Essentially, this is a thesaurus of idioms and expressions. As a writer, I frequently search for ways to vary my words and phrases and this type of tool is useful. Reza Mashayekhi wrote this book with non-English speakers in mind. If you’ve ever watched NCIS, you’ve seen Ziva’s character struggle with expressions that Americans use and that happens in real life, too. In fact, we use so many expressions that aren’t literal that we’re not even aware of it. This book was eye opening in that way; I started looking at expressions that I regularly use and realized that so many of them weren’t literal and, because of that, could be confusing to my readers. On the other hand, if you’re learning English or transitioning to an environment with native English speakers, this can help you to better understand what they’re saying and blend in.

This book is self published but it doesn’t feel cheap. The front cover uses an illiustration that appears like someone has torn it back to reveal some expressions in different fonts. The back includes an anecdote from the author about English idioms, what the book includes, information about the author and recommendations from others. You wouldn’t necessarily be able to tell that that it’s self-published and it wouldn’t be out of place in a reference section.

The format is basic but works very well for the content. Mashayekhi has arranged over 2,000 expressions in alphabetical order by the full sentence. Thus, the first few pages contain sentences that start with “a” as in “a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.”  To the right of the idiom is the definition and, when applicable, an example of usage. Reza also includes notes about expressions with the same meaning that may not be included with the book and similar expressions which are included.

One thing I found particularly useful was the inclusion of similar idioms in other languages or from other cultures. It really impressed upon me how universal some ideas are even if they’re packaged differently.

If you’re looking for a specific idiom, you can check out the index for common words. If you even wanted to use an idiom that revolves around specific ideas, you could do the same.

English Idioms And Expressions For Everyone would be useful to a variety of people: students, teachers, professionals, tourists, immigrants, writers, bloggers and anyone who simply wants to communicate more effectively or learn more about English. It would make a great gift and there’s really not a whole lot of room for improvement because it’s already excellent.

Hilarious collection of odd behaviors that are surprisingly endemic among humankind.
Cheerfully embraces bizarre little habits that help us cope.
–Midwest Book Review

Judy Reiser’s concept of collecting the foibles of Everyman is not only unique, but genius.
She invented the category. You will find yourself in her book, and when you do you will laugh out loud.
–Ed Clancy, Radio Broadcaster

Judy Reiser has collected gem-like examples.
–The New York Times Book Review

Everybody has them. Reiser got grown people to think about it and to tell her about it.
–The Washington Post

Great stress reliever. Gotta have just for the laughs. Would LOVE to have been on that book’s research team!
–Karla Skinner, amazon.com

Admit It, You're Crazy! Quirks, Idiosyncrasies & Irrational Behavior (Review and Giveaway)

And since I like all things weird, I thought I’d give it a look-through. The author, Judy Reiser, was kind enough to offer me a copy for review as well as one for giveaway, which you can enter at the end of the post.

Ms. Reiser begins with an introduction, explaining how she interviewed two-thousand people and compiled the real-life anecdotes into this anthology. She gives a few examples of odd behaviors that you will find in her book but the intro is short and soon you’re off to the first section which is all about people’s strange bathroom habits.

Each anecdote is told either by the person with the strange habit or by someone who knows them. The book then lists the ages, genders and jobs of the persons involved. I guess this is to explain that we all do strange things but I don’t find the ages and careers to be all that interesting or helping. I stopped reading that after the first few sections.

Occasionally, the anecdotes will take a more interview format as Judy asks the survey-taker a question to clarify but.. more often than not, the question is “Why do you do that?” and the answer is “I don’t know.” Or, if the story is being told by someone who knows someone who does something, Judy Reiser might add a “I checked with this person, it’s true.” Either way, this doesn’t add much to the book at all and I could do without it.

