OnlineBookClub.org

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Food Bank Britain" by Ray Barron-Woolford.]

In 2013, smart, young men in suits from the council estate were rummaging for stuff in London road bins at eight-thirty in the morning. What was going on?

Food Bank Britain by Ray Barron Woolford is a nonfiction book with 48 standard pages (78 pages on a Kindle; 134 pages on eReader Prestigio); 250 words per page. This short but concise book was published by Deptford Heritage Publishing on November 29, 2017. It includes pictures, links to news articles and blogs. The book tackles the history of Food Bank Britain and it's purpose. More than that, the book uncovers a huge humanity concern aside from just feeding the world - "poverty porn" and the heart-wrenching experiences of the food bank clients.

What glued me on my seat while reading this book from the start until the end was the shocking, superseded news about food crises in London and in Canada that I wouldn't have known if I had not read this book. I found it hard to believe that in the seventh richest economy in the world, food banks, and food collections were going on in London not to feed the starving in Africa, but the working poor in London. I never thought these countries underwent food crisis same as the poor countries in the world.

I felt the author's heart melted upon hearing the concerns of the poor people who came to ask for food assistance. The problems he was facing while doing his best to expand his food bank to cater all the needs of the poor and oppressed were not easy to solve. He could have enjoyed his life and not minded other's business, but he walked outside of his comfort zone and extended his hands to help others who were not in any way related to him. I laud this author for his charitable instincts and his fights for his firm principles in life.

The impact of poverty together with low salary, and high rents and bills resulted in tragic incidents including high profile death where people chose suicide over starving. Others chose to steal rather than to ask help on food banks and to beg. Some parents chose to have their children absent from school with an alibi of sickness rather than admitting they didn't have food to eat. A number of workers were not able to secure vouchers because they had a job, so they rummaged through road bins for food and walked from home to work and vice versa while waiting for their salary.

Here's my favourite quote in the book: "We, the 99%, have the power and the vote to force change: no political campaign has ever been won without a fight, a sustainable economy built on social justice on a global stage is for us to win, but that takes each of us to make a stand, challenge the figures and the bigotry and get active in our communities." It was one of the author's messages to the people. He emphasized a cause that he was fighting for - a change for the betterment of the people in the world. He was challenging the people and the one who reigned to have some changes to alleviate poverty for the general public.

Due to the number of errors ranging from left off punctuation, double punctuation, random capitalization, spacing and grammatical errors that are peppered in the contents, I rate Food Bank Britain by Ray Barron Woolford 3 out of 4 stars and recommend this book to those who are into news, politics, food bank, economics and philanthropic works. This book raises awareness and bids people to volunteer or to donate to charities. To those who wish to make their own food banks, the author included useful details at the end of this book. However, those who wish to donate to this cause, the donation link posted will take you to an error page.

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Food Bank Britain
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Like Dolor's review? Post a comment saying so!

Before reading this review, I had no idea what a "food bank" was. I like that the author highlights the problem of food shortages, not in the dry and dusty streets of Africa but in the rich countries.

Mercy Bolo wrote: ↑08 Apr 2018, 08:34 Before reading this review, I had no idea what a "food bank" was. I like that the author highlights the problem of food shortages, not in the dry and dusty streets of Africa but in the rich countries.

Same here. Though I'm poor, I had not tried food subsidy from the food bank. There is a food bank in the Philippines, but I had just known about it, the time I drafted this review.

This is the advantage of reading. We gain more knowledge and feel like we reach far places though we are just pinned on our seats. ^_^

I have never heard of "food bank" before, it's great to know about something new. Thank you for the detailed review Dolor!

Sahani Nimandra wrote: ↑09 Apr 2018, 05:23 I have never heard of "food bank" before, it's great to know about something new. Thank you for the detailed review Dolor!

Try searching for the food bank in your country on Google. Who knows? Perhaps it exists in your country as well without your knowledge. Thanks for dropping by.

Wow, these reviews r very detailed , I discovered food banks after college and have volunteered at ah food bank before, it's ah real issue in today's economy, even in places like Florida and California , the review was ah plate full

Victors wrote: ↑09 Apr 2018, 09:23 Wow, these reviews r very detailed , I discovered food banks after college and have volunteered at ah food bank before, it's ah real issue in today's economy, even in places like Florida and California , the review was ah plate full

You are making my liver pale. I mean to say, "Thanks for the compliment."

I'm glad to hear that from you. It feels good to help in any praiseworthy cause. I praise all volunteers including you. Thanks for dropping by and sharing your thoughts.

Reading your review has made me think about the hunger situation in Africa and how little has been done in terms of establishing food banks. I would not mind reading the book

Juliet Muia wrote: ↑09 Apr 2018, 19:46 Reading your review has made me think about the hunger situation in Africa and how little has been done in terms of establishing food banks. I would not mind reading the book

Hi, Juliet, food banks also exist in South Africa, West Africa (specifically in Nigeria), and there is also Food For All Africa Programme.

According to Mr. Google, these are the 3 reasons of the persistent poverty in Africa: income inequality, ethnic conflict, and political instability.

Wonderful review!

Javier Campos wrote: ↑10 Apr 2018, 12:56 Wonderful review!

Thank you, Javier.

How sad that even in the first world, people can go hungry! In my country, a lot of government resources are lost to corruption; these funds could be used to ensure food-sufficiency (and other worthwhile endeavors) for all. I wonder if it is also corruption that is the culprit in the British scenario.

In the early Christian communities, all the believers shared all they had, and nobody was in want. Can we say that we have progressed at all, seeing that many don't have enough to eat? Food for thought.

Miriam Molina wrote: ↑14 Apr 2018, 22:20 How sad that even in the first world, people can go hungry! In my country, a lot of government resources are lost to corruption; these funds could be used to ensure food-sufficiency (and other worthwhile endeavors) for all. I wonder if it is also corruption that is the culprit in the British scenario.

In the early Christian communities, all the believers shared all they had, and nobody was in want. Can we say that we have progressed at all, seeing that many don't have enough to eat? Food for thought.

Thanks for dropping by my review and leaving a thought-provoking food for thought.

Corruption is the main cause of our country's poverty, but in Britain, the author stressed more on high rents, low wages, and delayed social benefit funding.

By the way, you might wanna check out my latest review "The Social Tattoo". It's about awareness and responsibility of parents with kids on social media.

It is heartbreaking to see, in this day and age, that many go hungry. Having been through hard times, I do my best to help others in need and this book sheds light on the fact that poverty can affect everyone. I definitely want to read this book, and have added it to my bookshelf. Thank you for a very good review.

classicalfan2316 wrote: ↑30 Apr 2018, 20:01 It is heartbreaking to see, in this day and age, that many go hungry. Having been through hard times, I do my best to help others in need and this book sheds light on the fact that poverty can affect everyone. I definitely want to read this book, and have added it to my bookshelf. Thank you for a very good review.

I'm glad to hear you doing your best to help others who are in need. Thanks for the compliment.

You're very much welcome.