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Audiobook6 hours
Meat Eater: Adventures from the Life of an American Hunter
Written by Steven Rinella
Narrated by Jeffrey Kafer
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
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About this audiobook
Steven Rinella grew up in Twin Lake, Michigan, the son of a hunter who taught his three sons to love the natural world the way he did. As a child, Rinella devoured stories of the American wilderness, especially the exploits of his hero, Daniel Boone. He began fishing at the age of three and shot his first squirrel at eight and his first deer at thirteen. He chose the colleges he went to by their proximity to good hunting ground, and he experimented with living solely off wild meat. As an adult, he feeds his family from the food he hunts.
Meat Eater chronicles Rinella's lifelong relationship with nature and hunting through the lens of ten hunts, beginning when he was an aspiring mountain man at age ten and ending as a thirty-seven-year-old Brooklyn father who hunts in the remotest corners of North America. He tells of having a struggling career as a fur trapper just as fur prices were falling; of a dalliance with catch-and-release steelhead fishing; of canoeing in the Missouri Breaks in search of mule deer just as the Missouri River was freezing up one November; and of hunting the elusive Dall sheep in the glaciated mountains of Alaska.
Through each story, Rinella grapples with themes such as the role of the hunter in shaping America, the vanishing frontier, the ethics of killing, the allure of hunting trophies, the responsibilities that human predators have to their prey, and the disappearance of the hunter himself as Americans lose their connection with the way their food finds its way to their tables. Hunting, he argues, is intimately connected with our humanity; assuming responsibility for acquiring the meat that we eat, rather than entrusting it to proxy executioners, processors, packagers, and distributors, is one of the most respectful and exhilarating things a meat eater can do.
A thrilling storyteller with boundless interesting facts and historical information about the land, the natural world, and the history of hunting, Rinella also includes after each chapter a section of "Tasting Notes" that draws from his thirty-plus years of eating and cooking wild game, both at home and over a campfire. In Meat Eater he paints a loving portrait of a way of life that is part of who we are as humans and as Americans.
Meat Eater chronicles Rinella's lifelong relationship with nature and hunting through the lens of ten hunts, beginning when he was an aspiring mountain man at age ten and ending as a thirty-seven-year-old Brooklyn father who hunts in the remotest corners of North America. He tells of having a struggling career as a fur trapper just as fur prices were falling; of a dalliance with catch-and-release steelhead fishing; of canoeing in the Missouri Breaks in search of mule deer just as the Missouri River was freezing up one November; and of hunting the elusive Dall sheep in the glaciated mountains of Alaska.
Through each story, Rinella grapples with themes such as the role of the hunter in shaping America, the vanishing frontier, the ethics of killing, the allure of hunting trophies, the responsibilities that human predators have to their prey, and the disappearance of the hunter himself as Americans lose their connection with the way their food finds its way to their tables. Hunting, he argues, is intimately connected with our humanity; assuming responsibility for acquiring the meat that we eat, rather than entrusting it to proxy executioners, processors, packagers, and distributors, is one of the most respectful and exhilarating things a meat eater can do.
A thrilling storyteller with boundless interesting facts and historical information about the land, the natural world, and the history of hunting, Rinella also includes after each chapter a section of "Tasting Notes" that draws from his thirty-plus years of eating and cooking wild game, both at home and over a campfire. In Meat Eater he paints a loving portrait of a way of life that is part of who we are as humans and as Americans.
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Reviews for Meat Eater
Rating: 3.9901960980392155 out of 5 stars
4/5
51 ratings11 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Really amazing story telling. I have never hunted or been around hunting culture. This book gave me some insight into that world and gave me a better understanding of it. Highly recommend.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5I very much enjoyed Rinella's book, "American Buffalo." This collection was much weaker, however, lacking any focus or broader history. Further, Rinella's writing feels less honest; frankly, his justification for hunting seems cliched rather than honestly and deeply felt. I was also troubled by Rinella's repeated disrespect for hunting regulations.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Before reading this book, I had never heard of Steven Rinella, so I feel that I did not have any preconceived notions of him as an author or a hunter. I found him to be an excellent writer and storyteller , and I often read parts out loud to the family to share in the humor of some of his stories. I think he gave the reader a fair assessment of his own motivations and background for being a hunter, although he does little to address the debates about ethical treatment of animals (which I am not certain this book would actually be the place to discuss them to begin with). I did find myself rather put off by the chapters about trophy-hunting Dall Sheep and Cougar ("just to see what it tasted like"), but I am personally opposed to trophy hunting as it is and I did appreciate his honesty in these hunting stories. I find his writing style to be an easy read, and I might even pick up another book of his in the future.