Book Review: The Cost of Dreams by Gary Stelzer

Genre: Fiction

Publisher: Decent Hearts Press (2009)

Pages: 287 (Paperback)

My Rating: 5/10









THE COST OF DREAMS BY GARY STELZER

About the Book:

Flora, a Mayan teenager, has escaped Talapa, her civil war-torn Central American village where her parents have been slain - and where even being seen in native wear could result in summary execution. Following her dream with nearly superhuman determination, she makes her way to San Diego, and against all odds, becomes a wife, mother and teacher. By hard work and shrewdness, she even obtains legal U.S. status.

But her life takes a horrific turn when she's shot by her drug-dealing brother in-law. As she lays unconscious and bleeding in front of her house, Mexican immigrants traveling on a freight train kidnap and claim her as their daughter, caring for her on a long, grueling cross-country flight.

Nearly a year later, still gravely wounded and disfigured, a freed Flora arrives at the Lake Michigan home of Kate Bowman, an American aide worker who had previously befriended Flora in Talapa. Kate's nephew had vanished on that mission, leaving Kate devastated and overwhelmed with guilt for permitting him to remain in a civil war ravaged Central America while she returned home.

My Thoughts:

Flora, the main character in the story, showed incredible courage in not only escaping from the troubles in her country to the USA but she then got married, had a family and trained to be a teacher. But I didn't really feel as if I got to know Flora as a person, I didn't know what she was thinking or the kind of person she was most of the time and so I didn't care too much about her terrible ordeals ......... and she did have a tough time throughout the book....... which was a shame, as I do love to sympathise with my characters and I usually want them to come through and live happily ever after. But I'm afraid I wasn't that bothered about what happened to any of them.

The storyline was interesting and it never got boring, there was always plenty of action, but not a lot of narrative. It was mainly plot-driven and descriptive, some of the terrain scenes I found quite difficult to visualize. Also, particularly at the beginning of the book, some of the sentences were long-winded and it didn't make for quick and easy reading, but I felt that this improved as the story went on.

Overall, even though this wasn't a book that I particularly enjoyed, I do feel that Gary Stelzer has some good creative ideas, and it was interesting to learn about a different culture.


This is Gary Stelzer's debut novel and his website can be found here


Special Thanks to Robyn Schecter at Carol Fass Publicity for sending me this book.

Book Review: THE BULLET TRICK BY LOUISE WELSH

Genre: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller

Published by: Canongate Books (2006)

Pages: 363 (Hardback)

My Rating: 9/10

THE BULLET TRICK BY LOUISE WELSH

About the Book:

When down-at-heel Glasgow conjurer, William Wilson gets booked for a string of cabaret gigs in Berlin, he's hoping his luck's on the turn. There were certain spectators from his last show who he'd rather forget. Like the one who's now a corpse. Amongst the showgirls and tricksters of Berlin's scandalous underground Wilson can abandon his heart, his head and, more importantly, his past. But secrets have a habit of catching up with him and, as he gets sucked into certain lucrative after-hours work, the line between what's an act and what's real starts to blur.

My Thoughts:

I picked up this book from my library, the picture first caught my eye and then the title, and when I read the blurb and noticed that some of it was set in Berlin ...... I was travelling to Berlin soon ....... I just had to borrow it. And I'm really pleased that I did as I absolutely loved it.

The story starts in present day Glasgow and travels back and forth in time to Berlin and London narrated by William Wilson, Mentalist and Illusionist, who was

the warm-up act for a whole trough of comedians and stand ups. The guy nobody came to see.

When his agent sends him to a London club for a gig he somehow gets mixed up in a missing persons mystery, involving the police and blackmail, and where, shortly after, two men are found shot to death, he decides it would be a good idea to disappear and take another job in a cabaret club in Berlin....... but, unfortunately, his troubles have only just begun. As the chapters alternate between the different cities and the different times, I loved the way Louise Welsh built up the suspense, we knew something terrible had happened to William earlier but the clues are slowly dragged out and the story never slows or gets boring.

Even though William is not the most endearing of characters, he drinks too much, smokes too much, and at the beginning of the book he gambles too much, but his witty and dry humour had me laughing out loud a couple of times and I found myself liking him more and more as his life starts to unravel in the darkly gothic world of glamour and magic.

The descriptions of his illusionist acts were fascinating, all the various larger than life characters were well-defined and I was totally engrossed from start to finish.

For more about Louise Welsh see her website

Similar Book

Carter Beats the Devil by Glen David Gold

LISTEN TO LOUISE WELSH READING AN EXCERPT FROM THE BULLET TRICK

BOOK NEWS: Headline gets sexy with SEX AND THE CITY!

Headline has acquired the new tie-in book for the forthcoming film “Sex and the City 2”.

Emma Tait, publisher at Headline Book Publishing, struck the deal for British Commonwealth rights, for a “high five-figure sum”, with Lia Ronnen at New York packager Melcher Media. Headline said Melcher’s close relationships with HBO and Warner had guaranteed a “stunning” book with full co-operation from the film’s creators and stars.

The “lavish”, fully illustrated title is scheduled for publication on 27th May to coincide with the film’s release date. It is produced with a silver and gold-padded hardback cover and features photographs of all the outfits in the film. The book is being produced with involvement from Sarah Jessica Parker, who plays the lead character Carrie Bradshaw, as well as being co-producer of the films and series.

Tait said: “This new book promises to have everything the ‘Sex and the City’ fans want—glamour, fashion, style and, of course, lots of shoes. We are thrilled that yet again Melcher has chosen Headline as its UK partner.”

She added: “At a time when illustrated film companions rarely work, Sex and the City was an exception, and we’d expect this to be just as successful because ‘Sex and the City 2’ is the most anticipated film of the summer.”

Headline published the bestselling tie-in to the first “Sex and the City” film in 2008.

Taken from thebookseller.com

Book Review: ADMIT ONE: MY LIFE IN FILM BY EMMETT JAMES

Genre: Memoirs

Published by: Fizzypop Prod (Feb 2010)

Pages: 197 (Hardback)

My Rating: 9/10










ADMIT ONE: MY LIFE IN FILM BY EMMETT JAMES

When Emmett James was growing up in the 70's and 80's the weekly family outing to the local cinema was his escape from the grimy streets of Croydon, South London into another world.

At the beginning of each nice and short chapter a different film is mentioned and he describes how the flickering images on the big screen affected his growing up.

Career plans and life-altering directions throughout my childhood years were consistently dictated by the cinema and my favourite film at the time. I went from praying that I grew up to be a mouse after the highly emotional and utterly disturbing animated Disney film The Rescuers, to being sure my destiny was now in the field of archaeology after seeing Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.

He also dreamed of one day starring in one of the films; for most of us, these are just daydreams and real life takes over but for Emmett James he really does go to Hollywood and he really does fulfil his lifelong dream, eventually having a role in the biggest grossing film of all time (at least it was when he wrote this book!).

I thought that Emmet James dry and wry humour made for entertaining reading and I read this book quite quickly. My favourite story describes how he gatecrashes an Oscars party by pretending to be Richard Curtis (the writer of Four Weddings and a Funeral), who at that time was relatively unknown and no-one knew what he looked like!

From The Jungle Book to Titanic and all manner of genres in between, if you love films you'll love this!

Special Thanks to Emmett James for sending me the book and Lisa Roe at Online Publicist

Book Review: THE LAST STATION BY JAY PARINI

Genre: Historical Fiction

Publisher: Canongate Books

Pages: 334 (Paperback, Large Print)

My Rating: 8/10






THE LAST STATION BY JAY PARINI

About the Book:

By 1910, Leo Tolstoy, the world's most famous author, had become an almost religious figure, surrounded on his lavish estate by family and followers alike. Set in the tumultuous last year of the count's life, "The Last Station" centres on the battle for his soul waged by his wife and his leading disciple. Torn between his professed doctrine of poverty and chastity on the one hand and the reality of his enormous wealth, his thirteen children, and a life of hedonism on the other, Tolstoy makes a dramatic flight from his home. Too ill to continue beyond the tiny station of Astapovo, he believes he is dying alone, while outside over one hundred newspapermen are awaiting hourly reports on his condition. Narrated in six different voices, including Tolstoy's own from his diaries and literary works, "The Last Station" is a richly inventive novel that dances bewitchingly between fact and fiction.

My Thoughts:

I was first attracted to this book by the snowy cover scene (it is very similar to the one above but I couldn't find the actual cover picture on the internet!) in my local library. not realising that a film was about to be released based on this book, and also not knowing anything about Leo Tolstoy.

The book is narrated by each of the people closest to Tolstoy in his final year, by alternating chapters.

Sofya Andreyevna - his wife for nearly 50 years - to me had the loudest voice. She was an extremely complex character and not someone that I liked at all. She was paranoid, neurotic and extremely jealous of all the people surrounding Tolstoy. She was constantly trying to find out what he'd written about her; she wanted to read his diaries and letters. They even sent letters to each other, even while living in the same house!

I learnt so much about Tolstoy while reading this novel, he was such a revered man in Russia, very much like a celebrity of today, people hung on his every word. Indeed, his own physician, Dr Makovitsky, used to write down nearly everything Tolstoy said, even in front of him, which he didn't seem to mind, he was a very patient man.

Jay Parini's writing was never boring, and due to the many varied voices including his wife, daughter, physician and secretary all seeing him in a different way, I felt, by the end of the book, as if I got to know the many sides of Leo Tolstoy's character which made the story all the more fascinating, and sad. Tolstoy comes across as a humble man, tormented by his wealth and feeling guilty by living in a big house and wanting to be free; to live like a peasant; and to be free of his jealous wife; but never doing anything about it until his last days.

The book is based on the many diaries written by him and the people who surrounded him, and is definitely one that I will remember.

BOOK NEWS: Angelina Jolie is to play Patricia Cornwell's Kay Scarpetta

Angelina Jolie to take on Patricia Cornwell's famous protagonist

Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie is to take on the role of Patricia Cornwell's cult character Kay Scarpetta, as featured in novels such as Book of the Dead.

While the casting decision has been met with widespread dissatisfaction among die-hard fans, the author herself is happy with the decision, according to the Daily Mail.

Despite having initially wanted Jodie Foster to have played the part, Cornwell insists that Jolie is committed to the role. When the two met, the writer was reassured by the actress's attitude.

She told the news provider: "When Angelina came out of the left field last year, I was floored. She had pithy things to say about what she wanted to do [and] is direct and goal-oriented."

The dissatisfied fans' main gripe is that Scarpetta is a middle-aged, unglamorous woman with short blonde hair – not descriptions immediately associated with Ms Jolie.

The film, called The Tourist, will also feature Johnny Depp.

Taken from lovereading.co.uk

My Thoughts:

To be fair, I have only read one Patricia Cornwell book but I really couldn't picture Kay Scarpetta as looking anything like Angelina Jolie and I was somewhat surprised at the casting.
I suppose she is a big name and will 'up' the profile of the books, and maybe even introduce a whole new lot of readers to the series who perhaps weren't aware of them before.
But I just can't see her as Kay Scarpetta.

Book Review: TROUBADOUR BY MARY HOFFMAN

Genre: Historical Fiction, Young Adult

Publisher: Bloomsbury (Aug 2009)

Pages: 294 (Hardback)

My Rating: 8.5/10











TROUBADOUR BY MARY HOFFMAN

The story starts in France in 1208 when one of the main characters, Bertran, a troubadour, witnesses the murder of Pierre of Castelnau, one of the Pope's representatives, who has been visiting the Count of Toulouse. He knows that this could mean trouble. not just for himself. but for all the Pope's enemies and he tries to warn other heretics (like himself) who could be in danger from the Pope's revenge by travelling to the various towns and cities of Southern France.

The other main character, Elinor, a 13 year old noblewoman who is in love with Bertran, is also travelling through France with a troupe of minstrels in the disguise of a young minstrel boy. She runs away from her family rather than marrying an older man in an arranged marriage.

Mary Hoffman has woven an enchanting tale of love, poetry and music set against the backdrop of the invading army from the north.

I really liked the character of Elinor, the headstrong young woman, who was always at war with her mother when living at home and who had to grow up quite a lot during her journeys.

I especially enjoyed learning about the troupes of joglars; these were minstrels who wandered around to different towns entertaining the Lords and Ladies by composing poems and singing especially for them in their castles, or just singing in the marketplaces.

The easy flowing writing was a joy to read and, overall, I was absorbed in the story.



Special Thanks to Liz at My Favourite Books as I was lucky enough to win it in their recent book giveaway!

Liz's wonderful review is here

From the Library Today!

I've been to the local library today and brought these two books home with me.





THE AIR WE BREATHE BY ANDREA BARRETT

Blurb from the back:

Autumn, 1916. America is preparing to enter WWI, but at Tamarack State Hospital, the danger is barely felt. Here in the crisp, mountain air where wealthy tuberculosis patients recover in private cottages and charity patients, mostly European émigrés, fill the sanatorium, time stands still. Prisoners of routine and yearning for absent families, the inmates take solace in gossip, rumour and secret attachments.

One enterprising patient initiates a weekly discussion group, but his well-meaning efforts lead instead to tragedy and betrayal. The war comes home, bringing with it a surge of anti-immigrant prejudice and vigilante sentiment. Andrea Barrett pits power and privilege against unrest and thwarted desire in a spellbinding tale of individual lives in a nation on the verge of extraordinary change.

THE GIRL WITH GLASS FEET BY ALI SHAW

Blurb from Amazon

Strange things are happening on the remote and snowbound archipelago of St Hauda's Land. Unusual winged creatures flit around icy bogland; albino animals hide themselves in the snow-glazed woods; jellyfish glow in the ocean's depths...And Ida MacLaird is slowly turning into glass.

A mysterious and frightening alchemical metamorphosis has befallen Ida Maclaird - she is slowly turning into glass, from the feet up. She returns to St Hauda's Land, where she believes the glass first took hold, in search of a cure. Midas Crook is a young loner, who has lived on the islands his entire life. When he meets Ida, something about her sad, defiant spirit pierces his emotional defenses. As Midas helps Ida come to terms with her affliction, she gradually unpicks the knots of his heart, and they begin to fall in love...What they need most is time - and time is slipping away fast. Will they find a way to stave off the spread of the glass? "The Girl with Glass Feet" is a dazzlingly imaginative and gripping first novel, a love story to treasure.

I loved the covers on both of these books, and that's one of the reasons why I picked them both up.

Have you read any of these books? If you have, let me know and I'll put a mention and a link here. Either leave me a comment or send me an email.

Andreea over at passionatebooklover has read The Girl with Glass Feet - have a look here to read her thoughts!

Jackie at Fast Lane Books Blog has also read The Girl with Glass Feet - her review is here

Book Review: TOPLESS PROPHET BY ALAN MARKOVITZ WITH THOMAS STEVENS

TOPLESS PROPHET BY ALAN MARKOVITZ WITH THOMAS STEVENS
The True Story of America's Most Successful Gentlemen's Club Entrepreneur

If you're male and reading this, I have a question for you - what would be your ideal fantasy life? How does having a string of 'Gentlemens Clubs' and being surrounded every night by beautiful near-naked dancing ladies, earning millions of pounds/dollars, driving fancy cars, owning your own private jet and racing car sound? If that life sounds too perfect and nobody could be that lucky, then think again and welcome to Alan Markovitz's world! His true story charts how he rose to become America's most successful Gentlemen's Club entrepreneur.

But, believe it or not there are drawbacks, like being shot at not once, but twice, and still having the bullet lodged in your neck between your carotid artery and your jugular vein as the surgeons considered it too risky to remove. Or maybe having your then business partner hiring two hitmen to murder you for your share of the nightclub. Or even having to testify against the Mob!

Early Life

Alan's father was a Holocaust survivor who was liberated from Auschwitz at 16 years and as he says "Maybe that's where I get it from - pluck, perseverance, determinations, balls, a little excess now and then. How else are you going to make it in this business?" His parents wanted him to be a doctor or a lawyer, the typical young-Jewish-guy-does-well-for-himself success story but Alan had other ideas, he saw how his neighbour, Sol Milan, owned a bigger car than his parents and he owned a strip club, and from an early age Alan knew that that was what he wanted.

So, Alan went to Bartender School and, luckily for him, when Sol's regular bartender wanted weekends off he asked Alan to step in, obviously he jumped at the chance and so began his first foray into the world of the 'gentlemens clubs'. When he was just 20 something he bought a run-down strip joint and with Sol as his partner he opened his first club - The Booby Trap - it was a dream come true and he never looked back.

The Shootings

The first person to shoot him was one of his own dancers, a junkie by the name of Susie who he had just fired. She didn't take too kindly to this and came back later the same night and shot her .38 revolver at him, hitting him twice, once in his liver and the other collapsed his lung. She only received two and a half years for attempted murder!

Amazingly, the next bullets were from an off-duty policeman who was apparently not happy at being asked to leave one of Alan's Clubs one January evening in 1997, having consumed too much alcohol and starting an argument with one of the dancers. After leaving he came back and started shooting his .40 caliber Glock and, unfortunately, Alan was in the way of one of his stray bullets. His jaw was shattered in six places, losing several teeth in the process, he had to have six separate surgeries, plastic reconstruction and cost him almost a quarter of a million dollars!

The Hitmen

The FBI was already investigating two thugs for other crimes when they listened in to their phone calls and uncovered a plot to assassinate Alan. Unbeknown to Alan, his business partner, Freddy Giordano, had hired the two hitmen to kill him, and Alan only found out about this while watching the evening news one night when they were arrested. Luckily for Alan they were arrested before they could carry out the hit!

My Thoughts

The book takes us behind the scenes of how the business works, the girls who, Alan continually tells us, are not stupid but are doing something they enjoy and which can pay extremely well, his battles with officialdom, the vast sums of money that can be made, all the while saying that anyone with guts and determination can do anything if they want it badly enough.

Alan comes across as a likeable, decent guy, who has made mistakes in his life and admits them honestly, which is one of the things I liked about him. He wasn't flashy or pretentious, just an ordinary person living an extraordinary life. Even though I'm probably not the sort of person the book is aimed at ...... I'm a middle-aged female ....... I would guess the book is mainly aimed at males interested in 'gentlemens clubs' ........ but I really did enjoy it. I know I'll probably never find myself in one of these clubs, but that doesn't matter, I still found it a fascinating look at a different world.

The writing flowed quickly and easily and all the chapters were nicely divided into sections, eg. Tycoons are made not born and The Girls which is self-explanatory.

My Rating: 8/10

Published by Am Productions (Oct 2009)

Special Thanks to Tracee at pump Up Your Book Promotions and Alan Markovitz.

Book Review: LIZZI & FREDL: A PERILOUS JOURNEY OF LOVE AND FAITH BY DR WILLIAM B STANFORD

Genre: Memoirs

Publisher: iUniverse.com (April 2008)

Pages: 424 (Paperback)

My Rating: 9/10






LIZZI & FREDL: A PERILOUS JOURNEY OF LOVE AND FAITH by Dr William B Stanford

The author writes in the Preface:-

I wrote this book to honour my parents and their innumerable sacrifices and to share with the world how unconditional love and faith in God carried them through their darkest crisis.

In August 1938 Lizzi (26) and Fredl (27) Steiner were happily living in Vienna, Austria when papers arrived for Fredl from the Republic of Germany demanding that he report in a few days to an aviation factory in Munich to work on delicate timing devices for bombs. Fredl, a Master Jeweller, and a Catholic, had no intention of working for a madman and they decided that their only choice was to flee Austria ...... this novel is the story of their 7 year odyssey to freedom.

They first went to Paris to say with Fredl's niece but after just 3 weeks, they had to flee south as the Germans were getting nearer. This was just the beginning of their nightmare, of being moved from town to town while the Nazis were getting closer and closer.

They then lived in Rouen for 14 months before Fredl was told to report to a military camp for the French Army which turned out to be a makeshift internment camp at Lisieux. Meanwhile, Lizzi was sent to an internment camp in Orleans before being moved to Nevers. This was the first of many separations they had to endure as Fredl was moved around France to different internment camps and Lizzi was left alone to find a new job and a place to live, all the while they were both worrying about each other and trying to remain hopeful of being together again.

Each chapter alternated between Lizzi and Fredl so we knew what was happening to them both at the same time, which added another dimension to the story.

In March 1940 there was a mass exodus from Nevers to the south and Lizzi was lucky enough to travel in a truck with some deserting French soldiers to the town of Bergerac which was high in the mountains, and where she felt safe for a little while making friends and finding work. She realised that there were many people in the same difficult position as her, displaced from their native lands, displaced from their families and friends, displaced from normal life in general. They had such unknown futures.

They did keep in touch by letter throughout this time and Lizzi even managed to obtain a travel pass and visited Fredl in some of the camps.

As Lizzi uses her courage and strength to survive we follow Fredl from one internment camp to another as the years went on, and

"fear and distrust were emotions that needed to be heeded closely. Survival was of paramount importance, and misguided trust could prove to be fatal."

Even when Fredl was at his lowest ebb, desperately ill with heart failure and pneumonia, while in a labour camp at Saint-Sauveur, near Bellac, cutting trees in the freezing winter, the thought of Lizzi and the end of the war kept him alive and having something to aim for - they often talked of emmigrating to America and starting a new life - this was their dream.

We talk of being stressed today in our lives but what they had to endure must have been worse than anything I can imagine - they had to leave their family and friends behind, they lost their home and possessions, they never knew from one day to the next whether the Nazis would come and take them away, never trusting anyone - it was their strength and belief that carried them through such a terrible time.

This is an incredible and very moving story and throughout it all it is Lizzi and Fredl's love for one another that helps sustain them, and one that I found difficult to put down.

Book Review: THREE SILENT THINGS BY MARGARET MAYHEW

Genre: Crime and Mystery

Published by: Severn House Publishers (Sept 2008)

Pages: 180 (Hardback)

My Rating: 8/10






THREE SILENT THINGS BY MARGARET MAYHEW

When the retired Colonel moves to the picturesque Dorset village of Frog's End after his wife's death he expects to live out his days quietly, but when, on collecting for 'Save the Donkeys' Charity he discovers the body of Lois Delaney (an aged actress) his life becomes anything but quiet and boring.

At the Inquest into her death it is presumed that she committed suicide but the Colonel (who was a huge fan of hers) has his suspicions that all was not as it seemed and he does his own investigating. He discovers that Lois Delaney had just been offered a wonderful acting job on the London stage and was very excited about it - so why would she commit suicide when she was so happy? It just didn't make sense to the Colonel.

Set in a contemporary era, the small village is fully of quirky characters and we are introduced gradually to all of them.

There is the nosey neighbour, Freda Butler, who uses her late Admiral father's binoculars to spy on all the comings and goings ......... the two gay men living in the converted Hall which has been made into flats, one of which is where Lois Delaney lived ......... the sour old biddy, Miss Quinn, who also lived in the flat above. Plus an assortment of oddballs and even some normal inhabitants!

We also learn that many people in the village even knew Miss Delaney years ago when she was an actress, so do any of them have a motive to murder her? And why have they kept it quiet that they knew her?

The author, Margaret Mayhew, throws in a few red herrings here and there just to keep us guessing which all added to the enjoyment.

As we get to know the likeable Colonel and the villagers the plot moves very slowly and gently with not a lot happening but I was swept along and had finished it all too soon! At only 180 pages long it is a nice easy read.

If you enjoy Miss Marple or the Midsommer Murder type of story then you'll like this. But if you're the Harlen Coban or Lee Child fast and furious type of storyline fan then I think this will move too slowly for you.

Book Review: THE MONSTERS OF TEMPLETON BY LAUREN GROFF

Genre: Fiction

Publisher: William Heinemann (2008)

Pages: 364 (Hardback)

My Rating: 8/10





THE MONSTERS OF TEMPLETON BY LAUREN GROFF

First Line:

The day I returned to Templeton steeped in disgrace, the fifty-foot corpse of a monster surfaced in Lake Glimmerglass.

These curious words are spoken by the narrator, Willie Upton, upon returning to her home town, having had a disastrous affair with her married professor and now finding herself pregnant.

She slowly starts to get her life together by discovering the lives of her ancestors who founded the town of Templeton in the 1700's and through their words we learn of past secrets, lies and rumours.

Many of the chapters alternated between Willie's voice and some of her ancestors which helped to build up a fascinating picture of her weird family, some of whom I did find a little unbelievable, together with the growth of Templeton.

I thought the slow build up of the family tree diagrams throughout the story was a nice touch and the family pictures also added to the overall feel, making it all seem real.

The story of the prehistoric monster found in the Lake was a little unusual and the author kept referring to this throughout the book as some of the characters may have seen it over the years. I'm not sure if I liked this idea or not, I just found the whole concept a little strange.

Overall though I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it if you like something a little different from the normal historical/contemporary fiction.

BOOK NEWS: New book chronicles a year living solely by Oprah Winfrey's tips

Readers are to be given the chance to see how successful Oprah Winfrey's tips are for day-to-day living.

A Chicago-based author has expressed her relief at finishing her latest project, a book chronicling a year of living solely by the advice dished out by Oprah Winfrey.

Due to be launched next week, with the start of a new year always prompting a surge in demand for self-help and improvement guides, Living Oprah tells how Robyn Okrant spend 12 months following every single snippet of advice handed out by the talk show host.

Such lifestyle hints include taking up yoga, listening to Celine Dion and becoming more environmentally-aware.

However, despite much of the advice having turned out to be sound, Okrant has revealed that the book is far from a "sycophantic" work, and is unlikely to be included in Oprah's own Book Club at any point soon, the Chicago Tribune reports.

Explaining how the constant barrage of advice led her to the point of exasperation, she told the newspaper: "It might not be the case of the blind leading the blind, but it's certainly the stressed leading the stressed."

Article taken from lovereading.co.uk

Book Review: ARANT SARATIR: WARRIOR'S LIGHT BY TAYLOR J BEISLER

Genre: Fantasy

Publisher: Eloquent Books (Feb 2009)

Pages: 138 (Paperback)

My Rating: 5/10






ARANT SARATIR: WARRIOR'S LIGHT BY TAYLOR J BEISLER

About the Book: (taken from taylorbeisler.com)

Imagine a world beyond any other, where time continues to sift through the hands of a young man named Airsing. This boy is destined for greatness, but all he wants to do is fit in; he does indeed fit, but to something veiled from the present. His fate collides with a young man called Xavier. When a boy, Xavier was taken to the forbidden Nyros and manipulated into an int; his father was brainwashed into a Syfrin, not even remembering his son to the point of beating Xavier to death. Xavier has to make a grave choice, either way, to survive, but which path does he take? Airsing has the same decision when faced with the opportunities to survive or surrender, but which road does he travel? Join these characters on a life-threatening journey, but be warned: this series doesn't end as their path would lead you to believe. A dragon rider, a betrayer, and a small company of friendship combine to threaten this evil time where the dark lord, Arkt, is fighting to take over their world. What happens next? The end is never so clear ...

My Thoughts:

Taylor Beisler has tried to create a new and different fantasy world where flying dragons have human riders and where war is always imminent.

But, I am afraid that I found her writing style quite difficult to follow. It did not flow very easily as I had to read some sentences more than once to understand exactly what was meant. It seemed to me as if some simple words were replaced by more difficult ones and I found this quite frustrating and did spoil my overall enjoyment of the story.

As for the story, there were some paragraphs which just did not make sense due to the phrasing and I couldn't picture the scene in my head, and it wasn't until I read on that it became clear what was happening.

As this is the authors debut novel, I don't want to be too negative as she does have some good creative ideas and in Xavier and Airsing she has two likeable and interesting characters who will have more adventures in the future ......... I believe there is a sequel coming out soon and I wish her good luck on her next venture!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE

I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO READING AND REVIEWING MORE GREAT BOOKS THIS YEAR - I'VE STILL GOT A HUGE 'TO BE READ' PILE

I HOPE YOU ENJOY READING MY REVIEWS AND MAYBE EVEN READ ONE OR TWO OF THE BOOKS YOURSELF AND LETTING ME KNOW YOUR OPINION

THANK YOU TO EVERYONE FOR ALL YOUR COMMENTS, VIEWS AND WORDS OF SUPPORT OVER THE PAST YEAR - HOPING TO SEE YOU ALL AGAIN IN 2010 - ALONG WITH ANY NEW FOLLOWERS (YOU'RE MORE THAN WELCOME)

Carole
(pic is of me and my family on Christmas Day)

BOOK NEWS: JK Rowling the best selling author of the decade

The Harry Potter author has been confirmed as the biggest-selling author of the past ten years

Harry Potter author JK Rowling has topped the list of best-selling authors of the Noughties.

Following the release of her debut title, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, the author went on to rack up sales in excess of 29 million copies, more than twice the number of books shifted by Da Vinci Code writer Dan Brown over the decade.

The Harry Potter series generated sales worth £225.9 million for its publishers, the end-of-decade figures from Nielsen Bookscan show, making Rowling the most profitable author, well ahead of second-placed Jamie Oliver in this respect.

However, while the usual suspects, including Terry Pratchett and John Grisham joined Rowling and Brown in the top ten sales list, there were a number of surprise inclusions.

For example, sales of 14 million helped Roger Hargreaves, the author of the Mr Men series of books, into second spot, while Jeremy Clarkson beat the best-selling US thriller writers Jeffrey Deaver and Lee Child, while Carol Voderman is placed one spot above William Shakespeare.

Just recently, the actor Michael Thompson donated his first edition copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows to the British Heart Foundation to auction off.

For full article see lovereading.co.uk

Book Review: Between Me and the River by Carrie Host

Genre: Personal Memoir

Publisher: Harlequin (Aug 2009)

Pages: 298 (Hardcover)

My Rating: 9/10






Between Me and the River: Living Beyond Cancer: A Memoir by Carrie Host

Summary:

When told at forty, with her youngest child just ten months old, that she had carcinoid tumor, Host felt as if she'd been hurled into a raging river, stripped of all forms of potential rescue. The voyage of this strong-minded, openhearted woman out of that river and onto safe shores is told with uncompromising honesty and respect for the miracles that medicine and love can work.

While dealing with practical issues such as how to find the best medical team and what to tell the children, Host also recounts the many spiritual and eye-opening lessons that made her journey so bearable: how to see what is available rather than what is absent, how to free up energy to heal by letting go of anger and fear, and how to believe in the future.

My Thoughts:

This is an incredibly moving story of how Carrie Host deals with the most devastating news anyone could have.........being told that you have cancer, particularly when your youngest child is not even one.

One minute I was in tears as she was preparing herself for how to gently tell her two teenage children of her diagnosis and the treatment she would be having, and the next I was smiling as she describes her husband, Amory, getting the car ready --

Amory is already dressed and scraping ice and snow off the car, shoveling a clear path for me. Before I can even get my coat from the closet, I hear the engine turning over .............. sadly, he has become accustomed to my waking him at all hours........ he's never annoyed or put out, he's just constantly bailing out my boat as it begins to fill with water.

Throughout the book I kept thinking how lucky she was to have such a wonderful husband and loyal friends who looked after the children at the drop of a hat, even though some of her friends did disappear as some people just couldn't cope with seeing her battle. She was incredibly philosophical about this and understanding - which to me sums up her whole attitude to her situation.

As I followed this warm, likeable and very strong woman as she dealt with her cancer, I loved the way she constantly compared her life to being in a raging river -- sometimes she felt like she was being pulled under the water, at other times she felt as if someone was pulling her out.

This is a lovely, feel good story full of hope and compassion.

Special Thanks to Carrie Host and Lisa Roe at OnlinePublicist.blogspot.com

BOOK NEWS: Enid Blyton book sells for £600

An Oxfam charity shop strikes it lucky with rare donation.

A copy of Enid Blyton's Five on a Treasure Island has been sold on eBay for nearly £600, it has been revealed.

The book, which was anonymously donated to a charity shop in Oban, Scotland, was auctioned on the internet marketplace for £568 after it was identified as valuable by staff at the town's Oxfam store.

The book is a 1942 first edition reprint and still displays the original price – a less costly five shillings (25p).

Olwen Rowlands, store manager, said that the decision to sell the book on eBay rather than in-store was a good one as it fetched more than twice its minimum price of £250.

She said: "At the last moment there were a flurry of bids and it finished at £568. That's more than double what we estimated, and around half of what we would bring in a normal week.

"That kind of money will give us a real boost heading for Christmas."

Books by Enid Blyton include The Magic Faraway Tree and Noddy and the Farmyard Muddle.

Article taken from lovereading.co.uk

BOOK NEWS: Philip Pullman disappointed over film prospects of His Dark Materials

Philip Pullman disappointed over film prospects of His Dark Materials

The author Philip Pullman has expressed his disappointment that the second two novels in his fantasy trilogy have not yet made it to the big screen

Once more, with feeling? … A scene from The Golden Compass

The author Philip Pullman has spoken of his disappointment over the failure of Hollywood to complete the film trilogy of his series of fantasy novels, His Dark Materials.

1. The Golden Compass
2. Production year: 2007
3. Country: Rest of the world
4. Cert (UK): PG
5. Runtime: 113 mins
6. Directors: Chris Weitz
7. Cast: Dakota Blue Richards, Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Nicole Kidman, Sir Ian McKellen, Tom Courtenay
8. More on this film

The actor Sam Elliott, who starred in the 2007 adaptation of the first novel, Northern Lights (the film was called The Golden Compass), said earlier this week that books two and three were not being filmed due to a successful campaign by America's religious right. The Golden Compass grossed more than £230m around the world, but was less successful in America, where the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights called for a boycott on the grounds that Pullman's books introduced children to atheism.

Pullman, 63, told the Western Mail: "If Sam is right then I am very disappointed because it obviously would have been very good to have seen the other two films made."

Catholic League leader Bill Donahue has said he is "delighted" by the effectiveness of his religious boycott – "I knew if we could hurt the box office receipts here, it might put the brakes on the next movie."

Pullman said of Donahue's triumphalism: "It's disgusting, but only the sort of behaviour I expect of these people. It's rubbish [that the Golden Compass introduces children to atheism]."

He added that he was particularly disappointed because the film adaptation of Northern Lights finished about three quarters of the way into the book. "So there were a number of very important scenes that were shot and were very good, but we didn't see them in the film.

"Their justification was that they were going to use the scenes they'd shot, but at the start of the second film. It sort of made sense, but if what Sam Elliott says is true we won't see those scenes."

The failure to complete His Dark Materials, which would have continued with The Subtle Knife and finished with The Amber Spyglass, echoes the travails of film-maker Ralph Bakshi, who completed the first film in his two-part Lord of the Rings adaptation in 1978, but failed to find funding for the sequel due to poor box office receipts. The series was later completed - in three films - by Peter Jackson.

Article taken from theguardian.co.uk

Book Review: HURTING DISTANCE BY SOPHIE HANNAH

HURTING DISTANCE BY SOPHIE HANNAH

Genre: Psychological Thriller

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton (2007)

Pages: 432 (Paperback)

My Rating: 8/10









About the Book:

Sundial-maker Naomi Jenkins is used to living with secrets: three years ago something terrible happened to her, so terrible that she never told anyone...

Now, Naomi has another secret: the man she has fallen passionately in love with, unhappily married Robert Haworth. When Robert vanishes without warning or explanation, Naomi knows he must have come to harm. But the police are less convinced, particularly when Robert's wife insists he is not missing.

In desperation, Naomi has an idea. If she can't persuade the police that Robert is in danger, perhaps she can convince them that he is a danger to others. Then they will have to look for him - urgently. Naomi knows how to describe in detail the actions of a psychopath. All she needs to do is dig up her own traumatic past...

My Thoughts:

I read Sophie Hannah's debut novel 'Little Face' (which I loved) so I knew what to expect ....... each chapter alternating between the main protagonist and the police, the same high standard of writing, and the suspense being slowly and steadily built up.

The 2 police officers (Simon Waterhouse and Charlie Zailer) who we were first introduced to in 'Little Face', didn't take her seriously at first until Naomi decides to take matters into her own hands with devastating consequences.

One of the things I love about Sophie Hannah's characters is that no-one is as they seem, so you're never sure what to believe and I was completely confused by the many twists and turns throughout until all the ends are neatly tied up.

Though not as gripping as 'Little Face' I was still turning each page eagerly.

