Garbology: Our Dirty Love Affair with Trash

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(as of Sep 16, 2026 18:44:44 UTC – Details)


A Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist takes readers on a surprising tour of America’s biggest export, our most prodigious product, and our greatest legacy: our trash
The average American produces 102 tons of garbage across a lifetime and $50 billion in squandered riches are rolled to the curb each year. But our bins are just the starting point for a strange, impressive, mysterious, and costly journey that may also represent the greatest untapped opportunity of the century.
In Garbology, Edward Humes investigates trash—what’s in it; how much we pay for it; how we manage to create so much of it; and how some families, communities, and even nations are finding a way back from waste to discover a new kind of prosperity. Along the way, he introduces a collection of garbage denizens unlike anyone you’ve ever met: the trash-tracking detectives of MIT, the bulldozer-driving sanitation workers building Los Angeles’ Garbage Mountain landfill, the artists residing in San Francisco’s dump, and the family whose annual trash output fills not a dumpster or a trash can, but a single mason jar.
Garbology reveals not just what we throw away, but who we are and where our society is headed. Waste is the one environmental and economic harm that ordinary working Americans have the power to change—and prosper in the process.
Garbology is raising awareness of trash consumption and is sparking community-wide action through One City One Book programs around the country. It is becoming an increasingly popular addition to high school and college syllabi and is being adopted by many colleges and universities for First Year Experience programs.
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Avery
Publication date ‏ : ‎ March 5, 2013
Edition ‏ : ‎ Reprint
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Print length ‏ : ‎ 336 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1583335234
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1583335239
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9.2 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.2 x 0.87 x 7.95 inches
Best Sellers Rank: #147,547 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #5 in Waste Management #80 in Environmental Economics (Books) #99 in Ecotourism Travel Guides
Customer Reviews: 4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars (525) var dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction; P.when(‘A’, ‘ready’).execute(function(A) { if (dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction !== true) { dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction = true; A.declarative( ‘acrLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault”: true }, function (event) { if (window.ue) { ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } } ); } }); P.when(‘A’, ‘cf’).execute(function(A) { A.declarative(‘acrStarsLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault” : true }, function(event){ if(window.ue) { ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } }); });
Customers find this book well worth reading, with one noting it needs to be required reading for all Americans. Moreover, the book is enlightening, changing readers’ perspectives on the world, and is well-researched with interesting facts. Additionally, the writing quality is praised, and customers report being inspired to reduce waste, with one mentioning it sparked good conversation in their book club. However, the accuracy receives mixed feedback, with some finding it well-reported while others note it relies too heavily on statistics.