Join us as we explore a multitude of topics and great reads!
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This Week's Book Club Selection:
Heaven: Our Enduring Fascination with the Afterlife, Lisa Miller. "What is heaven? Eighty percent of Americans say they believe in heaven, yet very few of them can articulate anything specific about their belief. Numerous questions surrounding the concept of heaven have existed for ages, and Americans continue to grapple with these ideas. In her new book, Heaven: Our Enduring Fascination with the Afterlife (Harper; March 23, 2010; Hardcover; $25.99), Newsweek Religion editor Lisa Miller provides a groundbreaking history of the afterlife and offers a new understanding of this cherished spiritual ideal." – excerpt from www.LisaXMiller.com.
Addie of the Flint Hills: A Prairie Child During the Depression, Deborah Sorace Prutzman and Adaline Sorace. "Addie of the Flint Hills is the autobiography of a small-town American girl whose life is played out against the turbulent economic times of the 1920s and 1930s. Addie wrote this book in reaction to all the news about the economic difficulties America is facing today. She wanted her grandchildren and other members of a younger generation to know that “Today is heaven.” Addie, her parents and her grandparents lived through hard times and, almost without realizing it, built something better for themselves and their communities. Her message is one of hope for the future whatever the present circumstances may bring." – excerpt from www.AdalineSorace.com.
Am I Boring My Dog? And 99 Other Things Every Dog Wishes You Knew, by Edie Jarolim. “Edie Jarolim’s new book, AM I BORING MY DOG, addresses all sorts of questions about choosing and living with a dog. But this is no ordinary dry, informational dog book. The humorous and conversational tone makes this the most palatable dog book in ages…. [It’s] a must-have resource for anyone contemplating getting a dog, all first-time dog owners, dog professionals, and every dog-lover in general; really it’s a book for anyone who wants to do the very best for their dog.” – DogStarDaily.com. Visit Edie's blog at www.willmydoghateme.com.
Assisted Loving: The Tales of Doubledating with my Dad, by Bob Morris. What would you do if your eighty year old father dragged you into his hell bent hunt for new love? Bob Morris, a seriously single son, tells you all about it in this warm, witty, and whacky chronicle of a year of dating dangerously. www.assistedloving.com.
Baby, Let's Play House: Elvis Presley and the Women Who Loved Him, by Alanna Nash. Based largely on exclusive interviews with the many women who knew him in various roles—lover, sweetheart, friend, costar, and family member—Baby, Let's Play House explores Presley's love affairs as well as his friendships. The book also spotlights important early girlfriends and the women who dared to turn him down. -- from Amazon.com
Bad Girls Go Everywhere: The Life of Helen Gurley Brown, by Jennifer Scanlon. Scanlon argues in her fascinating biography that Helen Gurley Brown author of the groundbreaking best seller “Sex and the Single Girl” and Editor of Cosmopolitan Magazine for three decades changed the way modern culture views the single woman. Brown defied traditional mores to proclaim the unmarried woman's right to happiness. The first woman to publicly say there was another role available in the conservative context of the 1960s, Brown offered American women a revelation that resulted in a revolution. The first to focus on Helen Gurley Brown, Scanlon's intriguing biography accords Brown a place among the early leaders of the second wave of the feminist movement. In Bad Girls Go Everywhere, Scanlon's impressively researched portrait shows us that Helen Gurley Brown is a woman of fascinating contradictions, carving out her own unique philosophy of pragmatic feminism, a philosophy that defines the lives of millions of women today. www.oup.com.
Bad Mother: A Chronicle of Maternal Crimes, Minor Calamities and Occasional Moments of Grace, by Ayelet Waldman. Recently featured in Newsweek Magazine as one of "Fifty Books for Our Times: What to Read Now and Why," Ms. Waldman sparked a controversy - and ended up on Oprah to defend herself - when she said that she loved her husband more than her children. Now in her memoir, Ms. Waldman answers her critics, and details her struggles with "bad mother anxiety" that so many of us can relate to. Doubleday
Barbie and Ruth: The Story of the World’s Most Famous Doll and the Woman Who Created Her, by Robin Gerber. The tragic and redeeming story of how one visionary woman built the biggest toy company in the world and created a global icon. www.harpercollins.com
Crazy for the Storm: A Memoir of Survival, by Norman Ollestad. An 11-year-old boy is the sole survivor of a small-plane crash in a blizzard in the California mountains in 1979. Writing 30 years later, Norman Ollestad cuts back and forth between the crash and his memories of his father, who died on the mountain. Crazy for the Storm is not only the story of his survival, but of his own special relationship with his father.
