“Donating isn’t a salvation. For most of us, it’s a simple case of making our very modern problem – having far too much stuff – someone else’s.”

I’ve been trying to live more intentionally in regards to the things I purchase, get rid of, and waste. Recycling my yogurt containers and milk jugs didn’t feel like enough, I’ve been trying to find a balance so I don’t have to live as a minimalist but also aren’t contributing to fast fashion waste or more plastic ending up in landfills or oceans.

Wasteland was an excellent read. I found the author’s tone very readable, humorous at times, and relevant. Even though he’s a UK author and many of the examples are from his end of the world, there were still enough general issues mentioned that affect all of us as humans on earth. The author clearly did his research, even amidst the pandemic. I found his sources and examples to be well-researched, thorough, and fair.

“Waste is monstrous to look at because it is a mirror.”

I learned some new terminology and ideas: freeganism, wishcycling amongst others.

I enjoyed this book partially because the author didn’t write from a place of condescension and complete judgment—he acknowledges that he isn’t perfect either, uses disposable diapers, etc. He also presented ideas that I hadn’t considered before. For example, I always believed that using cloth bags vs plastic at stores was being virtuous, saving the earth… The author writes how cotton bags actually require more resources to produce, thereby eliminating much of their green benefits over time.

“Cotton tote bags, for example, must be used 7,100 times before they are more environmentally friendly than using the single-use plastic bag they replace, according to a 2018 study by Denmark’s Ministry of Environment and Food.”

I’d recommend this book to anyone concerned about our planet, and who wants to dive deeper into specific green issues such as. fast fashion, e-waste, food waste, plastics, water, and most if all, how richer countries dump so much upon poorer nations and all the repercussions that follow.

Thank you to Netgalley and Hachette Book Group for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.