Book Review: The House that Ruth Built By Robert Weintraub

Before the 27 World Series wins, before Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, and Derek Jeter - the Yankees were New York's also-ran franchise. They didn't even have a stadium, renting out the New York Giants' Polo Grounds and, embarrassingly, losing to them when it counted: in the Fall Classic.

But in 1923, the Yankees played their first season on their own field, and everything changed. Babe Ruth bounced back from a contentious season to carry the team to their first title, justifying his new Stadium's nickname, "The House That Ruth Built."

This is the untold tale of the Yankees' break-out season, filled with stories of New York and baseball in arguably their greatest eras. Robert Weintraub's fresh reporting vividly illuminates the singular year that made the Yankees the storied franchise they are today.

This book is for all, not only Yankee's fans. It shows tells you the story of one of the greatest baseball players of all times. The Babe wanted to put his mark and he did it by hitting a home run in the first ever game at The House That Ruth Built.

Robert Weintraub is the sports columnist for Slate and writes regularly for Deadspin, ESPN.com, The Guardian, and Play magazine among others.

ISBN: 9780316086073

Book Review: REAGAN: What Was He Really Like?

REAGAN: What Was He Really Like?

This book provides the reader with a different type of insight on who Ronald Reagan was. It is written in short story format, about 20 vignettes on the life of Reagan before he became president. The different part os that the people offering the stories are research assistants, body guards, campaign advance staff, drivers, receptionist, etc, not your typical political personality.

The book contains photographs that make this book extremely interesting as I, for one, had never seen those photographs before.

I give kudos to the author, Curtis Patrick, for writing a book that presents glimpses in the live of Ronald Reagan from common people. This book is volume 1 and I look forward to reading volume 2 once it comes out.

This book is not for everyone, but the people who admire Ronald Reagan will enjoy this book as it takes a look into the early years (political life).

Book Review The Fearless Baker By Emily Luchetti and Lisa Weiss

Scrumptious Cakes, Pies, Cobblers, Cookies, and Quick Breads that You Can Make to Impress Your Friends and Yourself

I got an electronic version of the book, so the final version might be somewhat different.

I am not a baker. I cannot prepare desserts unless I follow instructions; so the cookbook needs to be very specific for my desserts to turn out.

The author dedicates some pages to the type of equipment that we should have. I wish that they had included photographs, as I had a hard time finding some of the equipment.

The book is divided into several chapters that cover: cookies, bars and bites, cakes, pies and tarts, fruit, No oven required, Best Dessert Sauces and Breakfast. It also has chapters on Sources, Metric Equivalents and Acknowledgments (people who helped with recipes and tasted them).

The first recipe that I baked was Blondies. They turned out great. The flavor was great and they were easy to prepare. The second recipe that I tried was the Cardamon Shortbread. It kind of flop on me because my mixture was not like "wet sand". I tried it again and had much better success with it. Both of them tasted good but I would have liked to see the final product to compare with what I baked.

This book is for the person who has a clue on baking. The lack of pictures makes it very hard for people like me that do not bake.

Thanks to Little, Brown and Company for the galley copy.

Book Review: The Part-Time Vegan

The Part-Time Vegan: 201 Yummy Recipes that Put the Fun in Flexitarian (Paperback)

When I saw the this book I thought that I would like to try some vegan recipes because I really do not eat that much vegetables and this could be a way to add some to my diet. I was kind of disappointed when I saw that it did not use that many natural ingredients but it used processed ingredients that are easy to find in the stores. I also wanted pictures of the recipes. I am a visual person and need to see how a recipe looks. BUT... the recipes ARE GOOD!!!

I did like the author's introduction to the ingredients she uses. I was not familiar with a lot of them and her explanation made it easy to understand them and their use. She also uses an index system to classify the recipes: protein = high in protein; fiber = high in fiber; quick = quick to fix; flex = can substitute non veg ingredients with meat.

There are 9 chapters for specific recipes such as pasta, salads, rice, grains, tofu, etc. It also includes a chapter on dinner plans and the best chapter (14), in my opinion, is called Sinful Desserts. There is also a resource section (with websites) and an index (very useful).

After trying some recipes, I have included sweet potatoes, quinoa, couscous, hummus, and tofu into my household staples. I will probably never become a vegan but I will be adding vegan dishes to our menus.

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I am not required to write a positive review, just an honest review. The opinions in this review are mine. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255 "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Review - Bringing Down High Blood Pressure By Chad Rhoden

High Blood Presuure - Also known as hypertension, high blood pressure is, by definition, a repeatedly elevated blood pressure exceeding 140 over 90 mmHg -- a systolic pressure above 140 with a diastolic pressure above 90. High blood pressure typically develops over many years, and it affects nearly everyone eventually. Fortunately, high blood pressure can be easily detected. And once you know you have high blood pressure, you can work with your doctor to control it.