Dump ‘Em: How to Break Up with ANYONE from Your BEST FRIEND to Your HAIRDRESSER, by Jodyne Speyer. Everybody has that special someone in their life that they can't wait to get rid of. Whether it's a housekeeper, a therapist, or a personal trainer, the time comes when you have to pull the plug on the relationship. Featuring personal stories, useful scripts, and interviews with experts such as Bob Harper from The Biggest Loser, funnyman Adam Carolla, and Michael Jackson's attorney, Thomas Mesereau, Dump 'Em is a practical guide for giving any bad relationship the boot. Jodyne L. Speyer provides a roadmap to finding your own way of saying "thanks, but no thanks." Written with honesty, empathy, and ruthless wit, Dump 'Em will teach you to conquer your fear of confrontation and master the art of the peaceful and permanent breakup. So what are you waiting for? Dump 'em! www.harpercollins.com
Emotional Freedom: Liberate Yourself from Negative Emotions and Transform Your Life, by Dr. Judith Orloff. This is THE guidebook to staying positive and calm during these stressful times. Dr. Orloff presents new ways to lead a more positive and fulfilling life by facing difficult emotions and overcoming worry using self-care techniques drawn from the fields of biology, psychology and intuitive medicine. Dr. Orloff also shows us how to attract positive relationships and combat emotional vampires who can drain our energy. www.randomhouse.com
Evidence of the Afterlife: the Science of Near Death Experience, by Jeffrey Long MD, with Paul Perry. "There is currently more scientific evidence to the reality of near death experience (NDE) than there is for how to effectively treat certain forms of cancer," states radiation oncologist Dr. Jeffrey Long is his groundbreaking new book Evidence of the Afterlife. Near Death Experience Research Foundation. www.nderf.org
Excuse Me, But I was Next... How to Handle the Top 100 Manners Dilemmas, by Peggy Post.
"Etiquette expert Peggy Post comes to the rescue with an indispensable guide to our most vexing etiquette questions. Peggy addresses these perplexing dilemmas as only she can—with expertise and a direct, personal, down-to-earth style. You’ll learn how to politely say “no” to difficult requests, how to introduce someone if you’ve forgotten her name, how to perform damage control for e-mail bloopers, and much more." - excerpt from www.excuseme.emilypost.comHaunted Eastern Shore, Ghostly Tales from East of the Chesapeake, by Mindie Burgoyne. From pitiless smugglers to reluctant brides, the ghostly figures of the Eastern Shore are at once terrifying and tragic. Mindie takes the reader through the nine counties of the Eastern Shore of Maryland, sharing stories uncovered by research gathered from over 50 books, scores of personal interviews and thousands of pages of transcribed oral commentary. www.WritingTheVision.com
Heaven: Our Enduring Fascination with the Afterlife, Lisa Miller. "What is heaven? Eighty percent of Americans say they believe in heaven, yet very few of them can articulate anything specific about their belief. Numerous questions surrounding the concept of heaven have existed for ages, and Americans continue to grapple with these ideas. In her new book, Heaven: Our Enduring Fascination with the Afterlife (Harper; March 23, 2010; Hardcover; $25.99), Newsweek Religion editor Lisa Miller provides a groundbreaking history of the afterlife and offers a new understanding of this cherished spiritual ideal." – excerpt from www.LisaXMiller.com.
Knowing Pains: Women on Love, Sex, and Work in their 40s, edited by Molly Rosen.