Actually, what I want to see is more editorial content. I want to know why the author choose the categories she did — Looney Tales, Funny Money, Assorted Nuts, Night Shtick, Clothes Encounters of the Strange Kind, The Howard Hughes Syndrome and Now I’ve Heard Everything! — and perhaps delve a little deeper into the psychology of these people. A short intro to each chapter would easily explain her reasoning. Furthermore, I’d love to read about the author’s own “Quirks, Idiosyncrasies & Irrational Behavior.” It would really be a charming addition to this book.

Unfortunately, as is, this is more a series of lists that seem better suited to the Internet on a site like Cracked.com. It makes for a rather lackluster book and I’d have been fairly disappointed to have purchased the full copy. It’s not that there’s not some entertaining bits but it’s certainly not laugh-out-loud funny and it gets repetitious at times.

However, let me highlight some interesting tidbits.

MY COLLEAGUE THINKS it’s a waste of time to balance her checkbook, so what she does is to mentally carry the sum in her head. She does that for about six months. At the end of six months, she closes the account and goes to another bank and opens up a new account. Eventually everything works out and she finds out how much money she has.

RETIRED EDUCATOR, MALE, 59 HIS FRIEND: EDUCATOR, 50

The money section was especially interesting because it’s ridiculous how much people waste money and how classist people are. The privilege that some experience is beyond my ability to imagine and almost makes me angry. It’s an eye-opening look into how others live.

I also find it interesting that some of these apparently odd behaviors are things I do. Like the following:

ONE DAY I needed to get my makeup out of the bathroom while my husband was in there taking a shower. I reached in to get my makeup bag, being careful not to let the steam out or the cold air in. Out of the corner of my eye I glanced toward the shower—we have clear sliding glass doors—and noticed my husband using his two hands to squeegee his body semidry. He was working his way down his body from his head. The water was turned off at this point. I asked him, “What are you doing?” And he said, “Oh, nuthin.” I said, “Are you squeegeeing your body with your hands to get all the water off?” He goes, “So?” I was amazed.

RADIO TALK SHOW HOST, FEMALE, 34 HER HUSBAND: AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER, 34

I didn’t know that was so weird. It makes toweling off more efficient.. but, hey, at least I’m not the woman who blow dries her feet or puts on all her make-up before getting into the shower. I seriously don’t understand that one. It’s food for thought, at least, even if the book layout could use some work.

Giveaway

If you’d like to read Admit It, You’re Crazy! Quirks, Idiosyncrasies & Irrational Behavior  for yourself, I am able to give away one copy in either PDF format, so you can read it on your computer, or Kindle digital version which is compatible with Kindle for computer, Android and the Kindle itself. To enter, leave a comment for each entry type below. Giveaway will close on November 1st.

• Tell me one quirk or idiosyncrasy you have that might make it into a book like this–Mandatory
• Follow me on Twitter–@anaesthetic
• Add a link to a blog post about this giveaway (must include a link to the direct post)
• Like this post on Facebook
• Add this post to StumbleUpon or Digg
• A link to a Twitter post about this giveaway (once per day) such as:Admit It, You’re Crazy! Quirks, Idiosyncrasies & Irrational Behavior book #giveaway at Reviews by Cole http://reviewsbycole.com Ends 11/1 OR you can use the handy Twitter button on the left.
• Follow Judy Reiser on Twitter.

Now, I hadn’t heard of it and hadn’t even really paid attention to the synopsis when I began it but it’s summed up pretty easily. In a post-apocalyptic word, North America has become the country known as Panem. Panem now consists of twelve districts, some of which are barely ghettos, after the strict government crushed a rebellion and desecrated the former thirteenth district. Each year, the central government holds a drawing for one boy and girl fom each district and transports the pairs to a constructed game arena where the participants must fight to the death.

The Hunger Games follows Katniss, a girl of 17 or so, from district twelve, which happens to be the poorest of all the districts. What time Katniss doesn’t spend in school is dedicated to hunting and gathering outside the district fences to keep her family fed, despite the danger. The young woman steps in to take her younger’s place when she is culled for the games is soon joined by Peeta, a boy with whom she is somewhat familiar. The two head off to the central city where they begin training and are soon fighting for their lives.

