I have, numerous times, been informed that I can be a bit easily sidetracked in conversation, veering off into long chains of thought, jumping from one idea to the next... And I know I'm far from the only one to so. In his work Grocery: The Buying and Selling of Food in America, Michael Ruhlman exemplifies this very case.
The work itself is rather interesting. He inherited a life-long passion for food, and grocery stores in particular, from his father. In this work, Ruhlman explores the development of food vending, from old-time grocery stores, to the appearance of chain supermarkets. To better understand them, the author went so far as to work for a small Midwest chain called Heinen's. There, he worked many positions, from bagger, all the way to working with the owners and managers, visiting food expos, ranchers, and generally learning the ins and outs of the industry. And while he stays on this idea, the book is a well written, compelling narrative.
Unfortunately, Ruhlman, at times, struggles to maintain the strand of thought. Although always connected to the idea of how groceries are evolving, he does tend to steer into rants about sugars and fats in shelf stable foods, the ills of the industry, and how many of the products on shelves are harmful. Don't get me wrong, he does have compelling arguments, and there is definitely a time and a place for such conversations. But not when I want a history of grocery stores. Yes, I want to hear how Kellogg's manufactures cereals at such a scale. Yes, I want to hear how newcomers to the market try to break into the competitive space on the shelves. But no, I don't, in this case, want to hear about the sugars in breakfast cereals and how refined grains are basically just sugar. I'd go read something else if that's what I wanted.
As a result, this book gets merely a passing grade. I can't honestly say that I highly recommend it. Sure, it's interesting. But it simply isn't what it could have been, and that's just a shame.
