sustainability in commercial farming. Pollan appears in the documentary film King Corn (2007). In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto Pollan's book In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto, released on January 1, 2008, explores the relationship with what he terms nutritionism and the Western diet, with a focus on late 20th century food advice given by the science community. Pollan holds that consumption of fat and dietary cholesterol does not lead to a higher rate of coronary disease, and that the reductive analysis of food into nutrient components is a mistake. Throughout the book, Pollan questions the view that the point of eating is to promote health, pointing out that this attitude is not universal and that cultures that perceive food as having purposes of pleasure, identity, and sociality may end up with better health. He explains this seeming paradox by vetting, and then validating, the notion that nutritionism and, therefore, the whole Western framework through which we intellectualize the value of food is more a religious and faddish devotion to the mythology of simple solutions than a convincing and reliable conclusion of incontrovertible scientific research. Pollan spends the rest of his book explicating his first three phrases: "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." He contends that most of what Americans now buy in supermarkets, fast food stores, and restaurants is not in fact food, and that a practical tip is to eat only those things that people of his grandmother's generation would have recognized as food. Food Rules: An Eater's Manual In 2009, Food Rules: An Eater's Manual was published. This short work is a condensed version of his previous efforts, intended to provide a simple framework for a healthy and sustainable diet. It is divided into three sections, further explicating Pollan's principles of "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." It includes his rules (i.e., "let others sample your food" and "the whiter the bread, the sooner you'll be dead"). Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation In Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation, published in 2013, Pollan explores the methods by which cooks mediate "between nature and culture." The book is organized into four sections corresponding to the classical elements of Fire (cooking with heat), Water (braising and boiling with pots), Air (breadmaking), and Earth (fermenting). The book also features Samin Nosrat, who later became known for the bestselling cookbook Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat, and as "the chef who taught Michael Pollan how to cook." A 2016 Netflix documentary series created by Alex Gibney is based on the book, starring Michael Pollan and Isaac Pollan. How to Change Your Mind In 2018, Pollan wrote How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About.... Discover the Michael Pollan popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Michael Pollan books.
Best Seller Michael Pollan Books of October 2022
Star Bright
Susannah NixApril 19, 2022GetShe’s an A-list Hollywood starlet. He’s a gossip reporter. Sleeping with the enemy has never been sweeter… Kimberleigh Cress didn’t get to be one of the one of the hottest youn...
Accidentally Aphrodite
Dakota CassidySeptember 24, 2019GetAn apple a day keeps the Goddess in play... Mythology buff Quinn Morris has always wanted to visit Greece, where her inner hardcore romantic envisioned proposing to her boyfriend. And she's ...
Unlocking Your Self-Confidence
James TurnbullNovember 15, 2021GetUnlock the secrets to developing self-confidence and unleash your true potential! James Turnbull's new book is primarily written as a short pocket-book guide for people with busy lives to ta...
An Acquired Taste
Kelly CainJune 8, 2021GetMay the best chef win... After four years at the country’s top culinary school and several years as head chef in her mother’s restaurant, Rowan Townsend has built a notable reputation. H...
Explicit Erotic Sex Short Stories
Brenda BlanchardJanuary 5, 2021GetBestselling Erotica Author Brenda Blanchard Is Giving Away a Collection of Some of Her Best Work! "Explicit Erotic Sex Short Stories" by Brenda Blanchard gives you a sneak peek into the sedu...
Kissing my Co-worker
J. SterlingDecember 16, 2021GetI've had a crush on my co-worker Declan since the day I started working at Rockline Studios. Trust me, if you could see this man, you'd have a crush on him too. It's been two yea...
Persuasion
Jane AustenDecember 31, 1817GetA woman of no importance, she manoeuvres in her restricted circumstances as her long-time love Captain Wentworth did in the wars. Even though she is nearly thirty, well past the sell-by bloo...
The Cornish Village School - Breaking the Rules
Kitty WilsonJune 11, 2018GetRosy Winter is definitely not looking for love. Following heartbreak, Rosy has rebuilt her life in the beautiful Cornish village of Penmenna. Now headmistress of the local school, she is liv...
Falling for a Rake
Eve PendleNovember 29, 2021GetHe's the most notorious rake in England. She's a Perfect Lady. Their secrets will come tumbling out. . . A sexy opposites attract fake engagement romance! Lady Emily can't afford a scandal. ...
Bred By The Boss #1: Alyssa
Arwen RichJuly 3, 2018GetAlyssa is untouched by any man – until her hot, demanding boss Mr. Ramirez comes into her life. Her fantasy comes true when he has his way with her, rough and unprotected. But as a result,...
A Royal Farce
Laura HeffernanNovember 23, 2021GetA ROYAL FARCE is the hilarious first book in the Retail to Riches series, which follows a plucky big box store employee on her journey from fighting to pay the bills to discovering she’s m...
Love in a Small Town
Zoe YorkOctober 6, 2020GetAre they one late-night hayride away from tumbling back into a very bad idea? Olivia Minelli needs a one-way ticket out of Pine Harbour. It's too small for both her and her ex-husband. So wh...
10-Minute Social Psychology
Albert RutherfordJune 7, 2020GetWould you like to instantly catch people's thoughts, emotions, motivations, and intentions through mere observation? If yes, you've come to the right place! 10-Minute So...
Mr. Nice Guy
Belinda WilliamsJune 28, 2021GetNICE GUYS CAN PLAY DIRTY TOO . . . 'Give me a week. Seven days and seven nights. I'll show you what it's like to be with a nice guy.' Chelsea's housemate Tom is tired of her complaining abou...
A Lot Like Home
Kathryn CantrellMay 21, 2018GetDestiny isn't a thing in her world. Smooth-talking strangers need not apply... Superstition Springs native Havana Nixon is convinced letting a big developer into their tiny Texas oasis is th...
Some Call It Love
Sarah PeisAugust 20, 2018Get"The best feel-good romcom you need right now." Goodreads reviewer A mistaken arrest, an unpaid debt, and a trip to Vegas. Living in a small town where everyone knows your business isn't eas...
iPhone User Guide
Apple Inc.September 20, 2021GetHere’s everything you need to know about iPhone, straight from Apple. This definitive guide helps you get started using iPhone with iOS 15 and discover all the amazing things it can do.
My Always One
Aleatha RomigJuly 27, 2021GetMY ALWAYS ONE: Friends to lovers stand alone When we were young, Samantha Anderson was the girl down the street. For as long as I remember, she’s been my partner in crime, in adventu...
Maverick
Brenda RothertAugust 24, 2021GetThe Vegas heat just kicked up a notch with the arrival of ice hockey’s newest expansion team – the Sin City Saints. Maverick Hagen’s fall from grace was more like a crash landing. His ...
The Bangover
Lili ValenteOctober 3, 2019GetNote to Self --Do NOT bang your best guy friend in the limo on the way to the swanky Vegas hotel. I give myself very good advice. Too bad I suck at taking it. If only Colin and I hadn't ...
The Deal
Elle KennedyFebruary 24, 2015GetThe international bestseller! Get ready for another binge-worthy romance from New York Times bestselling author Elle Kennedy! She's about to make a deal with the college bad boy… Hannah We...
Right Time
Lexy TimmsFebruary 11, 2022GetDon't rush on anything. If the time is right, it will happen. Rae I've always known I was meant to get out of the dead-end side of town where I was born. Trevor is my plan. He's from t...
So Wrong It's Right
Julie JohnsonNovember 2, 2018GetShelby Hunt has the perfect life, married to the perfect man. At least, that’s what anyone would think, looking at her. They couldn’t possibly know about the past five years of lonely ni...
Scraps of Paper
Kathryn Meyer GriffithSeptember 13, 2014GetAbigail Sutton's beloved husband walks out one night, doesn't return, and two years later is found dead, a victim of a long ago crime. It's made her sympathetic to the missing and their fami...