Katniss is human and relatable as she struggles with the idea that she will eventually have to kill–or be killed by–a boy who has once shown her kindness as well as the other competitors. We follow her as she doubts her abilities, especially in comparison to others who have been able to train for the games, but proves to be not only a capable but compassionate tribute (the name for the competitors). Because of this, the plot twists and the rules of the game change. Katniss proves to be a game-changer through-out the book, a fact which is not lost on the Capitol which has, until now, used the Hunger Games as a way to keep the districts in line. Although the plot surely cannot end well, the book isn’t so uncomfortable that I wanted to put it down lest I take my own life. Katniss is level-headed and focuses on the here and now, which helps the reader do so as well.

Suzanne Collins keeps the plot of her book ever-moving. I really enjoyed this book and finished it in a time period a little over 24-hours. I spent five hours, give or take, reading it in all. It moves quickly and while you could put it down and walk away for a while, I’m not sure why you would. I’m excited for the next book in the series, as well as the movie.

Collins also throws in some humor to temper the life-or-death seriousness of the plot. This is especially apparent when Katniss speaks or thinks or acts. It is the humor, the compassionate, the self-doubt that brings out the humanity in The Hunger Games and kept me hanging on until the very end. Good on you, Suzanne Collins.

The Medium Next Door

Hope and love really is a theme throughout this book as Maureen talks about her childhood health issues, which she believed led to her special talents in talking to spirits, to the death of loved ones and her work to use her talents to help others. Maureen Hancock describes experiences that, even though they sound incredible, are truly touching. In The Medium Next Door, she discusses how she believes people stay around as spirits, even after their deaths, and they still love and care for us. Several times while reading, I found myself in tears. I’m a sentimental sort, yes, but I’m also quite the cynic. Even if you look at this book as a complete work of fiction, it’s still sentimental.

In terms of incredibility, Maureen comes from an entire family of seemingly super talented individuals, many of whom have psychic abilities. It’s almost a little too much to believe and, as I as reading, I had to wonder if she wasn’t sensationalizing things to sell the book. Yet, Hancock doesn’t come off that way. For all her belief in her abilities, she comes off as your typical soccer Mom. A family kind of gal who has struggled to make time for her family in her hectic schedule and, when I say hectic, I mean I can’t believe she hasn’t had a complete emotional break down from all she does. It’s astounding. She offers free services to families of deceased children, has hosted public events, has appeared on television and done radio shows and runs a non-profit organization on top of being a mother of two boys. As she wrote the book, she was working on getting a television show up and running. I am in awe of her commitment to help others. And this commitment shows through at the end of each chapter, where she gives insights into getting in touch with your intuitive abilities, dealing with anxiety, understanding death and other difficulties we all encounter during life.

As a skeptic, I find it difficult to understand how Maureen seems to have all the experiences and knowledge she has acquired. I just don’t understand how it’s possible but, assuming that the words on the pages are true, she has some sort of talent and it is remarkable and real enough to turn other skeptics. I’m almost convinced. Almost.

You’ll have to read The Medium Next Door to see for yourself and I am happy to announce that one lucky reader will get exactly that chance. This giveaway will remain open for two weeks. To gain entries in that time period, post one comment for each of the following:

• Tell me why you want to win–Mandatory
• Follow me on Twitter–@anaesthetic
• A link to a blog post about this giveaway (must include a link to the direct post)
• Like this post on Facebook
• Add my blog to your Delicious favorites (leave a link to your profile)
• Add this post to StumbleUpon or Digg (leave a comment for each)
• A link to a Twitter post about this giveaway (once per day) such as: Win The Medium Next Door from @anaesthetic. Visit Reviews by Cole to enter the #giveaway: Ends 7/4

Winners must supply me with their mailing address to receive the book. Giveaway is open to residents of the USA, Canada, UK and Australia.

Thanks to Maureen Hancock and her agent for this opportunity!

