Book Review: Bottomfeeder
Bottomfeeder, by Taras Grescoe, is a scathing indictment of mankind’s treatment of the ocean and the fish that inhabit it. Grescoe has attempted to write an Omnivore’s Dilemma for seafood, and why not? Pollan’s book was both informative and affecting, and Grescoe does well to aspire to that. Unfortunately, he only succeeds at the former. In fact, the book is so jam packed full of information, there’s almost no room for any personality at all.
Bottomfeeder is structured cleverly; each chapter follows a different kind of seafood and how it has been impacted by man. He covers oysters on the East Coast, and explores how they could be instrumental in restoring polluted waters. He explores the impact of gourmet popularity on the monkfish, once thought to be a by-catch unfit for the gourmand’s table. In the most horrifying chapter, he exposes the disgusting conditions by which shrimp is farmed, and I have never been so glad to be a vegetarian.
The basic argument of the book is that we need to eat seafood more carefully, and it’s hard to argue with that. But the book is short on suggestions; how does Grescoe propose we get the entire nation of Japan to stop eating so much fish? On his own journey to Japan, he explicitly decided to throw his principles of responsible eating out the window, and dined on the most expensive (and overfished) tuna as well as sampling whale sashimi.
The other problem with the book is its inconsistency. In one chapter he tells us that seafood substitution is a common practice in restaurants, partly due to the loose standards applied to the naming of fish. In another chapter he tells us to be discriminating when ordering fish, and not to order fish with sustainability issues. But if diners are fooled as much as he claims, then isn’t it meaningless to decide whether to order fish based on what the menu says?
There is a lot to like in Bottomfeeder, such as the frank discussion with one of the country’s most esteemed seafood chefs, Eric Ripert. Grescoe also does a nice job in tying the environmental damage done by overfishing into the story, but the book falls short on connecting to the reader on an emotional level. It’s all valuable and important information, and so I would like to think that this book will be a big success on the level of Omnivore’s Dilemma. However, this is not the book that will expose the seafood industry as the damaging superpower it so clearly is. Until that book comes along, Bottomfeeder will have to do.
Posted by Howard
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