Book ~ "Skinny Bitch" - Kim Barnouin and Rory Freedman (2007)

From skinnybitch.net~ If you can't take one more day of self-loathing, you're ready to hear the truth: You cannot keep shoveling the same crap into your mouth every day and expect to lose weight.

Authors Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin are your new smart-mouthed girlfriends who won't mince words and will finally tell you the truth about what you're feeding yourself. And they'll guide you on making intelligent and educated decisions about food. They may be bitches, but they are skinny bitches. And you'll be one too-after you get with the program and start eating right.

Good reminder of what we should and shouldn't be eating if we want to lose weight.

But ...

The book is very vulgar with its swearing (yes, including the "F" word) which got tiring. The authors are vegans and are VERY anti-meat. I skipped over most of the chapter entitled "You are what you eat" because it graphically detailed slaughterhouse procedures, complete with quotes from those who work in them. I applaud the authors for not eating meat but didn't appreciate the way they tried to shove it down my throat so graphically.

Book ~ "Daddy's Girl" - Lisa Scottoline (2007)

From Amazon.com ~ The undistinguished academic career of Natalie "Nat" Greco, a mousy and naïve law professor at the University of Pennsylvania, takes an unexpected turn at the start of this less than compelling legal thriller from bestseller Scottoline. When an attractive male colleague, Angus Holt, convinces Nat to accompany him on a teaching assignment at a nearby prison, a sudden riot puts them both in peril. Nat finds herself desperately attempting to save the life of a guard, apparently stabbed by an inmate during the fracas. The dying man asks her to pass on his last words to his wife, but possessing knowledge of this cryptic message proves dangerous. Nat finds herself accused of murder and must evade the law while also tracking down the bad guys. Her methods more often resemble that of Nancy Drew than an Ivy League professor.

Not a great review on Amazon but I enjoyed it. I started it this morning and just finished it. Granted it is farfetched in some places but the ending was unexpected. I'd recommend it.

Book ~ "The View from Mount Joy" - Lorna Landvik (2007)

From Amazon.com ~ Opens as Joe Andreson transfers into a Minneapolis high school as a class of '72 senior. Like everyone else, Joe has a major thing for head cheerleader, Kristi Casey. Joe gets some action but is estranged from Kristi by graduation. As the years pass, and they stay in touch sporadically, Joe, who narrates, can't quite let go of his infatuation. He becomes an innovative grocer, still unmarried at mid-book, and Kristi transforms into a Bible-thumping radio/televangelist. Joe builds solid relationships with his mother and her new husband, and reconnects with high school friend Darva Pratt (who returns to town with her daughter, Flora), while Kristi sets her sights on the White House. Landvik deftly mixes humor and pathos in Kristi's ditzy On the Air with God radio show, starkly contrasted by her quietly powerful portrait of Joe, a man with real family values.

We follow Joe as a high school hockey star to a father of three, with some interesting adventures along the way.

I enjoyed the writing style and humour in this book. I wasn't crazy about the On the Air with Gord radio show bits but I realize why they had to be there.

I'd recommend this book.

Book ~ "Playing for Pizza" - John Grisham (2007)

From Chapters.ca ~ Rick Dockery was the third-string quarterback for the Cleveland Browns. In the AFC Championship game against Denver, to the surprise and dismay of virtually everyone, Rick actually got into the game. With a 17-point lead and just minutes to go, Rick provided what was arguably the worst single performance in the history of the NFL. Overnight, he became a national laughingstock and, of course, was immediately cut by the Browns and shunned by all other teams. But all Rick knows is football and he insists that his agent, Arnie, find a team that needs him. Against enormous odds, Arnie finally locates just such a team and informs Rick that, miraculously, he can in fact now be a starting quarterback. Great, says Rick — for which team? The mighty Panthers of Parma, Italy. Yes, Italians do play American football, to one degree or another, and the Parma Panthers desperately want a former NFL player — any former NFL player — at their helm. So Rick reluctantly agrees to play for the Panthers — at least until a better offer comes along — and heads off to Italy. He knows nothing about Parma — not even where it is — has never been to Europe, and doesn’t speak or understand a word of Italian. To say that Italy — the land of opera, fine wines, extremely small cars, romance, and Football Americano — holds a few surprises for Rick Dockery would be something of an understatement.

