I love books! Fiction, non-fiction, print or audio, I take a lot of inspiration from the books on my shelf. If you’re looking for some new recommendations, see mine below.
A Zero Waste Life by Anita Vandyke
If you have been wanting to go plastic or waste free and haven’t been sure where to start, I couldn’t recommend this book more highly!
Anita Vandyke is a qualified Engineer in Aeronautical Space (aka a Rocket Scientist), but after deciding to quit her high paying job she realised it was time to make a change. Anita’s zero waste journey was born more out of necessity than passion to begin, as she and her husband were now living on one wage, however, it soon became her passion.
A Zero Waste Life in thirty days is a simple and approachable guide to reducing your impact on the environment, by reducing your use of plastics and the amount of waste you create. With day-to-day guides on how you can gradually make a change, each tip offers a reduced waste, a minimal waste and a zero waste option, so that can either ease your way in or jump head first.
With tips, recipes and localised options this book covers everything from what’s in your fridge and your bathroom to what you wear each day. You’ll find out how to compost, how to make your own beauty products, how to keep your high fashion wardrobe within a second-hand lifestyle and how to clean your entire house with just one product!
If you want to reduce your impact on the environment then it’s time to start the A Zero Waste Life journey.
Available from Penguin Random House Australia.
You can also follow Anita’s journey on Instagram @rocket_science or head to her website.
One Hundred Years of Dirt by Rick Morton
I’ve been making my way through this book for a while now, not because it was hard to read, the opposite in fact. It’s the kind of book you could devour in a day because it’s captivating and so well written, but reading it made me look forward to my coffee and reading in the sun on a weekend morning. It also took some time because One Hundred Years of Dirt touches on topics and stories that are difficult and that after reading I felt I needed time to process or learn more about.
In my previous job I had the privilege of interviewing Rick about this book, while he was in the process of recording the audio version. I was so taken by Rick as a person (partly because he reminded me of a friend, but also because he was warm and friendly), that I got a copy of the print version rather than waiting for the audio to be published. I’m glad I did. Not only does he write in a way that at times you forget the story is his own, but you walk away feeling educated, more empathetic to the plight of people you may not before have understood, inspired by his honesty and strength and at times purely entertained by his family stories and his sense of humour.
If you’re looking for something new and non-fiction to read (or even listen to), I would highly recommend giving some time to One Hundred Years of Dirt.
Available from Melbourne University Publishing.
Overdressed: The increasingly high cost of cheap fashion by Elizabeth L.Cline
This is a great book for anybody that has an interest in fashion or an interest in its effect on the world today.
Elizabeth Cline is a journalist, public speaker and musician based in New York and is an advocate for local migrant workers and local labour rights in America. Overdressed is her first book and has already received high praise from a lot of people. I can see why.
Elizabeth takes a journey through the current state of the textile industry in both America and overseas. She expertly and empathetically highlights just how little people know about where their clothes come from and where they end up when they’re done with them! It’s a perception-changing read for the fashion industry, while being both interesting and well written.
You can find more information at the Overdressed: The increasingly high cost of cheap fashion website.
Ronnie 