On a Dollar a Day

February 8, 2010
Struck by the fact that people worldwide subsist on a dollar a day (or even less), San Diego high school teachers Greenslate and Leonard decided to see how well they could feed themselves on a similar budget. After establishing some ground rules (no accepting donations, any guests must eat from the one-dollar-each supply), the couple make a month-long experiment of eating as well as they can, with as much variety as possible, on a dollar each per day. Taking turns telling their story, it quickly becomes apparent that the cumulative effect of the diet-tortillas, rice and beans, and desserts like a spoonful of peanut butter-is increased stress, more fights, health problems, and (of course) hunger. Even when they increase their budget to better reflect the state of the American poor ($4.13 per day each), they still find it a struggle to stay nourished. Anecdotes on class, race, America's reliance on corn, and thoughtful epilogues on budgeting and fighting hunger give the book political and practical value, making it a sobering, personal consideration of hunger and poverty worldwide and in our own neighborhoods.