Not a great book. And I don't understand football so I skimmed over the details of the games. Kind of a cop-out ending. Rick was extremely shallow when he arrived in Italy and I didn't see much growth, which didn't make him very likeable.

Book ~ "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" - Jonathan Safran Foer (2006)

From Amazon.com ~ Oskar Schell is not your average nine-year-old. A budding inventor, he spends his time imagining wonderful creations. He also collects random photographs for his scrapbook and sends letters to scientists. When his father dies in the World Trade Center collapse, Oskar shifts his boundless energy to a quest for answers. He finds a key hidden in his father's things that doesn't fit any lock in their New York City apartment; its container is labeled "Black." Using flawless kid logic, Oskar sets out to speak to everyone in New York City with the last name of Black. For balance, Foer includes the subplot of Oskar's grandfather, who survived the World War II bombing of Dresden. Although this story is not quite as evocative as Oskar's, it does carry forward and connect firmly to the rest of the novel. The two stories finally intersect in a powerful conclusion that will make even the most jaded hearts fall.

I read this book because Ken, Gord's son, loved it.

I, on the other hand, didn't love it. I didn't like the writing style and I thought the storyline and characters were dumb. Just not my kind of book, I guess. And my heart didn't fall.

I couldn't wait to finish it just to get through it. Had it not been Ken recommending it, I would have given up on it.

Book ~ "Alice Cooper, Golf Monster" - Alice Cooper (2007)

From Amazon.com ~ With his first book, Cooper, the original shock rocker, attempts to combine autobiography and golf manual in one snappy narrative; that both parts are equally half-baked hardly matters, as Cooper's simple, frank account of his 40-plus years in the rock and roll biz is great entertainment. Cooper started playing golf in the early 1980s - as many as 36 holes a day - to fill his post-rehab days and keep him from the destructive spiral of alcoholism. Thus, golf plays a vital role in this memoir; indeed, without golf, Cooper might no longer be alive - and not incidentally, the rock legend has since become one of the best players on the pro-am tournament circuit. Cooper devotes 12 sections to his "steps of golf addiction" ("Be a Good Imitator," "Let the Adreneline Flow," "Play with Those who Inspire You"), interspersed between short chapters that present a Cliff's Notes version of his life. Revelations include the truth behind the infamous 1969 incident in which Cooper threw a live chicken into a rabid Detroit audience, an unexpected backstage encounter with Liberace and Cooper's late-life conversion to Christianity. While there's more here for fans of Alice Cooper's music than his fellow golfing nuts, the man deserves credit for finding a way to tell his life story that's as unconventional as the life itself.

I've always been a fan of Alice's so found this book an interesting and quick read. There is a lot about golf in it but most of it was interesting (I skimmed over the parts where it's really focused on golf). He hung out with some interesting people and it's cool the names he mentions ... Led Zeppelin, Frank Zappa, Janice Joplin, David Cassidy. David Cassidy?! Huh?

Book ~ "Prisoner of Tehran: A Memoir" - Marina Nemat (2007)

From Amazon.com ~ Nemat tells of her harrowing experience as a young Iranian girl at the start of the Islamic revolution. In January 1982, the 16-year-old student activist was arrested, jailed in Tehran's infamous Evin prison, tortured and sentenced to death. Ali, one of her interrogators, intervened moments before her execution, having used family connections with Ayatollah Khomeini himself to reduce her sentence to life in prison. The price: she would convert to Islam (she was Christian) and marry him, or he would see to it that her family and her boyfriend, Andre, were jailed or even killed. She remained a political prisoner for two years. Nemat's engaging memoir is rich with complex characters—loved ones lost on both sides of this bloody conflict. Ali, the man who rapes and subjugates her, also saves her life several times — he is assassinated by his own subordinates. His family embraces Nemat with more affection and acceptance than her own, even fighting for her release after his death. Nemat returns home to feel a stranger: "They were terrified of the pain and horror of my past," she writes. She buries her memories for years, eventually escaping to Canada to begin a new life with Andre. Nemat offers her arresting, heartbreaking story of forgiveness, hope and enduring love — a voice for the untold scores silenced by Iran's revolution.

