I have been wanting to add some kids books about vegetarianism and veganism to our family library for awhile now. Every month it seems we get closer to that way of eating since our “raw” journey began. Having some books to help reinforce other reasons to stop eating animals was on my to-do list. At the very least I wanted to open up a dialogue about the issue and see what my kids felt about it.
I opted to get a new book called That’s Why We Don’t Eat Animals, written and illustrated by the talented Ruby Roth. The gorgeous illustrations appealed to me and I loved this video when I saw it:
The books opens by showing the double standard of some animals being loved and cared for as pets and others be mistreated and viewed only as food sources. It then draws upon the concept of family and instinct to show how farmed animals are not living the life they are designed to live and why it is a form of cruelty to support factory farming and animal consumption. My 5 year old and 9 year old kids understood the concepts perfectly and the reaction (especially in my daughter) was swift. With every other page she would gasp and exclaim “That’s horrible!”
BUT the book was not grotesque or militant in any way… just straightforward about the reality of eating animals and what that means for the animals and the planet. It was not a doom and gloom book, despite the heavy subject matter and that is important to me. If you recall I railed against another kids book awhile back for being so militant and depressing. Unlike that other book this one does not paint humans as evil either. It really had no condemnation that I recall… only a look into the lives of factory farmed animals. Overall I would say it appeals to a child’s ideas about love and family to help them see why other sentient beings also deserve those things. Whatever reasons we may have to eat animals, those reasons are the ones we can’t explain away.
The book also talks about what it means to be a vegetarian and a vegan and it ends on a very pleasant and hopeful note. It shows how our food choices can have a very large impact for good.
In short, I really adore this book. It is beautifully illustrated and beautifully written. The last two pages could move you to happy tears and some big bear hugs. My two older kids were also VERY interested in what it had to say and it opened up a long dialogue about food choices. I can see this becoming a book we read before major food “events” like Thanksgiving and other holiday dinners. If you are a vegan, vegetarian or leaning in that direction, this is an awesome book to have. Even if you swear you will never give up your meat it is still a good book to have so you can expose your children to those options. Education is all about giving them the information and letting them process it and choose for themselves right?
Thumbs up to Ruby Roth, That’s Why We Don’t Eat Animals rocks!
Other kids books about veganism and vegetarianism:
Herb the Vegetarian Dragon & Hubert the Pudge: A Vegetarian Tale
