Fast Food Nation
by Eric Schlosser
★ Top 25 book of 2008 · #20 on Best Books of 2008
This investigative account traces how the fast food industry reshaped postwar America, from its California origins to meatpacking plants and overseas expansion. It examines the effects on society, health, work and culture, with sharp reporting and wit.
Best for: Readers curious about food, business and culture who like critical, myth-busting reportage
Fast Food Nation is #20 on BookWard's Best Books of 2008, out of 46 2008 books that cleared our data bar.
What Fast Food Nation is about
Eric Schlosser follows the American fast food industry from its beginnings after the Second World War to its place in the wider world today. The first half is a history of the people who built it, among them Carl Karcher, the McDonald brothers, Ray Kroc and Walt Disney. It also looks at who does the work: in Colorado Springs, Schlosser finds that fast-food restaurants pay the minimum wage to a larger share of their staff than any other American industry.
The second half moves to the food itself. It looks at the chemistry behind fast food flavor, at ranchers, and at the meatpacking industry, which Schlosser calls the most dangerous job in America. He argues that centralized production created the conditions for E. coli to spread. The book closes with fast food as an American export. It began as a magazine series in Rolling Stone and has drawn comparisons to Upton Sinclair's The Jungle. Readers curious about where their meals come from, and what that costs workers and public health, will find a clear, critical guide.
Fast Food Nation on the Best Books of 2008
Fast Food Nation came out in 2008. Of the 46 books first published in 2008 that met BookWard's data bar, it ranks #20 on our Best Books of 2008 list.
Why it made the list: 239 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.2 out of 5 (28 ratings). The list ranks each year’s books on how many readers have picked them up, how highly readers rate them, and how many are reading them right now.
Nearby on the 2008 list
- Anathem Neal Stephenson, #18
- I Love My New Toy! (Elephant and Piggie) Mo Willems, #19
- The Last Lecture Randy Pausch, #21
- Firefly Lane Kristin Hannah, #22
See all Best Books of 2008 Best books by year
More years: Best Books of 2007 Best Books of 2009.
The numbers behind it
- Readers: 186 want to read it, 15 are reading it now and 38 have read it, according to Open Library.
- Ratings: 4.2 out of 5 from 28 Open Library ratings.
| Signal | This book (0 to 100) | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Reach | 48 | 55% |
| Reader love | 72 | 25% |
| Being read right now | 65 | 20% |
Questions about Fast Food Nation
When was Fast Food Nation published?
Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser was first published in 2008.
Was Fast Food Nation one of the best books of 2008?
Fast Food Nation is #20 on BookWard's Best Books of 2008, out of 46 2008 books that cleared our data bar. 239 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.2 out of 5 (28 ratings).
Why is Fast Food Nation on the Best Books of 2008 list?
239 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.2 out of 5 (28 ratings).
More of the best books of 2008
- The Hunger Games Suzanne Collins, #1
- End of Days Sylvia Browne, #2
- The Last Straw Jeff Kinney, #3
- Amulet Kazu Kibuishi, #4
- Outliers Malcolm Gladwell, #5
- Michelle Obama in Her Own Words Michelle Obama, #6
See the full Best Books of 2008, the Top 100, or new books on Rising.
How we know
This page uses public data: Open Library reader counts and ratings, and Wikipedia page views for recent years. The description is paraphrased from real source text. Rankings reflect reading interest, not quality or sales, and can be affected by data gaps. Lists update monthly.
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