About Those New Year Resolutions...

Family Health Cookbook
Melanie Barnard

Happily, the AMA's concern for healthful meals is matched by the cookbook writers' regard for flavorful ones, making this dull-sounding collection in fact a most engaging cookbook. Following the government-promulgated Food Guide Pyramid recommendations explained in the introduction, the 350 recipes feature wholesome grains, fruits, vegetables and beans, often in unusual combinations. For example, strawberries are a surprise ingredient in Very Cool Beet and Berry Borscht, and jicama and currants jazz up a cole slaw. Mexican, Mediterranean and Asian seasonings abound, with sun-dried tomatoes, black olives, jalapeno peppers and green chiles punching up many of the dishes. While the meat section is modest, included are such old favorites as stews, pot roasts, a Contemporary Shepherd's Pie and a Five-Alarm Firehouse Chili. The dessert section gently modifies some traditionally richer offerings: Deep-Dish Apple Pie has no bottom crust, and Double Chocolate Brownies have apple sauce substituting for some of the shortening. All recipes have a nutritional analysis, and a back-of-the-book chart identifies dishes especially high in vitamins A and C, calcium, iron and fiber. Extensive and reliable, this collection will suit home cooks who hope to fix healthful meals but refuse to sacrifice the pleasures of taste.
Publishers Weekly Review; September 1997.

Real Simple: The Organized Home
Kendell Cronstrom

With its seductive images of pristine closets, dazzling sink faucets, impeccably organized refrigerators and clutter-free bookshelves, the Real Simple world beckons to readers everywhere. The photos inside this luxuriously straightforward guide to straightening up one’s house make organization into an art form: nicely arranged pillows on a sofa become a palette of bright color blocks; towels piled atop a hamper turn into an inviting display; and compact discs line up to form vertical bisectors on a horizontal rack. Using a combination of photographs and sketches, the editors explain how to spiff up every room in the house, and even go so far as to give instructions on organizing one’s organizational spaces (such as drawers and medicine cabinets). Inspiring and comprehensive, this guide should appeal to both compulsively ordered and chronically messy homeowners.
Publishers Weekly Review; September 2004.

America’s Cheapest Family Gets You Right on the Money
Steve Economides

There's no doubt that today's families can use some help in balancing the household finances, and the Economides family, headed by a former ad sales exec and his homemaker wife, deliver the goods here. To an extreme. As founders of the 'HomeEconomiser 'newsletter, the couple offers plenty of helpful tips on shopping and menu planning, saving, reducing debt, and cutting back on utilities. Most of Middle America, however, will probably find their habits overly harsh. Take, for instance, their shopping routine: they make one monthly trip to the grocery store, which takes up to five hours but costs them only $350. By freezing such items as milk, bread, and cheese for later in the month and using the more perishable fruits and veggies early in the month (saving such things as apples and carrots for the latter weeks), the Economideses feed themselves 'and their five children' based on this one trip. Even though some tips advocate what others might consider garbage picking and mooching, any family with money issues will find useful information here. Especially helpful are their household budgeting techniques, adaptable to any home.
Booklist Review; October 2006.

Your Body, Your Life
Kim Lyons

Lyons was a personal trainer for years before she was asked to become a trainer on the popular NBC reality television program The Biggest Loser, in which overweight contestants compete to lose weight. The fitness plan she describes here involves three increasingly challenging levels of circuit training (cardio, resistance training, and flexibility training); a nutrition plan based on high-quality complex carbohydrates, lean proteins, and healthy fats; and a basic focus on goals, positive attitude, and journal keeping. Lyons clearly describes and illustrates (with photographs of the fit author) dozens of exercises and shares several of her clients' individual weight-loss experiences throughout. Information and motivation are key to a successful fitness program, and Lyons provides both in this helpful new book.
Library Journal Review; November 2007.

