Rating: 
Summary: A Bad Taste
Review: When it comes to wordplay, Eric Schlosser, author of the bestseller Fast Food Nation, is a gourmet chef. But on closer inspection, the arguments he cooks up result in a serious case of intellectual indigestion.
Schlosser, a talented writer and even better self-promoter, came to fame with the 2001 publication of the book. With the help of the media, which hyped the book without challenging Schlosser's "facts," Fast Food Nation made The New York Times bestseller list. Many publications put it on year-end lists of the "best books of 2001" -- resulting in renewed interest.
Schlosser was smart enough to know that a study of the intricacies of the "fast food" industry would not appeal to most book-buyers. So instead of presenting an objective investigation of this major industry, or giving a fair shake to companies like McDonald's (which offers one in 15 Americans entrée into the workforce), Schlosser used "fast food" as the basis for a rhetorical assault on capitalism."Greed" is the ingredient that gives Fast Food Nation its flavor. Schlosser seems utterly shocked that these businesses exist... in order to make money! And to rage against business, Schlosser had no problem in engaging in what The Wall Street Journal called "cavalier manipulation of data."
Fast Food Nation is piled high with anecdotes and served with a heaping helping of skewed data. It's all intended to support Schlosser's case that "fast food has infiltrated every nook and cranny of American society" in harmful ways. It's not about the food itself; Schlosser himself says fast food tastes "pretty good" and that "the odds are low that eating a burger is going to make you sick." Instead, it's a diatribe against the very concept of making a profit by creating a product that consumers enjoy.
Schlosser says he doesn't eat "ground beef anymore," but not because he's "worried about getting sick from it; I'm pissed off at the corporate greed." He blasts McDonald's for reaping in "17 cents in pure profit" on every large Coke it sells, assuming that the sort of people who buy his book (at a profit to the author) will be disgusted by the notion of making money.
But he's strangely silent on the benefits to consumers of a hamburger that costs only a dollar -- except to use this, too, to attack the industry. Schlosser claims that "increasing the federal minimum wage by a dollar would [only] add about two cents to the cost of a [99-cent] fast food hamburger," ignoring a nearly endless supply of available economic data to the contrary generated by university economists including winners of the Nobel Prize in economics.
Instead, Schlosser uses one report from the Department of Agriculture to make his case -- and inappropriately at that. His two cents "evidence" comes from a study of labor costs and price hikes for the sale of prepared food and drinks in general, not just the fast food industry. More importantly, 75 percent of the employees studied were not even in the minimum wage range.
Schlosser is too savvy a polemicist to let something as small as facts stand in the way of a good rant. Counting every minor scratch and bump, Schlosser claims that meatpacking is "the most dangerous job in the United States." The government's Bureau of Labor Statistics disagrees. On its ranking of truly dangerous industries -- those with the most "injury and illness cases involving days away from work" -- meatpacking doesn't even make the top 25.
But bad data and a lack of logic do not stop Schlosser from claiming the worst about the fast food industry. He tries to have it both ways on overtime hours, favorably noting that the Depression-era Fair Labor Standards Act placed limitations on mandatory overtime.
Then, on the very next page, Schlosser complains "managers try to make sure that each worker is employed less than forty hours a week, thereby avoiding any overtime payments." In fact, labor unions support the very practices Schlosser condemns, in part because they keep workers from being overburdened, and also because they encourage the creation of more entry-level jobs.
This is not the only place where, despite Schlosser's progressive politics, he seems almost reactionary. Schlosser notes that "inside job" robberies at fast food restaurants occur because those they employ -- the young, poor, and minorities -- are also responsible for much of the nation's violent crime. Is he suggesting these at-risk individuals should not be given jobs and a chance?
Decidedly selective in his presentation of data, Schlosser realizes that a cavalcade of deceptions is necessary to leave the reader with his funhouse-mirror image of the fast food industry, where fat-cat executives in fancy suits get rich while entry-level restaurant workers struggle to get by.
