Megean Weldon

An (Almost) Zero-Waste Life gives some reasonable and realistic expectations and suggestions on eliminating waste.

I like that this book didn't start off with the shame game. We all see that game being played on social media, by those special people (and typically Moms... lets be honest) who believe they are better than everybody else. This book gives tips and advice, but doesn't force the idea on the reader. I truly can respect books like this. Give me ideas and make me want to be better, don't shame me into it! This book also points out that while we're saying zero-waste, it's really low-waste (honestly, zero-waste is very hard - don't give yourself a standard you can't reach immediately!).

The tips provided are for newbies like me: we're all trying our best to do better in the world yet don't have all of the information. Simple suggestions like using what you have and start now with new non-one-use-plastic collections, wear out those plastics instead of throwing them out, eliminating clutter and finding reusable options are all provided to the reader.

There's suggestions for the kitchen, how to compost, home made make-up, holiday items and other useful ideas for all parts of your life. It's like a one stop shop for the low waste newbies. There's also recipes so if you like to cook then there's some awesome options in here for you! Seriously, this book feels like it has everything.

The design of the book is what really caught my eye initially and let me enjoy it more. The title cards for each chapter was beautifully designed - bright, eye catching and full of patterns. The little things like that really get to me as a reader.

My final positives: the 30 day challenge. It's wicked smart and worth a try! And references. Ah, this business student just LOVES references (seriously - that's a lot of hard work putting this book together! Respect!).

My biggest con of this book is that I recommend slowly eating away at it (pun intended, by the way). There's so much good information packed in this book that it's hard to absorb all at once. I almost felt over-whelmed (which is totally a good thing. We need smart books like this!).

Four out of five stars.

Thank you NetGalley and Quarto-Publishing Group - Rock Point for this magnificent read that was truly helpful and insightful.… (altro)