While I would not consider these selections light summer reads, I do feel like these books are a great introduction to the why and how of whole-foods plant-based eating.  Each of these books has a slightly different perspective and purpose but each is extremely informative.  If you are considering making a change to this type of diet then I would suggest you start with one of these books.  Here is a list of my top three.

1. How Not to Die by Michael Gregor, MD

    This book is very nicely broken down into chapters that you can read independent of the others so if you only have a few minutes at a time you can easily stop and start without getting lost when you return to the book.  He also breaks the book up into what to do and not do if you are concerned about a number of diseases like heart disease, Alzheimer’s and cancer but also has a section of the book devoted to general health and wellbeing.

2. Keep It Simple, Keep It Whole  by Alona Pulde, MD and Mathew Lederman, MD

   This book very succinctly lays out a practical way to eat a whole-foods plant-based diet.  I find their book both easy to read and put into practice.  It also contains a recipe section and meal plan that are very doable and easy to follow.

3. Whole by T. Colin Campbell, PhD

    I love this book because it takes a look at why we have become a society that is so used to treating disease instead of preventing disease. Furthermore, it examines the role of big business and big agriculture in our lives and how they both influence our view of what is healthy and what isn’t.

I know these books may not be a great beach read this summer but take some time this summer to educate yourself on why and how we need to change our diets to ones that include a lot more fruits, vegetables and whole grains and a lot less food that contain animal products.