Contract with a SEAL
Kate AsterSeptember 7, 2016GetSome contracts are meant to be broken... Desperate to shake herself free from the humiliation of a very public divorce, TV financial correspondent Vi Owens makes a deal with a Navy SEAL Comm...
Jaxon
Olivia SandsJune 2, 2019GetShe's his little sister's best friend. Completely off limits. And now they're working together. Jaxon Green 's plans to offer a summer camp for kids at his thoroughbred training ...
Falling for Prince Charming: A Feel-Good Romantic Comedy
Sophie-Leigh RobbinsSeptember 7, 2021GetFalling for your best friend's brother is tricky… unless you're keeping it a secret. Elle I never thought I'd be serving hotdogs dressed as an actual hotdog at the local amusement park. No...
Croc's Return
Eve LanglaisDecember 3, 2015GetWelcome to Bitten Point, where the swamp doesn't just keep its secrets, it sometimes eats them. Take one deadly bite and, bam, a man's life is changed forever, or so Caleb discovers when a l...
The Recruiting Trip
Lexy TimmsNovember 19, 2014GetAspiring college athlete Aileen Nessa is finding the recruiting process beyond daunting. Being ranked #10 in the world for the 100m hurdles at the age of eighteen is not a fluke, even though...
Think and Grow Rich
Greg Habstritt & Napoleon HillDecember 23, 2010GetThink and Grow Rich is one of the most popular success book of all-time, having sold more than 60 million copies since it was first published more than 70 years ago. It&...
Let's Taco Bout It
Matthew RyanOctober 1, 2014GetMr Taco is feeling sad, it’s not easy being a little taco when everything around you is so BIG! Luckily, Patrick has a few ideas to help his friend... ———— NOT YOUR REGULAR S...
Romancing His Rival
Poppy St JamesAugust 16, 2021GetTwo enemies. One wedding. The plan was simple . . . until they started to fall for each other. Noah and Olivia are total opposites. She’s buttoned up and proper, focused en...
Hook
Chelle BlissJanuary 15, 2019GetFalling in love is supposed to be the easy part. But nothing prepared me for losing my wife. I promised her that I’d love again. Find someone to mend my broken heart. And that seems imposs...
Liberty Begins
Leigh JamesFebruary 13, 2015GetAdventure. Fate. From Rags to Riches… My name is Liberty and I'm a good girl. I come from nothing. I have no one but myself. Sometimes I do things I don't want to -- I do them beca...
Small Town Big Rumors
Willow WintersFebruary 8, 2022GetHe tasted like tequila and the fake name I gave him was Rose. Four years ago, I decided to get over one man, by getting under another. A single night and nothing more. I found my handsome st...
Bedtime Stories for Kids
Uncle AmonJune 15, 2015GetAre you looking for a children's book that is highly entertaining, great for early readers, and is jam-packed with bedtime stories? This children's storybook has it all! This is an excellent...
Persuasion
Jane AustenJune 16, 2020GetPersuasion was published in 1817, six months after Jane Austen’s death, and is the last novel she completed in full. The novel tells the story of Anne Elliot, now in her late 20s, the daug...
The Sheep Who Couldn't Sleep
Simon JamieAugust 1, 2012GetOne night down on Hillside Farm Everything was quiet and calm But all alone there lay a sheep Who found he couldn't get to sleep. Follow Sheep as he tries to find the best way to get to slee...
Today I Am Mad
Michael GordonSeptember 7, 2020GetKids feel emotions in big ways! Here's a great story for helping kids manage their feelings. * Help children learn to identify and regulate their ...
Don't Play With Odin
Cynthia EdenJuly 13, 2021GetBig, bad, and currently out of his element... Odin Shaw thought he’d spend his life on a battlefield. But fate had other plans, and now the former Special Forces operative has just landed ...
Savage Prince
Meghan MarchApril 24, 2018GetWho knew things could get even darker and dirtier in New Orleans? New York Times bestselling author Meghan March introduces the Savage Prince of the city, the man you...