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hunting has become a sensitive topic throughout the United States - especially hunting with guns. Why would a person feel the need to go outside and kill an animal with a gun, bow, or trap when they can go to the store and get any meat they want much more easily? Steven Rinella tries to answer "why [he] hunts, who [he is] as a hunter, and what hunting means to [him]" in his book Meat Eater. One of his primary arguments is who we have descended from - hunters and, especially in America, frontiersman. Rinella claims that "to abhor hunting is to hate the place from which you came, which is akin to hating yourself in some distant, abstract way." Throughout the book he argues the differences between hunters and agriculturalists, and how humans have traded the activity of hunting for more worthless activities such as golf. Some of his biggest arguments are how a hunter is able to feel and understand the essence of an animal; to understand what an animal's life is worth, more-so than anyone else; to feel an intimacy to the animals he is willing to trade his life for; how the risks of hunting makes the hunter feel more alive than he otherwise would feel; and how the hunter invariably thanks the animal for what it has provided the hunter.These arguments and messages are sprinkled throughout the book in anecdotal form. To say he is able to write entertaining stories is an understatement; Rinella is a gifted writer able to grasp the reader with his stories and words. At the end of each story arc/chapter, Meat Eater offers a unique addition: tasting notes, in which Rinella explains what animals taste like, how to prepare them, and how best to, or interesting ways to, serve each animal. Unfortunately, the idea is fantastic but the execution is lacking - the main problem is how the notes relate to the stories. The second chapter contains stories about hunting squirrel as a boy, and the tasting note is about squirrels - interesting enough to pique the interest of even a non-hunter. However, from then on the tasting notes don't always match the animals in the chapter. For example, chapter seven is about catch-and-release fishing and some adventures he had with a friend. They hitch-hiked to Mexico and camped on a beach to catch-and-release one of the most well-known and notorious sport fishes. At the end, he was hungry and came to an epiphany to cook this bonefish, but the tasting note on the next page detailed salmon. Unfortunately he draws the reader into a specific type of animal, but doesn't always take advantage of that interest to explain the nuances of that animal's unique taste.Unfortunately, Rinella doesn't exactly answer the questions pervading his book - the why-to, at least - in a convincing enough manner to ease the sensitivity of hunting. What's left, though, are some interesting hunting stories and tips for hunting, cooking and general camping.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Rinella uses a conversational style to describe his memories hunting and fishing. While the simplistic style could use a bit of dressing up, it still managed to describe the wilderness and fondness for it well. I didn't always agree with the author, but he knows his topic inside and out and presented his thoughts coherently. There's lots of things to learn: cooking tips for squirrel and cougar, survival skill tips, and general notes on trapping, trailing, fishing, and shooting. I would have enjoyed Meat Eater a lot more if the author didn't describe his illegal hunts and evasive actions avoiding detection by rangers; yet, the author's honesty was appreciated, especially when he talked about hunting ethics. I'm torn about the final verdict on Meat Eater. Would I be friends with Rinella? Probably not. Would I trust Rinella to keep us alive if we were stranded in the wilderness? You bet.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Being a hunter/fisher and general fan of nature - I appreciated that this book took the time to explain the relationship of the hunter to the wild. A lot of times, I will be looked down upon for my choices to kill the 'meat I eat.' At the same time, I love animals...love nature...It's a difficult balance to try to explain to this generation and I think this book does a wonderful job - even delving into personal mistakes or misconceptions. Basically, a great read for the hunter/fisher....and maybe an eye-opener for those who don't understand either subject.
- Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5This was not exactly my style of book. That being said if you are interested in hunting and nature this is the bnook for you
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Not as good as his first but still a great read for the hunter, predators and carnivores out there. His stories of hunting and fishing and trapping while growing up are wonderful. The advice that he received from previous generations and passed on to the next generation are crucial to keeping hunting and conservation important in the world as part of the balance of nature.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Steven Rinella revels in hunting, even while living with a non-hunting wife in a New York City apartment. This is his memoir of his great hunting moments and his earliest hunting memories, all the things that crystalize in his mind to make him a hunter at heart. If you love hunting, there will probably be things you disagree with him about here and there; if you hate hunting, there's nothing here that's going to change your mind. But if you're just interested in the thoughts of someone who feels hunting is part of his lifestyle and his American heritage, you may appreciate this well-written and thoughtful book which accepts that Rinella's is not the only outlook but which shows why hunting is meaningful to him. This is definitely not a critical addition to most libraries, but is a good and worth while read for collections of American memoirs, country and self-sufficient lifestyles, and outdoor hobbies.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I am of mixed minds about this book.On the one hand- and most importantly- it's a very interesting and well-written description of a hunter's hunting lifestyle.On the other- well I'll grant that the author says he's learned through the years, but some of the "hunting" and trapping he did as a kid was really cruel, and done only for money not for meat to eat.Still- I think it's important that those of us who did NOT grow up in the hunting subculture understand those that did- and also the reverse. (The reverse is mostly not covered in this book.)I think it was brave of Rinella to be so forthcoming about his various hunting stories. Personally, I am contemplating whether or not I would ever be interested in hunting, and this book is very informative- though not decisive- in that contemplation.I do admire his general respect for the animals, and his dedication to making their deaths not go to waste (apart from the muskrats he killed as a teen for their fur).It's a good book and I'm glad I read it. It is not a book for everyone. There's a lot of gory details here. If you are a carnivore and want to face up to what meat-eating really means- I'd recommend it. If you are a vegan- you probably would rather skip it due to irrelevance.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A companion book to his cable TV show, Meat Eater: Adventures From the Life of an American Hunter, is the latest book from Steven Rinella, a young sportsman and hunting advocate who argues that hunting is one of the most ethically responsible things a carnivore can do. In essays about his own hunting and fishing adventures -- including pieces on starting a career as a fur trapper, his first catch and release trout, childhood memories, and ruminations on the ethics of hinting -- Rinella looks at the role of hunters in American history and how far we've drifted from traditional ways of putting food on our table.