Here, Home, Hope

The book opens in the summer as our main character, Kelly, is missing the two sons who are away at camp. She has been a stay-at-home mom for over a decade and is considering what she wants to do with her life. She is depressed, she tells us (the book is written in first person, present tense) and doesn’t know why. Everything is great. Great, great, great. Through-out the book, Kelly keeps telling us how great everything is, yet she doesn’t like her life.

Okay, so she takes on a few projects, like helping her friend’s teenage daughter who has anorexia and assisting another friend in staging a house for sale, to keep her busy and fulfill her desire to do more now that her kids are older and out of the house for the summer. In addition to this, Kelly writes up post-it notes as little reminders of the things she needs to do in order to become happier and achieve her new goals. These notes include tid-bits such as “stop comparing myself to others.” These become a list of things to change or, as Kelly calls them in her too-eager-to-be-hip style “T2C.”

There’s no outright problem with the premise. In fact, the mid-life crisis has made for many a great story. The issue is, this just isn’t a great story. Rouda writes in a very abrupt and short way that completely glazes over the significant parts of the story and makes it very difficult to feel for the characters, even the one who is telling the story. While Kelly tries so hard to express how good her marriage is, the reader just never sees anything to indicate this. Sure, she shares some meals with her husband but she completely neglects to tell him that she’s seeing a therapist and has been diagnosed with depression. That is not a great marriage. That does not exemplify strength of a relationship. Kelly’s conversations with her husband are short and too scripted to feel real. Scripted really isn’t even the right word, when I think of it. They’re more like filler. All the conversations Kelly has with anyone in this book really seem that way. I’ve never met anyone who talks like that. The people are all completely devoid of real, believable emotion. The anger, the love, the sadness, even the sex is only briefly touched on, leaving the reader wanting more.

To add to the incredibility of the story, everything just falls right into place for Kelly. She decides to start a business and, somehow, is able to make $15,000 of her first project, make an appearance on television, set-up a website (with no apparent experience in doing so) and book a 600-person party all before the business is actually started. Super realistic, huh?

As I read Here, Home, Hope, I couldn’t help but become resentful and angry at the self indulgent attitude of the main character. If real people act like this, they should be ashamed of themselves. The first half of the book is entirely full of name-dropping (clothes brands, hotels, business, et cetera) in a self-loathing, entitled sort of way. It’s almost impossible not to want to smack Kelly across the face, especially with her sense of entitlement and because she takes everything for granted (drop a couple hundred on new clothes and you husband only briefly mentions that, hey, the economy isn’t doing so well..), if you’ve ever had to deal with real problems. And this is amidst all of the real problems that are affecting her friends and peers (don’t fret! Those peers also manage to deal with their issues without any realistic emotions or actions). It’s not that I don’t understand depression.. because I do. It’s not rational and I get that but Kaira Rouda doesn’t seem to understand that you need to emphasize how depression works if you don’t want your readers to hate your whiny little bitch of a main character. You can’t just mention that your character is suddenly taking medicine and only briefly touch on whether or not it works once.

Depression aside, I loathe Kelly for more reasons than that. For example, toward the second half of the book, there are a few chapters where we find Kelly being a ridiculous bitch to everyone she knows and no one ever seems to step up and ream her a new one. Granted, there’s a lot of stress going on at this point but it almost comes out of nowhere. If she’s feeling so happy, why is she acting like a teenager? Suddenly, she stops doing this and everything wraps up perfectly at the end of the book, except, I’m not really sure what the main conflict was nor why Rouda decided to end the story where she did (it’s one of those “this is the ending?!” moments) nor if I should really even care.

Now, I recognize that it’s hard for me to completely understand the feelings of a middle-aged house wise from suburbia and perhaps the protagonist just reminds me a little bit too much of my former mother-in-law (who can really identify with someone who’s weight-obsessed and cannot stand the idea of putting on the summer six pounds but who can blow $200+ on an emergency hair job?) but the author’s brusque style of writing simply lacks depth. It plays out in the conversations, the plot and the thoughts and interactions of all characters, resulting in an unbelievable blandness. I’ve read many books that should have been much harder to believe than Here, Home, Hope yet became completely immersed in them. I literally found myself reading every word in every conversation with the same tone because Rouda cannot write creatively or descriptively. The book comes off as the work of a complete amateur who also has issues with tense.

