Tomatoland: How Modern Industrial Agriculture Destroyed Our Most Alluring Fruit

Estabrook, Barry. Tomatoland: How Modern Industrial Agriculture Destroyed Our Most Alluring Fruit. 2011. 240p. ISBN 9781449401092.

Most of us enjoy a red juicy tomato, especially when it comes from the garden. However, there are times where we need to purchase them from the store, and for the most part, those tomatoes are pale imitations of the vegetable we think of when we think tomato. The grocery store tomato industry is a $5 billion enterprise based in Florida that takes many shortcuts in order to achieve profitability, at the expense of both its workers and its customers. 

Among some of the practices that are deleterious to health, tomato fields are sprayed with more chemical per square foot than any other vegetable, and the safety application procedures are often ignored because they slow down the work. Tomatoes are harvested while they are still green, and are then artificially turned red by the use of additional chemicals in warehouses, before being shipped to the grocery store. Today's grocery store tomatoes have measurably less amounts of calcium and vitamins A and C, while containing over fourteen times the amount of sodium than tomatoes from thirty years ago.

Workers are also being exploited on tomato farms, with most of the workforce being undocumented. Workers are at the mercy of work gang chiefs, who exploit and oppress their laborers, leading to several documented court cases and guilty pleas of modern-day slavery.

Readers who enjoy knowing where the food in their plate came from will appreciate this sordid tale of exploitation, and may make better informed choices when they go to the grocery store. Consider taking a look at The Dorito Effect or The Truth Behind Factory Food for additional looks at this topic.

Hoot

Hiaasen, Carl. Hoot. 2003. 292p. 385 mins. ISBN 9780440421702. Available both at FIC HIA on the shelves of the library and as audiobook on Overdrive.

Roy Edberhart and his family move often. His father works for the Department of Justice, and every year or so they join a new community. Roy really liked the last place, Montana, and they actually spent more than two years there. He loved the mountains, the wildlife, and the empty spaces. Now, Roy finds himself in Florida where it is hot, everything is crowded, and there are no mountains. His middle school is okay, but he's bullied on the school bus by Dana Matherson, a kid who is dumb enough not to know when to stop.

On one of these occasion, Roy's face gets smooshed against the bus window, and he notices a barefoot kid about the same age he is running away from the school bus. Suddenly Roy is intrigued. He's never seen this kid before, and there are no other schools he could be going to. He looks for him in town and at school, but can't find him. Looking to solve this mystery, Roy decides to follow the boy the next opportunity he has.

Meanwhile, construction equipment sits idle at the site of the future Mother Paula's Pancake House. The site has suffered vandalism, and the foreman has had enough and files a police complaint. When the police car itself is vandalized while parked on site, the foreman decides to escalate his protection measures.

These two stories gradually intertwine and tie together. A protected species, burrowing owls, live on the property but the company is ignoring its environmental assessment and plans to proceed with construction. As Roy investigates the shoeless boy, he becomes drafted in saving the owls, making new friends, and becoming part of his new community.

The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora

Cartaya, Pablo. The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora. 2017. 256p. ISBN 9781101997239. Available at FIC CAR on the library shelves.

Thirteen-year-old Arturo’s family is intense. His grandmother owns one of the best restaurants in all of Canal Grove, a neighborhood in Miami. His mother now runs the restaurant, but Abuela visits often. Many of his relatives work here too, and they all live in the same apartment complex. The family would love to enlarge the restaurant, which sits on a city-owned property, by using the empty lot next door, also owned by the city. But William Pipo, a developer with deep pockets, wants to throw a large complex on the entire block.

At the same time, the daughter of Arturo’s mother’s best friend, and her father, come from Spain to spend a few months in Miami with the family following her death. Arturo remembers her as a lanky kid, but in the last few years she’s turned gorgeous. Arturo is pretty sure he’s in love with her, but even though she’s not related she feels like family.

So Arturo’s plan for the summer is simple. With his best friends away to camp and traveling, there’s only three things to do. He must save the restaurant. He must get Carmen. And he must make his Abuela proud of her favorite grandchild. Except that nothing is about to work out, and Arturo’s life is going to experience an epic fail. Refusing to let failure ruin him, however, Arturo is about to have the summer of his life!

Mort Ziff Is Not Dead

Fagan, Cary. Mort Ziff Is Not Dead. 2017. 176p. ISBN 978-0-14-319847-5. Available at FIC FAG on the library shelves.

Norman Fishbein is the youngest kid in his family, and his two older brothers are always picking on him. As Norman himself says, it’s as if, when he was born, they received instructions that their only goal in life was to make Norman miserable. Tormenting Norman relentlessly, Marcus and Larry are always topping each other, leaving Norman behind.

When Norman and his brothers enter a contest to guess the number of candies in a jar at the mall, they don’t expect to win, but Norman is surprised months later when he receives a letter in the mail instructing him that he won $1,000. In the winter of 1965, $1,000 is a lot of money. Instead of saving it for himself, buying things he doesn’t need, he decides that the family needs a vacation Florida. Everyone readily agrees with him, and soon the Fishbein family arrives in Miami.

There they meet the Horvath family. Their three girls are the same age as the Fishbein children, and share the same hobbies. Instead of being friends, they become instant enemies. Except for Amy and Norman. Owing no loyalty to siblings who always pick on them, they decide to bow out of this little contest and enjoy their vacation instead. They soon discover that Mort Ziff, one of the most famous comedians from the 1950s, is still working at their hotel, telling bad jokes during dinner. But with Ziff’s position threatened by a Beatles cover band, Amy and Norman come up with a plan to ensure that Ziff will keep working as long as he wants to.

Anyone who has ever been picked on by older siblings will appreciate the quiet and graceful way in which younger siblings Norman and Amy deal with being eclipsed by their brothers and sisters and how they regain a sense of being in control of their own lives. Their success at making their siblings respect them will inspire the reader to reach out to his or her family members and thank them for being part of their family.