While in the process of going vegan, I tore through several vegan-themed books within a couple weeks. Among them: Vegan Freak by Bob and Jenna Torres, Animal Liberation by Peter Singer, Skinny Bitch by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin, and, of course, The Sexual Politics of Meat by Carol J. Adams, a book which has profoundly changed my life in more ways than I can count (see: Defiant Daughters).
I read these volumes because each offered various insights to aid my transition to veganism. In 2005, the year I went vegan, there weren’t as many resources available online and as an eighteen-year-old, I didn’t know many peers who were vegan. Books provided information, motivation, and a plan for me to eschew animal products as well as arm myself with language to share my transition with others.
As I approach my eight-year vegan anniversary, I’ll admit I’ve really lagged when it comes to reading animal rights books. Recently I’ve been thinking a lot about the purpose of vegan books for already-vegan audiences. The value of vegan cookbooks for vegans is pretty obvious–who isn’t a fan of new recipe collections? But what about animal rights books for those of us who have already committed to fighting animal welfare injustices? I thought that since I didn’t need to watch Meat Your Meat ever again in order to know why I wouldn’t want to use animal products, there may not be a strong need for me to continue to read vegan books post-transition. After all, didn’t I already “know the deal”?
After reading Animal Camp: Reflections On A Decade of Love, Hope and Veganism at Catskill Animal Sanctuary by Kathy Stevens, I’ve realized why it’s still important for longstanding (ish?) vegans like myself to continue to educate ourselves about animal welfare concerns through vegan books and media. Stevens’ book is beautifully written, filled with stories and anecdotes about what life is really like working at Catskill Animal Sanctuary (CAS), and it has helped me see that there’s still so much I can learn as a vegan about animal welfare issues.
Before reading Animal Camp, I had no idea that animal hoarding cases were some of the top sources of abused animals in need of rescue at places like CAS. I believed animal hoarding was rare and properly addressed under our legal system, but the truth is that the problem is much more prevalent in the United States than I could have imagined, and through archaic laws, animal hoarders are often able to get off with probation and nearly always quickly become repeat offenders. Another shocking fact: many hoarders are even able to receive “animal sanctuary” designations to mask their actions. Stevens describes a chilling seizure of abused animals from another so-called animal sanctuary where starving dogs were literally eating lamas alive. Truly awful to read, yes, but even more awful that it goes on. I hope to continue to learn more about animal hoarding so that I can become a more informed animal welfare advocate.
Another amazing aspect of Animal Camp is that it is filled with heartwarming stories that reveal the diversity of personalities and habits of various animal species at CAS without a trace of anthropomorphism. Think stories of chickens nuzzling up to goats, an abused, malnourished horse and a quadruplet of Giardia-ridden baby cows making complete recoveries due to excellent round-the-clock sanctuary care and their remarkable resilience. Stevens reminds us that every animal is an individual, and that the best thing animal advocates can do is truly to go vegan. Worse than animal hoarding (as bad as it is) is the systematic cruelty inherent to animal agriculture industries.
The depth of information and inspiring stories contained in Animal Camp has renewed my vegan spirit. I know it has and will continue to allow me to be a better vegan advocate and continues to inspire me to be a lifelong vegan. I think it would appeal as easily to a non-vegan as a vegan, but am grateful that as a vegan I have had the opportunity to read it. I can’t wait to read another vegan book soon! Grab your copy of Animal Camp here.
queerveganfood.com 
Lovely post, Sarah! I’ve heard nothing but great things about this book, so now I simply must read it for myself.
I completely agree that vegans and animal advocates must never stop reading, learning, and educating themselves. It’s silly to think that just because we’ve been vegan for a couple of years now, we know the ins and outs of every issue surrounding the animal rights movement–goodness me, I don’t think anyone ever could! My current stack of vegan lit includes The Animal Activist’s Handbook, Change of Heart, The Sexual Politics of Meat (which I just finished and will be handing onto my mother soon!), Vegan for Life, and a whole host of others just waiting in my Amazon wishlist. My primary goal for the near future, though, is to inundate myself with as much intersectional literature as possible, so as to better address issues of food deserts, institutional racism, sexism, and cissexism as they relate to animal rights. Any suggestions for books/articles would be much appreciated!
Keep up the fabulous writing, dearest! I feel more and more honored to know you each and every day.
-Alessandra.
Alessandra, thank you for this sweet comment!! Your book stack sounds epic, and I may have to grab a few of those titles for my shelf. I am so grateful to know you and the feeling is completely mutual!
[…] Full story […]
http://www.animalpeoplenews.org/05/9/whathasnokillaccomp9.05.htm
“As the age of printed humane literature morphed into the age of web sites, cover qualifiers are increasingly bypassed. Hoarders have found in no-kill rhetoric a renewed excuse for collecting large numbers of animals and keeping them in conditions of mass neglect. Enablers of hoarders are more numerous and vociferous than ever before, and so are hoarding cases.
During the first six months of 2005, ANIMAL PEOPLE received information on 133 cases of alleged mass neglect of dogs and cats by “rescuers” and individuals of unclear motive, seven cases by suspected dogfighters, six cases by pet stores, and 20 cases by breeders, plus 10 mass neglect cases involving sheep or goats, one involving rodents, 33 involving horses, one involving pigs, and six involving birds, for a total of 217––an increase of approximately 60% since 1998.”
Sarah!!
I’m grateful for and moved by your review of Animal Camp!! Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!
Catskill Animal Sanctuary has a dual mission: 1. emergency rescue of farmed animals 2. creating more vegans!!
With the second part of our mission in mind, I write largely for non-vegans, trying so hard to strike that balance between sharing enough heart-warming, feel-good stories to hold their attention and sharing harder truths about animal agriculture and the suffering of animals (non-human and human) and the planet. I don’t judge meat-eaters–we were all meat-eaters!!–instead, by bringing “food animals” to life, I try to appeal to the compassion that’s in all of us.
If my stories impact vegans as well, then I’m dancing on air. Buoying vegans–people working for a different world, just like the abolitionists did? Hell yeah! I’m so happy my book was informative and inspirational. Thank you, more than I can say.
Kathy Stevens! What a complete and unexpected honor to hear from you! 😉 Thank you so much for taking the time to read my review of your wonderful book and comment here. I am so touched!
It is rare that a reviewer gets to hear from an author she respects, and it is amazing to hear more about why you wrote the book and do the work you do.
I will continue to share your work others, and look forward to staying connected to your work and CAS! All the best, and thank you! Sarah