I was barely older than Nemat at that time. And, to be honest, I didn't pay all that much that much attention to the war. So it was interesting for me to read this memoir, especially since it's told by someone who experienced the horrors of such a war.

Book ~ "The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich" - Timothy Ferriss (2007)

From Amazon.com ~ Tim Ferriss has spent more than five years learning the secrets of the New Rich, a fast-growing subculture who has abandoned the “deferred-life plan” and instead mastered the new currencies - time and mobility - to create luxury lifestyles in the here and now.

Whether you are an overworked employee or an entrepreneur trapped in your own business, this book is the compass for a new and revolutionary world. Join Tim Ferriss as he teaches you:

• How to outsource your life to overseas virtual assistants for $5 per hour and do whatever you want
• How to eliminate 50% of your work in 48 hours using the principles of a forgotten Italian economist
• How to trade a long-haul career for short work bursts and frequent "mini-retirements"
• How to train your boss to value performance over presence, or kill your job (or company) if it’s beyond repair
• How to cultivate selective ignorance—and create time—with a low-information diet
• How to get free housing worldwide and airfare at 50–80% off
• How to fill the void and create a meaningful life after removing work and the office

You can have it all - really.

Parts of this book were helpful and informative. A good reminder about time management and living life as you want.

Book ~ "The Thrive Diet" - Brendan Brazier (2007)

From Amazon.com ~ The Thrive Diet is a long-term eating plan that will help you achieve optimal health through stress-busting plant-based whole foods. It's an easy-to-follow diet that will help you understand why some foods create nutritional stress and how other foods can help eliminate it, giving you a lean body, sharp mind, and everlasting energy.

Fully researched and developed by Brendan Brazier, professional Ironman triathlete, The Thrive Diet features:

- the best whole foods
- a 12-week whole foods meal plan
- over 100 easy-to-make recipes with raw food options that are all wheat-, gluten-, soy-, corn-, refined sugar- and dairy-free, including exercise-specific recipes for pre-workout snacks, energy gels, sport drinks, and recovery foods
- an easy-to-follow exercise plan that compliments The Thrive Diet -
environmental preservation - learn how The Thrive Diet can help

Boxing Babe Trish recommended this book to me a couple months ago. Though I eat and enjoy meat, I found this book interesting because it explains a lot about stress, nutrition, etc. And most of the recipes looked tasty!

Book ~ "The Song of Kahunsha" - Anosh Irani (2007)

From Goodreads ~ Abandoned as an infant, ten-year-old Chamdi has spent his entire life in a Bombay orphanage. There he has learned to find solace in his everyday surroundings: the smell of the first rains, the vibrant pinks and reds of the bougainvilleas that blossom in the courtyard, the life-size statue of Jesus, the "beautiful giant," to whom he confides his hopes and fears in the prayer room. Though he rarely ventures outside the orphanage, he entertains an idyllic fantasy of what the city is like – a paradise he calls Kahunsha, "the city of no sadness," where children play cricket in the streets and where people will become one with all the colours known to man.

Chamdi’s quiet life takes a sudden turn, however, when he learns that the orphanage will be shut down by land developers. He decides that he must run away in search of his long-lost father, taking nothing with him but the blood-stained white cloth he was left in as a baby.