Have you ever wondered how other women survived their 40s? You'll get an earful in Knowing Pains, an honest, humorous, thoughtful and diverse collection of essays by real women who aren't afraid to tell their age and tell it like it is. Sex, marriage, love, divorce, motherhood, singlehood, passion, obsession. Nothing is off-limits to this startlingly fresh group of new female voices that Molly Rosen has brought together to swap stories and compare notes on the desires, influences and events that have impacted and shaped their midlives. Collectively, they form a true picture of how real women not only survive their 40s, but thrive with dignity, courage and laughter.In honor of those affected by breast cancer, 100% of all book net proceeds will be donated to Breast Cancer Action (www.bcaction.org) to support breast cancer education and advocacy. Available through Knowing Pains (www.knowingpains.com), Amazon, Ingram, and local booksellers.
Leisureville, Andrew D. Blechman. "When his next-door neighbors in a quaint New England town suddenly pick up and move to a gated retirement community in Florida called 'The Villages,' Blechman is astonished by their stories, so he goes to investigate. Larger than Manhattan, with a golf course for every day of the month, two downtowns, its own newspaper, radio, and TV stations, The Villages is a city of nearly one hundred thousand (and growing), missing only one thing: children... Blechman delves into life in the senior utopia, offering a hilarious first-hand report on all its peculiarities, from ersatz nostalgia and golf-cart mania to manufactured history and the residents' surprisingly active sex life." – excerpt from www.AndrewBlechman.com.
Life Before Life: A Scientific Investigation of Children's Memories of Previous Lives by Dr. Jim Tucker. "In this very elegant book, Dr. Tucker offers the most convincing scientific evidence for the fact that our consciousness survives physical death. And indeed, takes quantum leaps of creativity in the form of reincarnation. The model that Dr. Tucker presents opens a new vision of who we are, limitless beings that fill up all of space and time."--Deepak Chopra, author of Life After Death: The Burden of Proof.
Making the Golden Years Golden, by Eva Mor. "In today’s economy, and with the current short comings of the health system, Making the Golden Years Golden is a rich source of essential information to anyone planning ahead to his or her retirement. Reading this book will help you to establish a step-by-step plan to protect yourself from costly errors and scams, keeping you well, safe, and providing you with the knowledge to carefully invest for the years ahead." www.goldenyearsgolden.com
No Right to Remain Silent: The Tragedy at Virginia Tech, by Lucinda Roy.
As the former Chair of the Department of English at Virginia Tech University, Professor Roy tells the harrowing tale of her encounter with Seung-Hi Cho, who went on a killing rampage that resulted in the deaths of thirty-two students and faculty members before he ended his own life. Prof. Roy details her attempts to get help for the deeply disturbed Cho, the tragedy that unfolded, and her criticism of the University's response to it. Crown PublishingRowing the Atlantic, Lessons Learned on the Open Ocean, by Roz Savage.
"Stuck in a corporate job rut and faced with an unraveling marriage at the age of thirty-six, Roz Savage sat down one night and wrote two versions of her own obituary -- the one that she wanted and the one she was heading for. They were very different. She realized that if she carried on as she was, she wasn't going to end up with the life she wanted. So she turned her back on an eleven-year career as a management consultant to reinvent herself as a woman of adventure. She invested her life's savings in an ocean rowboat and became the first solo woman ever to enter the Atlantic Rowing Race." Simon & SchusterSmart But Feeling Dumb: The Challenging New Research on Dyslexia — And How It May Help You, Warner Publications, by Dr. Harold Levinson.
"Every day thousands of children are labeled "dumb" or learning disabled when in fact they may actually suffer from a hidden form of dyslexia. Smart But Feeling Dumb has already helped thousands of parents with information on these disorders and Dr. Levinson's own remarkable system of treatment. Complete with the case histories and the research that led to his medical breakthrough, and totally updated, expanded, and revised to include the medical establishment's recognition of Dr. Levinson's theories, this book is the definite volume on dyslexia-and the book that shows you how you may be able to get safe, effective, immediate help for your child today." www.dyslexiaonline.comSoul Survivor: The Reincarnation of a WWII Fighter Pilot, by Bruce and Andrea Leininger with Ken Gross. "Soul Survivor describes the case of James Leininger, a spectacular example of the phenomenon of young children who seem to remember previous lives. We are fortunate that one of our guides for the story is James' father Bruce, who approaches the situation with a critical attitude. His insistence on doubting each piece of information until it can be verified makes the eventual conclusion that James's parents reach--that he is indeed remembering the life of a deceased World War II pilot--well-earned. Anyone interested in the possibility of past-life memories, or anyone who thinks it can be easily dismissed, needs to read this book. " --Jim B. Tucker, M.D., Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Sciences at the University of Virginia and author of Life Before Life: A Scientific Investigation of Children's Memories of Previous Lives.