The only positive I can take from this is that at least it was a quick read. I finished it in three or four sittings and, by the end, I just wanted to put the damned thing down and never think about it again.

After I post this review, I hope I won’t have to.

I can say, with utmost authority, that the cover is the best thing about this book.

Thanks to One2One Network for this opportunity!

Home-Ec 101

The subtitle also alludes to the four sections of the book; although, not in proper order. Each section focuses on accomplishing a specific goal. For example, “Wash It” is all about doing the laundry. Although, it seems to be the shortest and may be appropriate as simply a chapter in the “Clean It” section. Each section consists of the author speaking to you, the reader, in a conversation and humorous tone (there are even humorous footnotes) as well as letters “from” others regarding situations, in which Heather Solos responds to common and not-so-common difficulties that you may experience around the house. There is an underlying sense of “If you know how to do this yourself and put a little thought into this, you’ll save time and money” and this truly makes this book one about home economics.

I suppose I found the tone to be a little too light for my liking but I also found that this sort of conversational tone led to extra, unnecessary content. Some pages have multiple footnotes that simply explain pop culture references. Although it’s good to know that Ms. Solos is not above making mistakes around the house, Home-Ec 101 just seems far too long and wordy to keep the interest of those who truly need it. Does she really need to explain how to sweep with a broom? I suspect that anyone who doesn’t know how to do that is never going to pick up this type of book and the person like myself, who is looking for some time and effort-saving tips, will find much of the information to be far too introductory.

If Heather and her publishers would trim some of the fat, Home-Ec 101 would be an even better resource. Despite its length, I found several tips that I found to be helpful. For instance, she includes charts of stains and the specific treatments that will remove them (and that is far more useful than taking the time to explain what type of stain is a protein, IMO). The “quick and dirty” chart style is exactly what I would expect from this book.

Nevertheless, if you know someone who is willing to read a 200-some page book and who needs to learn how to sweep or mop or wash clothes or replace the wax seal around a toilet, this might be a good gift. In fact, I think that gifting is Home-Ec 101′s ideal purpose. If you’re smart enough to pick it up, you probably know much of what’s in it and a simple Google search will tell you the rest. If you know a college student, first time home owners or someone who is just moving out of the house, I’d slip Home-Ec 101 into one of their boxes and cross your fingers that they read it. Otherwise, I’d probably pass this one up.

Thanks to One2One Network for this opportunity!

This particular book is authored by Dr. Judy Kuriansky, a clinical psychologist who has worked in radio, television and therapy. It is not her only Idiot’s Guide book and, I have to say, if there’s anything that I dislike about her writing style and advice is that she constantly advertises her other books and even services of other people. The tone is sometimes just a bit too conversational. However, this can be a positive for readers who don’t do as well with technical writing and this may be especially important when you consider the topic at hand.

The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Dating is a 6-part book with a whopping 26 chapters. Even though I enjoyed it, the text is decent sized and there aren’t any large blocks of text, the book still took me longer to read than I would have liked. However, I would say that the set up makes it easy for anyone to pick it up and navigate to the page they actually need. The tables of contents takes up several pages itself because Dr. Judy has included a description of each chapter. If you’re not reviewing it, there are probably some chapters or sections you will want to skip and the in depth table of contents makes this possible.

I’m not entirely sure that the progression of the book is the best I’ve ever seen. It starts out strong with chapters dedicated to dating in today’s world, a look into attraction, ideas about meeting people and using the Internet to find potential date. Part 2 offers advice for daters to help boost confidence and overcome shyness while the part 3 focuses completely on skills to employ during the first and subsequent dates. Part 4 expands upon these skills with advice in regards to communication, dating disasters, taking a break and determining if someone is right for you. The book begins to wrap up with several chapters on recognizing love and developing relationships. The book progresses to a chapter on calling it quits when your partner isn’t right for you and getting back into the scene.

