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Someone finally said it: some "cookbooks" are just getting too preachy.
It used to be the case that cookbooks just had recipes - in other words, they were for cooking, plain and simple. Those books were pretty dry, though, and slowly people discovered that cookbooks with a bit of text, a bit or personality were much more interesting to read through. Gradually, more stories and text were added to many books, a trend which encouraged people to cook by answering the question of why people should cook - like dads or teens, who might not otherwise turn to a book like the Joy of Cooking.
But some books are taking this a step too far and telling readers why they should radically alter the way they eat - sort of like a self-help book with recipes. Of course, unlike a self-help book, they seem to use alarmism to try and convert the reader, rather than affirmation. Seattle PI Food Editor Hsiao-Ching Chou cites Grub: Ideas for an Urban Organic Kitchen and The Ethical Gourmet: How to Enjoy Great Food That Is Humanely Raised, Sustainable, Nonendangered, and That Replenishes the Earth as examples and notes that, while nothing is necessarily wrong with their message, trying to disguise them as something other than what they are - manifestos - is a bit misleading, recipes or no.