These are just a few selections from Fast Food Nation's menu of mistruths. Schlosser, himself the wealthy son of a former NBC president, knows exactly what he is doing: Crafting a politically motivated weapon to fire against restaurants that play such a vital role in helping entry-level and at-risk Americans enter the workforce.
Professional rabble-rousers like Schlosser pretend to care about those poorer than them -- just like Schlosser pretends to care about the facts. But in reality, these are just the means to an end: The glorification of political dogma at the expense of truth. And that is the most unappetizing morsel of them all.
Rating: 
Summary: A Liberal Looks at Fast Food....
Review: Within the first 30-40 pages of this book, I realized that Eric Schlosser's obvious contempt for innovative, successful people would be a primary theme throughout the book, and I was, for the most part, correct.... I had hoped "Fast Food Nation" would have more actual information about the fast food industry. While it does contain a few interesting nuggets of history, statistics and background of various fast food chains, Schlosser seems more interested in pursuing his leftist agenda - he goes off on tangents about urban sprawl and generally goes out of his way to blame Republicans for all the woes of the universe (the Reagan administration comes under fire and takes responsibility for standards and regulations that Schlosser feels are too relaxed but curiously, standards that remain relaxed under the Clinton administration are the fault of Rebublicans in Congress). Schlosser spends a good chunk of the book describing the horrors of the meatpacking industry - none of this will be new information to anyone with even the most cursory interest in the topic - and blaming Republicans (again) for most of the dangers workers in the meat industry face. He villifies fast food and the government for not imposing tougher safety laws and standards of cleanliness for the meat produced in these plants. After all this, Schlosser makes a curious (contradictory?) statement towards the end of the book which claims (in effect) that none of these proposed standards will do any good unless the fast food worker pays attention to their own personal hygiene. Then he devotes approximately one paragraph to discussing their behavior: spitting in food, dropping food on the floor and then serving it to customers etc. I suppose, according to Schlosser's socialist leanings, these underpaid, semi-literate workers are to be considered exploited "victims" and as such, not responsible for their actions. Ah well.. Bottom line: Not much new information here - don't bother.
Rating:
Summary: glaring omissions
Review: Fast Food Nation, as the title suggests is a book about the fast food industry in America. However, it covers a lot more than fat, grease and grime. It digs into the heart of the industry and spans all the way from the meatpacking factory to the checkout counter. This book does confirm everything you always thought was bad about the fast food industry. The introduction is a little disconcerting because the author freely admits to eating plenty of fast food whilst researching the book. Once you reach the end, you start to question how this is possible. The book is welll researched book however I think it relies excessively on anecdotes that are only loosely related to each other and the title of the book. The author seems to get side tracked a bit and none of the revelations are that profound. No mention of what happens when you buy a McDonald's cheeseburger and take it home and leave it for a year (it doesn't go mouldy!) In any case I can't see how Schlosser could fail to mention the effects of switching from beef tallow to vegetable oil. This results in the production of trans fatty acids which are far more toxic than the saturated fat found in beef tallow. Trans fatty acids lower HDL cholesterol (good cholesterol) and increase LDL cholesterol (bad cholesterol). I can't really recommend this book. If you freely acknowledge that fast food is very unhealthy then you won't really find this useful. On the other hand if you're wolfing down McDonald's a few times a week then maybe you should give this book a thorough read.
Rating: 
Summary: Buy a box full and hand them out everywhere you go...
Review: This book is a nice angle on the commercialization of darn near everything. It shows how the concept of 'fast food' has bred, or at least encouraged entire industries and habits that are not only detrimental to health and the environment, but deadly and destructive. This book should be read by everyone who shops in a store in the US.
Rating:
Summary: Everyone in America should read this
Review: I read Schlosser's article in Rolling Stone back in 1999, and quit eating hamburger then. I have not been back to McDonald's since reading his book, and I will not return. I wish everyone in America would read his book and find out what they are really eating, and what they are feeding their children!