In theory, it sounds good and it mostly is. However, the last chapter includes information for older daters, single parents and divorcees and while I understand why it’s in the chapter about “getting back into the saddle,” it feels like this information should perhaps be toward the beginning of the book, instead. At the very least, the final chapter should not be the first mention of this material.

What I do enjoy about Dr. Judy’s advice is that she sets people up to feel better about themselves in a way that attracts people instead of desperately searching for dates and/or love. Her approach is that this is all about the journey and that the reader will feel better by spending time with him or herself, doing things to increase confidence and learning to be happy even when single. These are all elements that directly contribute to my own happiness and I agree whole-heartedly with the author. In addition to this, focusing on the journey and the experience of meeting new people can help to relieve some of the tension that dating can cause.

In short, the Complete Idiot’s Guide to Dating is not a “get rich, quick” type book nor does it guarantee that a person will be going on many dates of find his or her soul mate so some people will be disappointed. In addition to this, anyone who has read some psychology books, gone to therapy or counseling or has a lot of insight into their own person may find the information to be a little elementary for their tastes. While I agreed with most of the concepts that Dr Judy brought to light, few of them were really news to me and I sometimes wondered if there were people who didn’t already have this guidance.

As I wrap this up, I would warn readers that the editor’s did a pretty sloppy job, especially when it comes to the asides and quote or tip boxes. Frequently, the text that is supposed to be contained within these boxes is too large for the allotted space and cuts off. Unfortunately, it’s usually quite a long phrase that is lost, not just a word or two and this greatly hampers their usefulness.

Content-wise, I bristled when I read Dr Judy’s description of individuals enjoy BDSM as those who cannot experience or enjoy love in a healthy way. This is a gross misunderstanding and perhaps represents an extremely conservative stance on her part. Lesser offenses revolve around some of the dated terminology and pop culture references. I’m not sure why anyone would consider video dating relevant in this day and age but Dr Judy references it in the Complete Idiot’s Guide to Dating. Pop culture references could use an update to this century as most of them are drawn from the 1990s and may not be as effective as current references.

Careful editing would resolve almost all of these minor complaints, of course. Even with these oversights, I found the Idiot’s Guide to Dating to be useful and reassuring, even if it’s not ground-breaking. I’d recommend it to a friend.

Now, to be honest, I did not follow the Cinch! book as I read it. I took this review on as an intellectual pursuit. I am happy to report that Ms. Sass’ book appears to be based on real, and not junk, science. She references multiple studies through out her book as she explains now just what (and when, how much) to eat but why. There are certainly anecdotes from her professional career but the science assures the reader that the Cinch! diet plan, and book, is one that is based on real science–even when Sass explains why she doesn’t believe that calorie or carb cutting are the end-all and be-all of dieting.

In fact, this entire plan is based on incorporating necessary nutrients into each meal in a process that Sass calls the 5 piece puzzle. She dedicates an entire chapter to the “Why” and “How” of the puzzle, allowing her readers to craft their own meals that meet the requirements or to make the best choices when eating away from home. In Cinch! there are an included 100 recipes that create all the puzzle pieces (lean protein, whole grain, fruit or vegetables, seasoning [SASS] and plant-based fats. Cynthia advises the reader to start with these 5-piece puzzle recipes if they do not do well with strict diets and even someone who is looking to improve their health or decrease weight could benefit by replacing some of their current meals with the Cinch-approved recipes, I’ve no doubt.

Admittedly, not all of these recipes sound amazing to me and those folks who prefer decadent cooking might be a bit disappointed at first. This is why Ms. Sass includes her 5-Day Fast Forward. This strict plan lasts only one business week and includes only meals consisting of egg, spinach, raspberries, almonds and non-fat yogurt. It is limiting but the book provides recipes that combine all ingredients (salad, parfait, breakfast scramble and smoothie, for example). Using the 5-Day Fast Forward can help a person shed up to seven pounds, claims Cynthia but other benefits include resetting one’s palette. Therefore, the Cinch Core plan may become more appealing and craving for unhealthy foods may drop after a person complete the five days. Because is it so limiting, Sass does not recommend sustaining this for more than five days in order to keep our bodies at optimum health.

One of the keywords that she uses in this book is “healthful” and the many inserts and a few of the chapters explain why and how certain foods are full of health benefits and she heavily recommends certain foods, such as almond products or grapes, because of these benefits. She even discusses why her recipes do not include certain elements (red meat, salt and alcohol–just to name a few) because of their lack of health benefits or even detriment to a person’s health.

So, while the Cinch! Core plan includes a lot of variety and the 5-Day Fast Forward can cleanse one’s taste buds so that one can better enjoy these recipes, some people will still find this plan to be limiting, especially when they realize that Ms. Sass is calling for the reader to foll,ow this plan for their entire lives. While the Cinch! plan is one that makes that easier, I still found myself thinking “Never!” upon reading some things.

Luckily, and I think this is really the strength of this book, the information included can help anyone make better choices when it comes to eating and treating one’s body in healthy ways. Even if the reader only makes incremental steps, by increasing produce or decreasing red meat or eating on the schedule suggested in this book, he or she will become more in tune with his or her body and that much closer to losing weight and increasing health.

Another aspect of Cinch! that I enjoy is the activities. Cynthia advises the reader to keep a journal and posts sample charts ans activities through-out the book. Not only does this pull the reader into the book but it helps the reader become aware of eating habits. This is especially true in the chapter about emotional eating (which I would recommend to everyone).

Not every element of the book is as helpful, however. There is a lot of repetition, especially when the author is discussing the benefits of certain foods. I understand the point–some people require this–but it annoys me. Secondly, there are many, many inserts and some of them are so large or placed in such a position that it interrupts the flow or the book or they even become difficult to recognize. Lastly, the testimonials that litter the pages didn’t really add much. They weren’t varied or interesting enough, for the most part, and seeing the same names repeated didn’t add credibility.

With that said, my complaints are about the composition of Cinch! and not the content–which is a good thing. I can actually see myself using some of the recipes in the book and flipping back through it for ways to increase the healthfulness of my life, even if I do not fully commit myself to a diet. Not many diet books can say that.

Cinch! will be available in bookstores and online retailers January 28 2011, if you would like to pick it up yourself.

Pat Benatar, with Patsi Bale Cox, spins a wonderful story. Of course, Pat’s career, success and life are great fodder to begin with but the conversational tone in this book was wonderfully enjoyable. I finished this book, all 245 pages, in three sittings. 3! In these pages, I discovered that one of the people I idolize, is a person who is worth respecting, too.

As Ms. Benatar takes us through the early years, performing in clubs and hanging out with Richard Belzer, through her struggles with a record company that took advantage of her as her career boomed and her family grew, through the mellower years, as she performed just hours after the attack on the World Trade Center and finally, to today, a time when she tours every summer with her family, she reveals her true self. And her true self is a down-to-Earth woman who is intelligent and entertaining and loyal to her family despite the fact that she is also an amazing success. In short, she is who I would want to be if I managed to become a rock star.

The connection that I feel to her through her music is just as strong through her written words. Perhaps this should not be a surprise because we’re both passionate but does it sound douchey if I say that Pat Benatar reminds me just a little bit of myself?

Her passion shines through when she discusses her husband who is also her guitarist and manager. Their relationship emerges early in her career and, while it is not always rainbows and unicorns, remains strong to this day. She discusses how he is her soul mate, both musically and in life. Perhaps it is this dedication and respect for love that has always drawn me to Pat Benatar.