Outside the walls of the orphanage, Chamdi quickly discovers that Bombay is nothing like Kahunsha. The streets are filthy and devoid of colour, and no one shows him an ounce of kindness. Just as he’s about to faint from hunger, two seasoned street children offer help: the lovely, sarcastic Guddi and her brother, the charming, scarred, and crippled Sumdi. After their father was crushed by a car before their eyes, the children were left to care for their insane mother and their infant brother. They soon initiate Chamdi into the brutal life of the city’s homeless, begging all day and handing over most of his earnings to Anand Bhai, a vicious underworld don who will happily mutilate or kill whoever dares to defy him.

Determined to escape the desperation, filth, and violence of their lives, Guddi and Sumdi recruit Chamdi into their plot to steal from a temple. But when the robbery goes terribly awry, Chamdi finds himself in an even worse situation. The city has erupted in Hindu-Muslim violence and, held in Anand Bhai’s fierce grip, Chamdi is presented with a choice that threatens to rob him of his innocence forever.

Excellent book! I wasn't expecting to enjoy it but I got pulled into the story right away. Set in 1993, it is told through Chamdi's ten-year-old naive and sheltered eyes.

Book ~ "When All You Have is Hope" - Frank O'Dea (2007)

From Chapters.Indigo.ca ~ For entrepreneur Frank O’Dea, it was a long road from street life to the high life. Born in Montreal to an upper-middle-class family, Frank’s life took a downturn as a young man when he was sexually assaulted by a priest. He began drinking at an early age, smashing up 17 cars. Soon he was destitute, living in degradation on the streets of Toronto. By way of a sympathetic employer and the Salvation Army, O’Dea quit drinking and started a small business that developed into the Second Cup coffee chain. Over the years, his philanthropic activities extended to AIDS fundraising, child literacy in the Third World, and landmine removal. His message is simple: HOPE, VISION, ACTION.

Interesting and honest story of how O'Dea realized he had to straighten out. He then went on to achieve so much. It's a quick read and not too heavy.

Book ~ "Lullabies for Little Criminals" - Heather O'Neill (2007)

From Amazon.com ~In her debut novel, O'Neill offers a narrator, Baby, coming of age in Montreal just before her 12th birthday. Her mother is long dead. Her father, Jules, is a junkie who shuttles her from crumbling hotels to rotting apartments, his short-term work or moneymaking schemes always undermined by his rage and paranoia. Baby tries to screen out the bad parts by hanging out at the community center and in other kids' apartments, by focusing on school when she can and by taking mushrooms and the like. Stints in foster care, family services and juvenile detention usually end in Jules's return and his increasingly erratic behavior. Baby's intelligence and self-awareness can't protect her from parental and kid-on-kid violence, or from the seductive power of being desired by Alphonse, a charismatic predator, on the one hand, and by Xavier, an idealistic classmate, on the other. When her lives collide, Baby faces choices she is not equipped to make.

Very powerful novel. I'd definitely recommend it!

Book ~ Only in Canada You Say: A Treasury of Canadian Language - Katherine Barber (2007)

From Amazon.ca ~ Ask any Canadian about a distinctly Canadian form of English and most will offer an enthusiastic Bob-and-Doug-McKenzie 'eh' in response. A passionate few might also bring up the colour vs. color debate or our pronunciations of 'out' and 'about'. And some may point to the ubiquitous Canadian toque as evidence of a language that is all our own. If this is your idea of Canadian English, then it might surprise you that Katherine Barber, Editor-in-Chief of the best-selling Canadian Oxford Dictionary and author of the best-selling Six Words You Never Knew Had Something to Do With Pigs, has written a new book filled with nothing but made-in-Canada vocabulary.

Only in Canada You Say highlights more than 1,200 words and phrases that are unique to our neck of the woods. Did you know, for example, that every time you ask for Gravol at the drug store, you're using a word that is unknown anywhere else? That those tasty butter tarts your mother used to make don't exist beyond our borders?

Organized thematically, Only in Canada, You Say covers Canadian English from coast to coast to coast, with sections dedicated to the things we love to do, where we live, how we get around, and what we wear. The entertaining and informative introductions to each section provide a fresh, often eye-opening, perspective on the reality of Canadian English from Canada's own 'Word Lady', Katherine Barber.

This was a fun book to read. I assumed that everyone knew what Gravol is.

I asked Gord if he knew what a scribbler is, assuming he'd know. I used them in school. He apparently didn't.

Do you know what it is?

How about blueberry grunt? Or a boiled dinner? Or pork pies (no, they aren't made with pork). Or a Burlington Bun?

This book brought back a lot of phrases I haven't heard or thought about since I moved to Toronto from Nova Scotia 20 years ago.

Book ~ "Tattoo Blues" - Michael McClelland (2005)

From Amazon.com ~ Tattoo Blues is a rollicking and playful comic-mystery, featuring runaway rich kid, Desiree Dean, who discovers her prized tattoo is a fraud - the Chinese character etched on her left breast says "with hot sauce", not "golden dragon" - and goes after the artist, and in the resulting confrontation accidentally, sets his tattoo parlor ablaze. That results in a mysterious explosion that destroys the parlor and leaves the injured Desiree in the care of a lesbian clam pirate and turns the sleepy Florida Gulf Coast fishing village of Cedar Key upside down.

This book grabbed me right from the start ... I liked the fast funny pace and odd characters. Then it fell apart towards the end, got predictable and wrapped up very quickly.

Still, I'd give the author another chance and will look for other books by him.

Book ~ "Refuse to Choose" - Barbara Sher (2006)

From Amazon.com ~ Don’t know what to do with your life? Drawn to so many things that you can’t choose just one? New York Times best-selling author Barbara Sher has the answer — do EVERYTHING! With her popular career counseling sessions, motivational speeches, workshops, and television specials, Barbara Sher has become famous for her extraordinary ability to help people define and achieve their goals. What Sher has discovered is that some individuals simply cannot, and should not, decide on a single path; they are genetically wired to pursue many areas. Sher calls them "Scanners" — people whose unique type of mind does not zero in on a single interest but rather scans the horizon, eager to explore everything they see. In this groundbreaking book, readers will learn:

• what’s behind their "hit and run" obsessions


• when (and how) to finish what they start


• how to do everything they love


• what type of Scanner they are (and which tools they need to do their very best work)

Very interesting book. Sher's theory makes sense to me.

I love learning and am always taking (or want to take) courses on a variety of subjects ... whatever catches my attention at any given moment. One day it's Copywriting and the next it's Holistic Nutrition. That's a characteristic of a scanner.

Some people know what they want to do with their lives (be a doctor, accountant, etc.). I'm still trying to figure out what I want to do when I grow up. Another characteristic of a scanner.

There are more than ten kinds of scanners ... I sound like a Jack-of-all-trades.

Jacks aren't driven by money or status symbols. As long as people treat them and each reasonably well, they will be content. If things get unpleasant, they leave. All they want is nothing more than to rack up one happy day after another. More than any other type of scanner, having good days with good people is what the Jack really wants. They enjoy doing different kinds of work and picking up new knowledge.

I'd recommend this book if you feel you aren't focused and your interests pull you in too many different directions. You'll discover that there's nothing wrong with that.

Book ~ "Life on the Refrigerator Door: Notes Between a Mother and Daughter" - Alice Kuipers (2007)

From Amazon.com ~ Claire and her mother are running out of time, but they don't know it. Not yet. Claire is wrapped up with the difficulties of her bourgeoning adulthood—boys, school, friends, identity; Claire's mother, a single mom, is rushed off her feet both at work and at home. They rarely find themselves in the same room at the same time, and it often seems that the only thing they can count on are notes to each other on the refrigerator door. When home is threatened by a crisis, their relationship experiences a momentous change. Forced to reevaluate the delicate balance between their personal lives and their bond as mother and daughter, Claire and her mother find new love and devotion for one another deeper than anything they had ever imagined.

I'd read a recommendation of this book on someone's blog recently.

It's a really quick read (I read it in an hour or so). The style is interesting as it's made up of notes stuck to the fridge. I wasn't expecting it to be as deep as it was.

I'd definitely recommend this book.

Book ~ "Nobody's Mother: Life Without Kids" - Lynne Van Luven (2006)

From Amazon.com ~ Statistics say that one in 10 women has no intention of taking the plunge into motherhood. Nobody’s Mother is a collection of stories by women who have already made this choice.

From introspective to humorous to rabble-rousing, these are personal stories that are well and honestly told. The writers range in age from early 30s to mid-70s and come from diverse backgrounds. All have thought long and hard about the role of motherhood, their own destinies, what mothering means in our society and what their choice means to them as individuals and as members of their ethnic communities or social groups.

I've always known that I didn't want kids. So this was an interesting book to come across ~ essays by woman who never had kids, either by choice or circumstance.

Coincidentally there was an article in last week's Toronto Star called Childless families on the rise:

• For the first time, there are more families in Canada without children (42.7%) than couples with children (41.4%). Twenty years ago, 52% of Canadian couples had children, defined as offspring younger than 25.
• Our neighbourhood has one of Toronto's highest rates of childless couples, at about 80%.

Book ~ "Children of My Heart" - Gabrielle Roy (1972)

From Goodreads ~ Set in the prairies in the 1930s, and rich with the author’s own memories of her time there as a young woman, this is a powerful story of an impressionable and passionate young teacher and the pupils, from impoverished immigrant families, whose lives she touches. Children of My Heart bears unforgettable testimony to the healing power love exerts on the wounds of loneliness and poverty.

Interesting and simple stories about various students that Roy (1909 - 1983) taught in a small school in the rural prairies.

I'd recommend it this book.

Book ~ "Dr. Joshi's Holistic Detox: 21 Days to a Healthier, Slimmer You, for Life" - Nish Joshi (2006)

From Amazon.ca ~ This summer's hottest new health guru will give you a new year, new you sparkle, with the mass market edition of his craving-free detox. "If someone doesn't comment within two weeks on how great you're looking - then you're cheating.", says Dr Joshi. Dr Joshi's craving-free detox attracts stars and supermodels from all over the world to his Wimpole Street clinic. Now he reveals the secret of his metabolic detox dieting plan and explains how it has transformed the lives and health of celebrities such as Kate Moss, Cate Blanchett and Gwyneth Paltrow. Based on avoiding foods that are refined, acidic and toxic such as wheat, potatoes, red meat, alcohol and dairy produce, the idea is to alter the PH balance of the body from acid to alkaline - flushing toxins from the system, restoring energy levels and losing weight. It is also about 'cutting down' on certain foods rather than 'cutting out', and changing your palate so you will actually dislike the taste of those foods which are bad for you, so preventing cravings. By following Joshi's intensive three-week programme and three-week maintenance course any one of us can shake off the strain of a high-pressure life and get the body and energy-levels we've always dreamed of.

Similar to the detox meal plan I recently did but a bit stricter (for example, potatoes aren't allowed).

Book ~ "Be Careful What You Wish for" - Alexandra Potter (2006)

From Goodreads ~ 'I wish I could get a seat on the tube! I hadn't eaten that entire bag of Maltesers! I could meet a man whose hobbies include washing up and monogamy!' 

Heather Hamilton is always wishing for things. Not just big stuff - like world peace or for a date with Brad Pitt - but little, everyday wishes, made without thinking. With her luck, she knows they'll never come true! 

Until one day she buys some heather from a gypsy. Suddenly the bad hair days stop; a handsome American answers her ad for a housemate; and she starts seeing James - The Perfect Man who sends her flowers, excels in the bedroom, and isn't afraid to say 'I love you'! But are these wishes-come-true a blessing or a curse?

The last couple of books I've read have been fairly heavy so I was looking for something light. And this chick lit definitely hit the spot.

It was a fun fast read. The writing was entertaining.

I'd recommend it if you are looking for a light read.