The Car by Bryan Appleyard: an ‘entertainingly forthright history’
Appleyard sets out to document a way of life that he believes is vanishing

There’s no shortage of books pontificating on why we “need to swap the sausage sarnies for tofu tempura”, said Christina Patterson in The Sunday Times. What this one does is “much more interesting”. Rob Percival, the head of food policy for the Soil Association, sets out to explore our “psychological relationship with meat”.
Meat-eating, he believes, involves a “paradox”, said Julian Baggini in The Guardian. Most people feel sympathy for animals – and yet are prepared, by eating meat, to condone their mass slaughter. He sets out to understand what makes these contradictory viewpoints possible.
Percival does a “powerful job” of detailing the damage done by “modern meat-eating”, said Bee Wilson in the Financial Times. And yet his book is impressively nuanced: he also exposes the “chicanery” of some vegan arguments – such as the idea that meat-based diets can never be as healthy as non-meat ones.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Where the book is lacking is in “practical solutions”. Percival believes that meat production urgently needs to change – and yet there is no clear proposal here to “reform a global meat industry that causes so much ethical and environmental harm”.
Little Brown 384pp £18.99; The Week bookshop £14.99
The Week Bookshop
To order this title or any other book in print, visit theweekbookshop.co.uk, or speak to a bookseller on 020-3176 3835. Opening times: Monday to Saturday 9am-5.30pm and Sunday 10am-4pm.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Fannie Flagg’s 6 favorite books that sparked her imagination
Feature The author recommends works by Johanna Spyri, John Steinbeck, and more
-
Patrick Hemingway: The Hemingway son who tended to his father’s legacy
Feature He was comfortable in the shadow of his famous father, Ernest Hemingway
-
A tour of Sri Lanka’s beautiful north
The Week Recommends ‘Less frenetic’ than the south, this region is full of beautiful wildlife, historical sites and resorts
-
Giorgio Armani obituary: designer revolutionised the business of fashion
In the Spotlight ‘King Giorgio’ came from humble beginnings to become a titan of the fashion industry and redefine 20th century clothing
-
Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale – a ‘comfort’ watch for fans
The Week Recommends The final film of the franchise gives viewers a chance to say goodbye
-
The Paper: new show, same 'warmth and goofiness'
The Week Recommends This spin-off of the American version of The Office is ‘comfortingly and wearyingly familiar’
-
Rachel Jones: Gated Canyons – ‘riotously colourful’ works from an ‘exhilarating’ painter
The Week Recommends The 34-year-old is the first artist to take over Dulwich Picture Gallery’s main space
-
Born With Teeth: ‘mischievously provocative’ play starring Ncuti Gatwa
The Week Recommends ‘Sprightly’ production from Liz Duffy Adams imagines the relationship between Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe