Book Review: The Green Book

While the intent of this book is to help everyday people making small, “green” changes in their everyday lives, the book is written from the stance of a person who does not have an everyday life. The Green Book by Elizabeth Rogers and Thomas Kostigen has some great advice for those of you looking to go green. Please understand that the message of the book is a good one even though I was turned off by the tone of the book!

For example, each chapter ends with a little quote from a celebrity about how they have gone green in one respect or another. Well, hearing about how Will Ferrell drives his electric car to the dump to do recycling doesn’t help me. And speaking of cars, they suggest flipping to a hybrid or using flex fuel if possible. Well, that’s not possible for so many younger Americans because we just can’t afford to buy a new car!

I do like the advice that they give with respect to the “paper or plastic” question. They say to choose paper since it’s easier to recycle paper bags and you can reuse them a few times before you recycle them. A few weeks ago I purchased two canvas bags (there’s a huge “PathMark” on the side of them) and I like them even better than paper or plastic. You can fit more groceries in these bags and you can fit heavier items, too. Plus you get a whopping 2 cents off of your final bill for each bag you reuse! Ha! Making millions, baby!

Right before they get into their advanced advice for each topic, they give three “Simple Steps” to living a greener, more sustainable lifestyle. These are often simple enough to follow. For example, in the Health and Beauty section they suggest buying a reusable water bottle and filling it with filtered water from home for your trips to the gym. This is great advice and can, in the long run, save you some money. Plus, you cut down on the use and production of plastic water bottles. I went out and bought a Nalgene 32 ounce refillable bottle the other day (though, admittedly, not because I read this book – a story in the New York Times got me to thinking about buying one).

They also suggest some other great ideas that I’ve been engaged in since before I read the book Some examples are getting electronic statements from your bank or brokerage account instead of paper ones; making online payments instead of using paper checks; using compact fluorescent light bulbs instead of traditional ones (this seems to be catching on around the nation); and using natural light instead of electronic light when possible. On that last point, I use natural light in the office and in my apartment as much as possible not just for green reasons, but because it’s less stressful on my eyes and the color of the light is better and more “real” than light bulb light.

Read that last sentence again and see if it makes sense. That’s a bit confusing, huh?

For those of you who have the resources and the desire to live a more sustainable, green lifestyle, I would suggest reading The Green Book. For those of you who have more pressing issues (soaring consumer debt, a mortgage gone bad, family issues, etc) you may want to put off buying this book until you’re in a better position.