The Big Green Purse: Use Your Spending Power to Create a Cleaner, Greener World, by Diane MacEachern. Diane, an environmentalist, delivers a message that is simple, yet revolutionary - if women change the way they spend their money, they can help solve the environmental crisis - and protect themselves and their families too. Discover how to apply the Green Purse Shopping Principles to our busy lives, and the power women hold to make real change. www.biggreenpurse.com.
The Box from Braunau: In Search of My Father's War, by Jan Elvin. "As a child, Jan Elvin thought very little about the tin box her father brought home from World War II. What she would soon learn was that the box had been a gift from an inmate at a German slave labor camp. Her discovery would start her on a long journey to uncover some of the fascinating and horrifying history surrounding the War, as well as a search to understand the man still haunted by its memories." www.janelvin.com
The English American, a novel by Alison Larkin. "When Pippa Dunn, adopted as an infant and raised terribly British, discovers that her birth parents are from the American South, she finds that “culture clash” has layers of meaning she’d never imagined. Meet The English American, a fabulously funny, deeply poignant debut novel that sprang from Larkin’s autobiographical one-woman show of the same name." www.alisonlarkin.com
The Girls from Ames, by Jeffrey Zaslov. Meet the Ames Girls: eleven childhood friends who formed a special bond growing up in Ames, Iowa. As young women, they moved to eight different states, yet managed to maintain an enduring friendship that would carry them through college and careers, marriage and motherhood, dating and divorce, a child’s illness and the mysterious death of one member of their group. Capturing their remarkable story, The Girls from Ames is a testament to the deep bonds of women as they experience life’s joys and challenges — and the power of friendship to triumph over heartbreak and unexpected tragedy.
The Girls from Ames is the story of a group of ordinary women who built an extraordinary friendship. With both universal insights and deeply personal moments, it is a book that every woman will relate to and be inspired by. www.penguingroup.com.
The "I" Diet by Dr. Susan Roberts. "The "i" diet shows you how to gain control over your food instincts to lose an average of 30 pounds, feel satisfied and live craving free." www.instinctdiet.com
The Male Brain, Louann Brizendine, M.D. "Join Dr. Louann Brizendine as she turns her attention to the male brain, showing how, through every phase of life, the 'male reality' is fundamentally different from the female one. Exploring the latest breakthroughs in male psychology and neurology with her trademark accessibility and candor, she reveals that the male brain" is a lean, mean, problem-solving machine, thrives under competition, has an area for sexual pursuit that is 2.5 times larger than in the female brain, and experiences such a massive increase in testosterone at puberty that he perceive others' faces to be more aggressive. "The Male Brain finally overturns the stereotypes. Impeccably researched and at the cutting edge of scientific knowledge, this is a book that every man, and especially every woman bedeviled by a man, will need to own." – excerpt from www.LouannBrizendine.com.
The New Intercourses, An Aphrodisiac Cookbook, by Martha Hopkins and Randall Lockridge
The Queen of the Ring: Sex, Muscles, Diamonds, and the Making of an American Legend, by Jeff Leen. "Mildred Burke was an eighteen-year-old waitress in a Kansas City diner when she saw her first wrestling match. A single mother barely scraping by on Depression-era tips, she had the inspiration and guts to crawl between the ropes and try to make something of herself."