Time Management from the Inside Out
Julie Morgenstern

Best-selling author of Organizing from the Inside Out, Morgenstern takes a similarly practical approach to time. If one thinks of time has having 'edges' (rather than being amorphous), she explains, then it becomes as finite as space and, consequently, just as manageable. Morgenstern believes that there are three primary reasons why people have difficulty managing time: 'technical errors' (miscalculating the length of a task); 'external realities' (new baby, new job) and 'psychological obstacles' (perfectionism). What makes her program work, she attests, is that instead of trying to change people's natural behaviors and preferences, she encourages them to expand upon whatever is working already, no matter how overwhelmed they may feel. It all starts with knowing what one's big picture values and goals are (e.g., maintaining a happy marriage, excelling at one's career) and prioritizing those with the help of an ingenious device she's created called a 'Time Map.' Then, Morgenstern helps the reader apply her 'SPACE' system ('sort, purge, assign a home,' containerize and equalize') the nitty-gritty of time management to align one's to-do list with the Time Map. Everything one does (from important phone calls to major projects) must have its time and place even relaxation and fun (‘there is no such thing as spare time'). Morgenstern's simple book presents a superb, sound program for 'creating a life that nurtures you and makes you feel good.'
Publishers Weekly Review; August 2000.

Superfoods RX
Steven Pratt

Broccoli, blueberries and soy . . . oh my! Dr. Steven Pratt and Kathy Matthews present their powerhouse prescription in SuperFoods Rx. Fourteen 'super' foods each pack a hefty nutrient wallop that works synergistically to reduce heart disease, diabetes and cancer. Add regular exercise, sufficient rest and fluid intake, positive socializing and stress management, and the blueprint for health is complete. This compendium gives uncomplicated eating guidelines and devotes individual chapters to the eatables on the SuperFoods list. There is nutrition information on each specific food--from salmon to spinach--an explanation of its health benefits and suggestions for incorporating it into your daily diet. The book's bibliography is impressive; read a fraction of the material and you'll be nutrition-savvy in no time.
Bookpage Review; January 2004.

Cleaning Plain & Simple
Donna Smallin

Self-described 'organizing strategist' Smallin offers an indispensable tome packed with hundreds of useful, insightful cleaning tips that would please even the fussiest and particular of house cleaners. She opens with a succinct history of cleaning that provides perspective on this dirty work. Despite modern conveniences, we spend just as much time cleaning today as our foremothers (sorry, guys, women outnumber men five-to-one as household cleaners); our standards are high and problematic. Who wants to spend most, if not all, of their free time washing, sweeping, dusting, organizing, and throwing things out? This is where readers will find the author's expertise most effective. Smallin's spirited approach is warm and inviting; her easy-to-recall advice ('A clean home is a healthy home') is both refreshing and cost- effective ('Frequent upkeep helps appliances, furniture, and carpets last longer'). Organized into four sections, the book is an all- encompassing reference tool that will not dust up anyone's bookshelf.
Library Journal Review; January 2006.

Let’s Get Real About Money
Eric Tyson

Tyson, syndicated columnist and bestselling author of Dummies guides to personal finance, investing and mutual funds, provides a solid guide to breaking counterproductive money habits and adopting a healthy approach to personal finance. His first suggestion--assess your money knowledge- -is simple for readers to implement, thanks to several handy quizzes that identify the gaps that lead to common mistakes. Tyson offers tips for dealing with procrastination, money avoidance and disorganization, as well as assessing money beliefs and practices. The book's gem is a personal financial action plan that allows easy assessment of current assets and retirement goals. Common sense advice on budgeting strategies, reducing expenditures and taxes, and borrowing and debt management adds up to an effective, if familiar, plan for achieving control over and maximizing financial assets. Chapters on investing, managing risk, insurance and hiring financial help round out this comprehensive approach. This book demystifies the many obstacles--from the logistical to the conceptual--to smart financial planning.
Publishers Weekly Review; August 2007.