Usually high blood pressure is treated with regular aerobic exercise, weight reduction (if overweight), salt restriction, and medications. This book tells you how to really do it.

This book tells you how to make changes in all of the areas to lower your blood pressure naturally. The book recommends the DASH diet which encourages the eating of whole, natural foods and lowering consumption of red meats, sweets, and sugar to reduce weight. It also includes about 70 healthy recipes to help you with your diet. The book explains that being physically active is one of the most important things you can do to prevent or control high blood pressure. It recommends both cardiovascular exercise and muscle-strengthening.

The book It explains the effects that tobacco, alcohol, caffeine, and stress has on your blood pressure and why it is so important to change these habits and behaviors. You will be told to limit sodium intake to less than 2,300 milligrams per day (which is very hard to do if you eat out).

Dr. Rhoden weighs in on alternative therapies for reducing blood pressure, while Schein gives practical advice on nutrition, tips for healthy food selection and preparation, and 70 tantalizing recipes each with its own nutritional breakdown.

Product Details
Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: M. Evans and Company, Inc. (February 16, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1590771591

Book Review: The Italian Slow Cooker By Michele Sciolone

This is one great cookbook. The recipes are easy to read and follow, and the final product is awesome. What I like the most is that they require very little in prep time and are very fast to do for people who work outside of the home. You do not have to sacrifice taste for speed. The recipes include are for: soups, sauces for pasta, risotto, polenta, grains, seafood, eggs, chicken, turkey, beef, veal, pork, lamb, vegetables, dried legumes and desserts.

Some of the recipes that I tried were: Creamy Cauliflower and Potato Soup (page 21), Pasta Fagioli -- my husband's favorite (page 35), Mussel, Saffron, and Fennel Stew -- takes a longer time (page 100), and Pesto Chicken (page 125).

All the recipes turned out delicious and I am not a great cook (but I can follow recipes). About half the recipes require a longer prep time but I thought that it was worth it since they turned out very good. I highly recomend this cookbook for everyone.

About the AuthorMichele Scicolone is the author of fourteen cookbooks, including the best-selling Sopranos Family Cookbook, and Entertaining with the Sopranos. A sought-after spokesperson and cooking teacher, she has made many times on national television.

Product Details
Paperback: 240 pages
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (January 7, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 054700303X
ISBN-13: 978-0547003030

Book Review: To Your Dog's Health By Mark Poveromo

Dogs are the number one pets in America. We love our dogs and spoil them rotten. But very few of us know how to properly feed and take care of our dogs. This book helps you understand how to feed and take care of them.

Mark Poveromo provides recipes for dogs and explains how the dog's diet can be changed. He also writes about medication for dogs as well as holistic approaches to a dog's health. Included in the book are recipes that one can use with their dogs.

Another "cutsie" detail is the paw print in each chapter which has a "hint" that you can use with your pooch.

I highly recomend this book. It is very useful, plus it is easy to read and understand.

Product Details
Paperback: 104 pages
Publisher: Poor Man's Press (February 1, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0984301704
ISBN-13: 978-0984301706

Book Review - The Serotonin Power Diet

The Serotonin Power Diet by Judith J. Wurtman, PhD. and Nina T. Frusztajer, MD. explains what serotonin is and why it can help you with your food cravings. Serotonin is the substance that makes you not be hungry. It also prevents you from overeating when you are stressed out. This book guides you through a 12 week program.

The first thing in the program is that you have to snack. This is one thing that most diets eliminate. Phase 1 lasts 2 weeks were you have 3 snacks. Phase 2 are weeks 3-8 were you eat two snacks and from week 9 and beyond it is one snack. The snacks are always carbohydrates.
The book guides you through how to eat the right type of carbohydrates by phases. It gives a menu to follow (with choices) so you are not hungry and are not to overeat or eat emotionally. The book also has a chapter on the type of exercise to do to maximize your weight loss and keeping it off.

One of the chapters that I liked the most was how to eat at restaurants. It gives you choices by cuisine. I think most people will find this very useful whether they are on a diet or not. Another chapter is the one where it helps you troubleshoot problems with your weight loss.

Part four of the book is the part that contains recipes you can use. Chapter 12 gives you a list of things to have on hand for a quick meal. Chapter 13 has basic meals and quick kitchen tricks. Chaper 14 has the recipes.

I did the recipe on page 204 Sauteed Scallops. It was easy to do and very tasty. If the rest of the recipes are just as easy this will be a nice (and tasty) diet to follow.

The goal of this diet is to learn how to eat it in moderation as well as to learn the difference between appetite versus being hungry.