Rating:
Summary: Off topic, highly subjective diatribe on American culture
Review: I picked up this book with great expectations. I was sadly disappointed. I expected to learn about how the fast food industry prepared and delivered its products. Though there is good information in the book, Schlosser obviously had a stong agenda to discredit anyone and anything associated with fast pace America. Though Walt Disney had nothing to do with fast food, Schlosser went on ad infinitum attacking Disney because of his apparent employment of some German WWII vets and how he handled an artists' strike. Schlosser clearly despises the founders and the culture that arose from this era. If you are to believe Schlosser, you are left with the impression that all of these men (Ray Kroc, the founder of McDonald's, Harlan Sanders at KFC and Walt Disney) were greedy, petty, cynical, shysters who could have cared less about the people they served and the world they lived in. Having read other material on some of these people I knew that, though Schlosser was not actually lying, he presented facts in such a way that could lead the reader to false conclusions. For example, in talking about Disney he said, "Walt Disney neither wrote, nor drew the animated classics that bore his name." While technically true, at this stage in Disney's career, he no longer had time to do the actual drawing. He oversaw all aspects of the Disney classics but he did not literally draw them himself. What he fails to tell you is that Walt Disney made his start by creating and drawing many of the famous Disney characters, like Mickey Mouse. If you didn't know better, though, you would think Disney never drew anything, that he was simply a great pitch man. I have never been a fan of fast food and rarely frequent any of these establishments. The main reason for picking up the book was to learn just how bad these hyper-processed foods really are for your body. Unfortunately, instead I got a diatribe on just how lousy America and much of its culture is. Schlosser got so far off topic and presented the subject matter in such a subjective manner that I can not recommend the book.
Rating:
Summary: Important to read
Review: This book reminds me alot of Upton Sinclair's "The Jungle," in how it's composed of old fashioned muckraking and unsettling facts. The author simply puts in the facts, rarely adding opinion to the book, and lets interviews and history speak for themselves. The title of this book could be somewhat misleading: the book covers much more than the fast food industry, including Disney's abuses of power and the general way our country is turning into a monoculture. What's very interesting to me is how the book depicts the men behind corporations such as McDonalds. Eric Schlosser tells their life stories and puts in many quotes, revealing the classic American character of many of the corporation founders. The pursuit of dominance through fast food is another way of pursuing the American Dream that went too far. After reading this book, I've found it very difficult to eat fast food with any kind of clear conscience. There are sections quoted from corporation memos proving that the companies try to hook very young children on fast food, and that they remain customers for their adult lives. This book really should be required reading.
Rating:
Summary: You'll Never Eat the Same Way Again
Review: Brilliantly conceived, this book explores fast food from every angle: labor, food processing, environmental concerns, and more. This is a compelling and, for me, life-changing book. I can't eat the way I did before. Read it!
Rating:
Summary: Get real Eric Schlosser!
Review: Being a health conscious individual, I was anxious to read this book. Unfortunately, the author reminds me of my 20 year-old ecology-major daughter who wants to save the world. Maybe I'm growing cynical in my older age, but I have a problem blaming all of America's woes on the fast food industry. Sure, this industry hires the young and uneducated (it was my first job 32 years ago)and doesn't pay health insurance but it offers beginning employment where there might be none. Schlosser goes on to expect the fast food industry to save the farmers, change the meat-packing industry and basically take responsibility for its entire supply chain. Give me a break. Go to business school Schlosser and you will see how ridiculous your suggestions are.
Rating:
Summary: Very insightful
Review: This book is a must-read for anyone who has grown up watching fast food take hold in this country. It isn't a book about the perils of eating fast food necessarily, but rather an amazing look at how the fast food industry has influenced so many different aspects of American and even world-wide industries. It really does make you think twice about things when you pass the golden arches.
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