Now, I understand that most people are not nearly as big of a fan as I am. They will not connect with Pat through her memoir in the same way I did. It still provides an entertaining, look inside the music industry–especially the fmorulative years of music videos and MTV. Pat Benatar was the star of the second video ever shown on the network–”You Better Run” –(after “Video Killed the Radio Star” by the Buggles). This makes her the first female artist but also makes Neil Geraldo the first guitarist to be on MTV. I found this fact ridiculously awesome.

The glimpse into the early years of music television is fascinating. Pat describes how the artists had the run of the place and there were no rules because no one had any idea what they were doing. Everyone was playing it by ear. If you take a look at the list of videos originally played on MTV, you’ll see it had quite a different personality than the station has come to have.

But Pat’s career wasn’t all MTV nor was it easy, especially as a young woman’s in a man’s world. She recounts the struggles with her record label, truthfully, and paints a picture of an unfair contract and unrealistic expectations of the young star. Even her manager was little help. Soon, she discusses how the label changes hands and, as is so common, it wasn’t so long until the changes proved disastrous. Currently, Pat’s husband Neil is her producer and they work closely with the companies with whom they partner. Her career is much more laid back as she focuses on her family–and even takes them on her yearly, summer tours so she can stay home with her daughters during the school year.

Aside from the story, there are glossy pages of photos printed in the middle of the book. Pat discusses those pictures and, interestingly enough, she has chosen shots not just of her but also of her husband, band, family, marquees and more. The photos are in chronological order, so you see her growth as an artist and person. The dates really give you an amazing idea of how quickly everything went for Pat Benatar in those early years. The more recent photos focus on her family.

And when it comes down to it, family values are just some of the values that Pat Benatar has and for that, I respect her just as much as I respect her as a musician. I definitely recommend Between a Heart and a Rock Place to any Pat fans.

Laura approaches the book as though she’s on her radio show. It’s casual, conversational and involves enough slang to make anyone who appreciate the English language want to use the book as a weapon. Laura also has strong moral beliefs (despite those nude photos of her on the internet) and this comes through strong in her writing.

Ten Stupid Things.. is actually a book she wrote in response to reader’s who wanted a male counterpart to Ten Stupid Things Women Do to Mess Up Their Lives. She’s equal opportunity–sort of. It doesn’t take long for the reader to realize that Dr. Laura hates feminism and anyone who backs it. At times, it seems she blames all the ails on the world on feminism and while I generally think that feminism is a good thing, there are some points she makes that sorta, kinda make sense at times.

Aside from her anti-feminist beliefs, Dr. Laura has produced an interesting book in Ten Stupid Things. She split the book into 10 areas in a man’s life in which he might make a mistake, which includes but isn’t limited to: independence, strength, marriage, parenting, sex and boyishness. When reading, I noticed that her main complaints stemmed from men acting too manly or not manly enough. It’s definitely a running trend in this book.

Dr. Laura solicited advice for this book from her readers and listeners and she includes their “top 10″ lists as well as emails through-out the book. There is a strong sense of doing what is right, taking responsibility for your actions and being an adult. I can stand by all those things even if Dr. Laura and I might not always agree on the details.

Dr. Laura’s approach is very straight forward, however. I can see how many people would be offended by this and if you’re trying to help the man in your life stop doing stupid things, it might be easier to take a more indirect route than handing him this book–or not.

Yet, if you’re an open-minded man you might find yourself nodding and agreeing as you read along or seeing the mistakes you’ve made along the way. You might take some of Dr. Laura’s advice to become a better man, if you’re so inclined. You might be shocked to learn that some of the things you’ve done are considered “stupid” by some. Maybe.

Dr. Laura doesn’t use this book as a forum to rage on men, however. You might be surprised to read her praise for the men who have finally “got it” or the men who learned from the mistakes of their fathers and other men in their lives. Yet, Ten Stupid Things Men Do to Mess Up Their Lives is not the best book I’ve ever read, even it was sometimes entertaining or enlightening. Luckily, you can find it pretty cheap at used book stores, if you’re interested. I got mine for less than $5.