Melbourne food writer Richard Cornish loves nothing more than to clamp his slavering chops onto a hunk of freshly butchered beast. So when he decided to forgo eating meat for a year, it came as a surprise to those who know him well.

He may not have been putting meat into his mouth over the 12 months, but for much of the book he is preoccupied with meat in all its forms. You might have thought that the words ‘without meat’ in the book’s title would indicate that you’re about to read a comprehensive investigation into the world of plant-based food, but instead the author visits oyster farms, beef and poultry producers, and he also checks out pork production in Spain.

When he decides to become vegetarian he fishes out his old recipe books by writers such as Elizabeth David and Marcella Hazan. Elizabeth David had her heyday in the 1950s and ’60s, and although her ideas on food may have been groundbreaking half a century ago, they don’t contain anything to excite people in 2016. He also visits one of the most uninspiring vegetarian restaurants in Melbourne, yet that city is filled with many outstanding vegetarian eateries. And he also looks at the topic of mock meat, a product that few well-informed vegetarians would ever consider eating.

This book could have been an investigation into fascinating trends in plant-based food – such as the thrillingly inventive dishes created by raw vegan chefs – but the author showed little interest in exploring the best of what meat-free foods have to offer.

Reviewed by Tim Graham