About the Authors
Judith J. Wurtman, PhD, discovered the connection between carbohydrate craving, serotonin, and emotional well-being in her MIT clinical studies. Founder of a Harvard University hospital weight-loss facility and co-founder of Adara Weight Management Center, she has written five books, including The Serotonin Solution, and more than 40 peer-reviewed articles for professional publications. She lives in Miami Beach, Florida.

Nina T. Frusztajer, MD, co-founder of Adara Weight Management Services, is a practicing physician and certified professional life coach. She received her Masters degree in Nutrition from Columbia University and her medical degree from George Washington University. She lives in Boston, MA.

Website: http://www.serotoninpowerdiet.com/
Paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Rodale Books; 1 edition (December 22, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1594869723

Book Review - The Mayo Clinic Diet

The Mayo Clinic Diet emphasizes foods that are not only healthy, but also taste great. Part 1, the “Lose It!” phase, is The Mayo Clinic Diet’s two-week quick-start plan. “Lose It” is designed to help dieters lose 6 to 10 pounds in just 14 days. After dieters complete the “Lose It” phase, they move on to Part 2, “Live It.” This phase is designed to help dieters continue to lose 1-2 pounds each week until they reach their desired healthy weight. “Live It” offers a customized guide to using the Mayo Clinic Healthy Weight Pyramid.

To make it possible for dieters to keep track of their goals and succeed with weight loss, The Mayo Clinic Diet Journal is available as an essential companion to The Mayo Clinic Diet. Like the Diet itself, The Journal includes both a “Lose It” quick-start section to monitor habits and a “Live It” section to record daily eating and exercise.

About Donald Hensrud, M.D.
Donald Hensrud, M.D., M.P.H., is chair of the Division of Preventive, Occupational, and Aerospace Medicine and a consultant in the Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism and Nutrition at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. He is also an associate professor of preventive medicine and nutrition at the College of Medicine, Mayo Clinic. A specialist in nutrition and weight management, Dr. Hensrud advises individuals on how to achieve and maintain a healthy weight. He conducts research in weight management, and he writes and lectures widely on nutrition-related topics. He helped publish two award-winning Mayo Clinic cookbooks.

About Mayo Clinic
Mayo Clinic is the first and largest integrated, not-for-profit group practice in the world. Doctors from every medical specialty work together to care for patients, joined by common systems and a philosophy that the needs of the patient come first. Over 3,600 physicians and scientists and 50,000 allied staff work at Mayo, which has sites in Rochester, Minn.; Jacksonville, Fla.; and Scottsdale/Phoenix, Ariz. Collectively, Mayo Clinic treats more than 500,000 patients a year.

For more than 100 years, millions of people from all walks of life have found answers at Mayo Clinic. Mayo Clinic works with many insurance companies, does not require a physician referral in most cases and is an in-network provider for millions of people.

For more information, please visit www.goodbooks.com/mayoclinicdiet.

ISBN-10: 1561486760

ISBN-13: 978-1561486762

Publisher: Good Books; 1 edition (January 1, 2010)

Hardcover: 254 pages

Language: English

Review - The Sleep Lady's Good Night, Sleep Tight by Kim West

The Sleep Lady's Good Night, Sleep Tight by Kim West

This gentle, proven method teaches your baby and toddler how to fall asleep and stay asleep without leaving them to cry it out alone! Her gentle technique, called The Sleep Lady Shuffle, helps parents teach their children how to put themselves to sleep and back to sleep for nights and naps. The Shuffle involves staying with the child while they learn to sleep, gradually moving away from the crib or bed and out of the room.

I am passing this book over to my brother-in-law's daughter who just had a baby. We will be documenting the progress of this method with her baby who is now 12 weeks old.

Kim West, LCSW-C, is a licensed practicing child and family therapist for more than 15 years and a mother of two. Known as The Sleep Lady by the families she works with, she has coached thousands of tired parents all over the globe. Kim West received her master’s degree in Clinical Social Work from Simmons College in Boston, Massachusetts. She lives with her family in Annapolis, Maryland.

Kim West has appeared on Dr. Phil, Today Show, Good Morning America, NBC Nightly News, CNN and TLC’s “Bringing Home Baby”. She has been written about in a number of publications including The Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, USA Today, The Washington Post, The Baltimore Sun, The Telegraph, Parenting, Baby Talk and Child. West hosts the sleep section of The Newborn Channel, played in maternity wards in hospitals across the country.

Review - Acupuncture and Chinese Herbal Medicine for Women's Health

Acupuncture and Chinese Herbal Medicine for Women's Health: Bridging the Gap Between Western and Eastern Medicine by Katheleen Albertson

Effective health care for women is crucial. Women have suffered for years as Western medicine suggests drugs or surgeries to ease symptoms. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) offers natural resolution and has successfully treated gynecological diseases, infertility, a variety of illnesses and health problems facing women for over 5,000 years.