"What followed was the astounding odyssey of the most unlikely champion the sporting world would ever see. At 5-2 and 120 pounds, Burke would use both beauty and brawn to captivate audiences across the globe and rise to the top of America’s most masculine pastime. Her story is a lost piece of Americana that is recaptured in The Queen of the Ring, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jeff Leen’s extraordinarily researched account of Burke’s rise to fame and riches." — excerpt from www.TheQueenOfTheRing.com.They're Your Parents, Too!: How Siblings Can Survive Their Parents Aging Without Driving Each Other Crazy, Francine Russo. "If you or your siblings are caring for aging parents, you’re in a tumultuous new life-passage: Caregiving, Medical help, Legal decisions, Death. Your siblings can be there for you like no one else—or they can drive you crazy and make everything harder. How can you make your family work now? THEY’RE YOUR PARENTS, TOO! is the first book to offer siblings a psychological and practical roadmap through this life-changing family transition." excerpt from www.yourparentstoo.com.
Triple Cross: How Bin Laden's Master Spy Penetrated the CIA, the Green Berets, and the FBI, by Peter Lance. This is award-winning investigative reporter Peter Lance's chilling true account of the career of the master spy known to his al Qaeda brothers as "Ali the American"--an explosive narrative revealing the gaping holes in our nation's security net. HarperCollins
Welcome to the Departure Lounge: Adventures in Mothering Mother, by Meg Federico. "The adventure begins when Meg’s mother, Addie, vacationing in Florida, takes a spill. At the hospital, Addie bolts upright on her gurney and yells 'I demand an autopsy!' before passing out cold.
'One minute, she is unconscious, the next, she’s nuts,' observes Meg Federico in this hilarious and poignant memoir of taking care of eighty-year-old Addie and her relatively new (and equally old) husband, Walter, in their not-so-golden years.
Addie’s accident is a portent of things to come over the next two years as Meg oversees her mother’s home care in the Departure Lounge, the nickname Meg gives Addie and Walter’s house in suburban New Jersey. It is a place of odd behaviors and clashing caregivers, where chaos and confusion reign supreme." excerpt from www.randomhouse.comWhy Good People Do Bad Things: How to Stop Being Your Own Worst Enemy
New York Times bestselling author Debbie Ford guides us into the heart of the duality that unknowingly operates within each one of us: the force that compels us to live by our values, give and receive love, and be a contributing member of the community; and the force that holds us back, sabotages our efforts, and repeatedly steers us toward bad choices. Harper CollinsWhy Our Health Matters: A Vision of Medicine That Can Transform Our Future by Dr. Andrew Weil. From Amazon.com's review:
"A landmark book that shows us exactly how we have let health and medicine become a crisis in our society and what we can all do to resolve it."
"Healthcare is no longer just a public issue; for millions of Americans it is now a crisis on their own doorstep. Cost of medical care today are a leading cause of personal bankruptcy. Although policy makers have weighed in on all sides, in this book, bestselling author Andrew Weil, M.D., identifies the root of the problem. He shows us exactly how we have become embroiled in the present situation and provides a solution that will not only make healthcare affordable, but will also put each one of us on the road to optimum health."
Wicked Plants: The Weed that Killed Lincoln's Mother & Other Botanical Atrocities by Amy Stewart. From Amy Stewart's website:
"Stewart takes on over two hundred of Mother Nature's most appalling creations in an A to Z of plants that kill, maim, intoxicate, and otherwise offend. Menacing botanical illustrations and splendidly ghastly drawings create a fascinating portrait of the evildoers that may be lurking in your own backyard. Drawing on history, medicine, science, and legend, this compendium of bloodcurdling botany will entertain, alarm, and enlighten even the most intrepid gardeners and nature lovers."
You: On a Diet: The Owner's Manual for Waist Management by Dr. Michael Roizen and Mehmet Oz. From Amazon.com's review: "Roizen and Oz will invigorate you with equal parts information, motivation, and change-your-life action to show you how your brain, stomach, hormones, muscles, heart, genetics, and stress levels all interact biologically to determine if your body is the size of a baseball bat or of a baseball stadium. In YOU: On a Diet, Roizen and Oz will redefine what a healthy figure is, then take you through an under-the skin tour of the organs that influence your body's size and its health. You'll even be convinced that the key number to fixate on is not your weight, but your waist size, which best indicates the medical risks of storing too much fat." www.realage.com
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