My husband and I have been weaning ourselves from fast food for a long time. Mostly it's because I've discovered home-cooked food and how much more filling it is than eating out all the time and another reason is that we have two small children ~~ we want them to eat nutritious meals before getting hooked on fast food. Another reason is that when we were kids, we were taken to McDonald's as a special treat ~~ it was a big deal to eat out then.I wish I hadn't read this book because I took my sons to McDonald's the other night to celebrate their first Christmas program ever ~~ and throughout my meal, I kept having visions of what this author was telling in his book. I probably won't stop eating at fast food restaurants, but I won't be a big time consumer in the future.I have never read Upton Sinclair's book ~~ but would like to eventually since Schlosser shared a few pieces from that book. I am honestly appalled by the meat packing plants and their lack of concern. I am appalled by what animals eat ~~ and what is being processed into our food. I am appalled but not surprised.Schlosser writes a very thorough study on how fast food (namely McDonald's but there are others) have changed the economy ~~ not for good either ~~ and how it has a long-reaching impact on everyone's lives today. He writes of the meat-packing plants, diseases that have been discovered and the unsanitary practices ~~ things behind the scene that most people don't realize. There are a lot of politics involved in the whole process of what goes in our food and our animals ~~ and while others might find this book bashing the whole fast food industry, I didn't. I found it interesting and disturbing how it changed the whole economic landscape of our country. Schlosser has written positive things about different companies or executives ~~ but mainly, he writes passionately and in some cases, dispassionately, about this whole epidemic of fast food eaters.Like I mentioned, I won't stop eating some fast food, but this book has disturbed me enough to start thinking of changing my eating habits ~~ mine and my family's. I highly recommend reading this book just for the sheer volume of facts and history behind the food industry. It's better to be informed. Not only is it informative, it is interesting. This is your food and should be an impartial issue, but it's not. And that is just the beginning of a very informative read.12-9-05 

Question: How is life?
Answer: My husband and