This book explores the potential value of TCM so that women can consider their treatment options. It also clarifies and broadens their knowledge of how TCM works and resolves gynecological, reproductive and menopausal disorders naturally and completely. This book also addresses:

• Amenorrhea
• Irregular or painful menstruation
• Polycystic ovary syndrome
• Pregnancy - related problems
• Perimenopause
• Insomnia
• Heart Disease
• PMS
• Infertility
• Menopause
• Incontinence
• Vaginal itching
• Headaches
• And more

Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine for Women's Health examines nutritional and lifestyle tips to help you make better, more informed health choices, while correlating emotional health, such as stress, overwork, exhaustion and depression with physical health.

The goal of this book is to empower women so they become aware of the many successful treatment outcomes achieved by TCM and understand its potential benefits. Doing so would decrease the discouragement and despair felt by many women who cope with chronic health problems every day. Despite evidence of its effectiveness, women do not usually consider TCM as a treatment alternative until after receiving failed Western treatment. TCM and Western protocols can be used, and are used, concurrently.

It is a woman's right to consider TCM as a primary part of her health care. Its use can help many women - and men - overcome many health disorders.

Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Vervante (November 18, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1616236515

Review - How to Lower Your Cholesterol With French Gourmet Food: A practical guide By Alain Braux

If you read the newspapers or hear the news there is cholesterol epidemic in the United States. Chef Alain Braux has created a wonderful cookbook that will help you eat better while having gourmet food.

When I saw the title I though that French Food was loaded with creamy sauces, lots of butter -- thing that you must avoid if you have cholesterol problems. I was surprised when Chef Braux stated that he had lowered his cholesterol by following his "french" diet.

Chef Braux designed this book as a practical guide. It is a nutrition/cookbook hybrid. It contains a great deal of nutrition information specifically targeted on lowering serum cholesterol and recipes to help you apply this information. He explains what is cholesterol and uses himself as an example. The best part is that he suggests what kinds of food you should eat and which ones to avoid.

Chef Braux shows you how to pick your food. We all think we know how to pick food but in this cookbook he explains how vegetable should look before you buy them. For every piece he explains clearly how to pick your food the right way. He then proceeds to tell you how to cook the vegetables the right way.

I also like Chef Braux explanation of cooking terms, such as: Blanching - To blanch vegetables, bring a pot of water to a rolling boil, drop them in the water, bring the water back to a boil and cook for no longer than one minute or until they turn bright green.

Since I am not a great cook, I decided to try a simple recipe. The one I chose was Muffins Fondants aux Noix (Tender Walnut Muffins). It was an easy recipe to prepare and bake. I LOVED them. When you get this book, try them, these muffins will become a staple in your household.

This is one cookbook that I would recommend that you add to your collection.

Book Review: Annie's Ghosts

Annie's Ghosts by Steve Luxenberg

Steve Luxenberg is a journalist from Baltimore, MD who learned that his mother was not an only child, that she had a sister who was kept secret. His mother died before he learned the story of Annie. He then embarked on a quest to find Annie’s history.

Among the first things he learned was that Annie had multiple disabilities (an amputated leg, mental retardation, and some form of mental illness) probably due to low birth weight and being premature. Luxenberg had a lot of questions about his aunt. The main question was why his mother hid the fact that Annie existed and told everyone that she was an only child.

Luxenmberg did a good job as a journalist and researcher. My favorite part and also intriguing is the interview with Holocaust survivor Anna Schlein Oliwek, cousin of Luxenberg's mother Beth or Bertha (her real name) and the hidden aunt named Annie. Anna Oliwek made her way to the U.S. after World War II, settling with her American family in Detroit. It is her challenge to her American family's decision to secrete away the mentally and physically challenged Annie that gives the tale its moral construct. She had seen how incapacitated people were treated in Nazi Germany and was appalled that her own family would do the same thing to Annie.

For me, the most touching part of the story was when Luxenberg replaced the previously empty tombstone marker with one that read: ANNIE COHEN, APRIL 27, 1919 - AUGUST 7, 1972, DAUGHTER, SISTER, AUNT.

One thing that I am glad to have changed through the years, is the treatment of mentally and handicapped children/adults. Having a family member institutionalized for life was devastating to the person as well as the family. I am glad that we it is no longer advocated to “jail” the person but to mainstream the ones that can be. I know that in some instances some people are extremely handicapped and they have to be “sent away” but I sure hope they are still part of their family not abandoned like it happened to Annie.

On a personal note - Overall, it is a good book to be part of your reading list.