Meat Eater: Adventures From the Life of an American Hunter
Meat Eater: Adventures From the Life of an American Hunter - Unsigned Copy
Meat Eater chronicles Rinella’s lifelong relationship with nature and hunting through the lens of ten hunts, beginning when he was an aspiring mountain man at age ten and ending as a thirty-seven-year-old Brooklyn father who hunts in the remotest corners of North America. He tells of having a struggling career as a fur trapper just as fur prices were falling; of a dalliance with catch-and-release steelhead fishing; of canoeing in the Missouri Breaks in search of mule deer just as the Missouri River was freezing up one November; and of hunting the elusive Dall sheep in the glaciated mountains of Alaska.
Through each story in the book, Rinella grapples with themes such as the role of the hunter in shaping America, the vanishing frontier, the ethics of killing, the allure of hunting trophies, the responsibilities that human predators have to their prey, and the disappearance of the hunter himself as Americans lose their connection with the way their food finds its way to their tables. Hunting, he argues, is intimately connected with our humanity; assuming responsibility for acquiring the meat that we eat, rather than entrusting it to proxy executioners, processors, packagers, and distributors, is one of the most respectful and exhilarating things a meat eater can do.
A thrilling storyteller with boundless interesting facts and historical information about the land, the natural world, and the history of hunting, Rinella also includes after each chapter a section of “Tasting Notes” that draws from his thirty-plus years of eating and cooking wild game, both at home and over a campfire. In Meat Eater he paints a loving portrait of a way of life that is part of who we are as humans and as Americans.
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Customer Reviews
This book was a fantastic read. I'm not one that would call myself a reader but since becoming a new father I've been reading literature more often. Titles such as Beyond Fair Chase and others that fall within the hunting and fishing categories. I've been doing this to in anticipation to pass on things that my father had thought me to my son such as the ethics and culture that surround these ventures. This title was captivating. I'd find myself staying up late to read further into its chapters. Many portions of its text remind me of growing up in East Texas learning from my father about the woods and the lakes. My favorite part is when Steven Rinella refers to PETA as softies questioning the foundation of our history. This really stood out to me and made me laugh loud enough to wake my wife in the middle of the night because it reminded me of a essay I wrote in high school which I titled ""Why PETA is the devil"". That was possibly the only essay throughout my education that I legitimately researched and cited for a passing grade. Taking into account everything I've read so far this book as accomplished rekindling the emotions the I've felt over the years in the woods and on the waters throughout my own adventures.
I love Steven Rinella's style of writing. He's informative and honest. He makes you feel a connection with his stories.
One of the most well written books I've read. It's truly something I can read over and over again. Currently reading it to my 2 year old and he loves it as much as I do!
There is a ton of factual information and great stories in this well written book.
The meateater show got me into hunting, the meateater book made me understand the thinking behind the act of hunting, it's not just killing an animal, it's way more than that. It's providing for your family and truly loving and appreciating the game that you have harvested. I like the little tasting notes in the book, they're really cool. They're a great insight to good one might not otherwise try such as beaver tail, and I love the history behind all of it.