A Match for the Marine
Jess MastorakosMarch 31, 2021GetMatchmaker Rule #1: Never fall in love with the client. After working my way to the top, I'm in the running to become the CEO of Southern California's premier matchmaking service. All I have...
Finding Cinderella
Colleen HooverOctober 14, 2013Get#1 New York Times bestselling author of It Ends With Us writes a free novella about the search for happily ever after. A chance encounter in the dark leads eighteen-year-old Daniel and the g...
The Great Gatsby
F. Scott FitzgeraldApril 10, 1925GetAn Apple Books Classics edition. The Roaring Twenties are in full effect in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s riveting classic. Man-about-town Jay Gatsby seems to have it all, including loads of money...
Lola Is Missing
Alison JamesFebruary 7, 2018Get‘I was hooked from page one and couldn’t put it down until I’d reached the end. The twists and turns just keep coming … will have you gasping in surprise.’ Goodreads Reviewer...
The Lost Siren
Raven StormMay 16, 2022GetA human female born into a breeding manor never has a choice…I am a slave, but at least I am alive. When the man with wings and scales gave me a second choice—I took it. I'll do what I m...
Coming Home to Glendale Hall
Victoria WaltersSeptember 25, 2019Get'WOW! From the first page I was absolutely hooked ...Would highly recommend to get you in a feel good mood!’ (5 stars) Netgalley reviewer Uplifting and full of heart - this is an utter tre...
Secrets and Scandals
Piper GlendaleMay 5, 2022GetEmily Delaney, a reporter for one of Hollywood’s hottest gossip magazines, has her world turned upside down when her former journalism mentor dies, and she is called back to the hometown s...
Let's Talk About Hard Things
Anna SaleMay 4, 2021GetFrom the host of the popular WNYC podcast Death, Sex, & Money , Let’s Talk About Hard Things is “like a good conversation with a friend” ( The New Yorker ) where “no topic is off...
Best Seller Michael Pollan Audio Books of October 2022
- How To Win Friends And Influence People (Unabridged)Dale Carnegie$14.99
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- Hornet's NestPatricia Cornwell$3.99
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- In the Blood (Unabridged)Jack Carr$14.99
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- The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond YourselfMichael A. Singer$12.99
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- Maybe Someday (Unabridged)Colleen Hoover$4.99
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- Savage Son (Unabridged)Jack Carr$14.99
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- Extreme OwnershipJocko Willink & Leif Babin$14.99
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- Scars and Stripes (Unabridged)Tim Kennedy$16.99
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- The Devil's Hand (Unabridged)Jack Carr$14.99
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- The Hotel NantucketElin Hilderbrand$16.99
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- The Paris ApartmentLucy Foley$14.99
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- Untamed (Unabridged)Glennon Doyle$16.99
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- The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ckMark Manson$16.99
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- They Want to Kill AmericansMalcolm Nance$19.99
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- I'd Like to Play Alone, PleaseTom Segura$16.99
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- November 9 (Unabridged)Colleen Hoover$16.99
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- Finding MeViola Davis$19.99
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- The AlchemistPaulo Coelho$14.99
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- Harry Potter and the Goblet of FireJ.K. Rowling$39.99
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- Thank You for Your Servitude: Donald Trump's Washington and the Price of Submission (Unabridged)Mark Leibovich$16.99
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- How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence (Unabridged)Michael Pollan$14.99
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- The Secret (Unabridged)Rhonda Byrne$12.99
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- The Last Thing He Told Me (Unabridged)Laura Dave$16.99
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- You Are a Badass®Jen Sincero$14.99
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- The Fellowship of the RingJ.R.R. Tolkien$19.99
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- The It Girl (Unabridged)Ruth Ware$14.99
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- Upgrade: A Novel (Unabridged)Blake Crouch$14.99
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- The Richest Man in BabylonGeorge S. Clason$3.99
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- We'll Always Have SummerJenny Han$16.99
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- The Midnight Library: A Novel (Unabridged)Matt Haig$14.99
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