As a Big Bang Theory fan, I really enjoy watching Sara Gilbert playing Leslie Winkle opposite her former Roseanne co-star Johnny Galecki. So, when channel surfing by The Talk, I stopped to watch Sara Gilbert talk about her crunchy book, The Imperfect Environmentalist. I’m relatively new at being crunchy, so her book immediately appealed to me.
Gilbert’s premise is to provide information on becoming green while simultaneously accepting that we each have limits to what we can accomplish. She includes many small changes you can make beyond organic produce and recycling. Gilbert explains how to drive greener, buy at thrift stores, reduce the amount of beef you eat, and unplug appliances to lessen your footprint. Meanwhile, she also includes the huge lifestyle changes, such as eating vegan and macrobiotic diets and living off the grid. The book is an excellent resource for starting a journey to be crunchy or for discovering the next step in your journey.
Gilbert breaks her book into ten sections on clean: eating and drinking, house, home, garden, health and beauty, community, work and money, transportation and travel, parenting, and rites of passage. Blueberries, lipstick, religion, investing: Every part of daily life she gives advice on how to make it more green. Each section devotes just one page per smaller topic. For further ease of use, each page is broken down into three levels of intensity of information. Some topics also have break downs for budgeting. The writing is informative, yet the small chunks and humor (lots of puns and sarcasm!) make it a fast read and very easy to skim.
I borrowed the book from the library, but now that I’ve read it, I plan to buy a copy. Gilbert presents a wealth of information, far too much to just remember and implement, especially with all the details like chemical names to look for in your household products. Similarly, Gilbert gives many web addresses to find more information or to locate “green” products, with recommendations for everything from green tours and green jobs to baby layettes and toys. Owning a copy makes referencing these recommendations much easier. Just make sure you look for a used copy!
Have you had a chance to read The Imperfect Environmentalist? Or, do you have a different crunchy book you life by?
