Michael Pollan, Conscientious Eater

Hands On
Over the years, Pollan has developed a distinctive — and popular — style. "In my writing," he explains, "I've always been interested in finding places to stand, and I've found it very useful to have a direct experience of what I'm writing about. For example, when I bought a steer as part of writing about the cattle industry, the fact that I owned a steer forced me to give more credence to and to be more fair to points of view I disagreed with."