BOOKS READ IN NOVEMBER 2009

BOOKS I HAVE READ OR LISTENED TO DURING NOVEMBER 2009

An Expert in Murder by Nicola Upson 8/10

The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler (Audiobook) 5.5/10

Across the Pond by Storyheart 7/10

Hoodoo Sea by Rolf Hitzer 8/10

The Piano Teacher by Janice YK Lee 8.5/10

Sunstroke by Jesse Kellerman (Audiobook) 8/10


I think my favourite book this month was probably Hoodoo Sea by Rolf Hitzer ....... a paranormal fantasy sci fi kind of book that pleasantly surprised me by how good it was ...... one I would definitely recommend

Book News: Ringing the changes: phone box becomes mini-library

Village that was set to lose its traditional red phone box and library service comes up with plan to save both ....................

The inside of the converted phone box/library in Westbury-sub-Mendip. Photograph: swns.com/ SWNS

When the mobile library stopped visiting, it was a blow for the villagers of Westbury-sub-Mendip. And when they found out they could lose their beloved red phone box, there was something of an outcry.

Happily a bright spark in the Somerset village (population 800) hatched a clever plan to tackle both difficulties. Why not buy the phone box and use it to set up a mini-library?

Today, the small but perfectly formed Westbury book box was doing a brisk trade. Adults were bringing in thrillers, romances and true-crime books, leaving them on the four wooden shelves and choosing another to take home. Young book fans were hunting around in the children's section – a big red box on the floor – for Roald Dahl and Horrid Henry favourites.

Parish councillor Bob Dolby, who cleans and polishes the phone box/library with his wife, Lyn, beamed with pride. "It has really taken off," he said. "Turnover is rapid and there's a good range of books, everything from reference books to biographies and blockbusters."

The scheme was the brainchild of resident Janet Fisher, who lives opposite the phone box. She floated the idea at a village tea party in August and the concept was accepted on the spot.

So the parish council bought the box, a Giles Gilbert Scott K6 design, for £1, and Dolby screwed the four shelves into place. A local business donated a sign and a wag added a "Silence please" notice. Residents donated books to get the project going and it became an instant hit, all for an outlay of just £30.

To read the full article in The Guardian click here

In the Post Today: THE SKINNY ON SUCCESS BY JIM RANDEL

THE SKINNY ON SUCCESS BY JIM RANDEL

Overview:

The Skinny on Success is a compilation of the best thinking on the subject of success. Relying on thought leaders from ancient Rome to the present day, this book pulls back the curtain on success and separates the wheat from the chaff. If you want the real story, pick it up and invest one hour. It will be one of the best hours you have ever spent!!

Webster's Dictionary defines "success" as the "attainment of wealth, favor or eminence."

Success is, of course, different for each of us but for most of us, the obtaining of money, fame or power is right up there. Our book is about these kinds of tangible success. We take no position on the importance of material versus spiritual success (or even whether they are mutually exclusive). We believe that 99% of the world's success goes to those people who find the courage to pursue their dreams with everything they have.

Do you?

This book is part of the award-winning series The Skinny On, which I've never heard of but it's really different to other books as it's full of little pictures of stick-thin people. Looks a fun read!

Special Thanks to Chris Denham at RAND Publishing.

Book Review: HOODOO SEA BY ROLF HITZER

Genre: Science Fiction/Fantasy

Pages: 245 (Paperback)

Published by: Bluewater Press LLC (June 2009)

My Rating: 8/10






HOODOO SEA BY ROLF HITZER

Synopsis:
The government of the United States of America is on the verge of startling the world. Billions of dollars had been invested in its space program . And now, the moment of truth had arrived… Scott Reed is the man for the historic mission. He is the Wing Commander chosen by the elite brass at NASA. The assignment to test flight the first speed of light craft, held top secret, was about to shock the world. The risk? Utter and complete failure. The reward? Being a part of the greatest human accomplishment ever known to mankind.

Major James Harrow, second in command of the four person crew, despised his Wing Commander. Harrow was a proud and patriotic American. What was NASA thinking when they selected a Canadian to pilot the voyage? There was no comparison as to who was the better skilled aviator. This was his time, his moment. Major James Harrow was about to prove to everybody they were wrong to bypass him as Commander.

The weather conditions were perfect and lift-off for the test flight was text book. The triumphant cheers from Mission Control in Houston were echoed all the way to Cape Canaveral. The silent fear of the first hurdle of the flight had been succumbed. All systems were go! That is, until the crew and SOLT-X1 entered the Bermuda Triangle…...

My Thoughts:

I really enjoyed this book right from the start when the 4 main characters were given their briefing orders for this historic flight.

As their spaceship entered the Bermuda Triangle strange things happened to their instruments that they couldn't control, they lost contact with Mission Control, they were in total darkness and, as they were all beginning to feel scared and helpless, they were then surrounded by a bright blue light and appeared to descend to the ground. This seemed to be in the middle of a clearing surrounded by a forest.

We were then introduced to what seemed to be primitive cavemen hunters who lived there and who could talk English and even drank chamomile tea! I was constantly wondering where they had landed -- on another planet -- have they travelled back in time -- or among some long lost tribe deep in the forest? I loved the way that the author kept us guessing about this right to the end.

As the crew explored the area the story got quite scary, it actually seemed to be more of a horror book with some fairly graphic details (which I won't spoil by saying what they were!)

Overall, a confidently written story with some twists and unexpected turns, nice short chapters with cliffhangers at the end of most of them so you just have to keep reading!

Special Thanks to Tracee Gleichner of pumpupyourbookpromotion.com and Rolf Hitzer.

BOOK NEWS: Patricia Cornwell sues for lost earnings

Larceny, she wrote: Patricia Cornwell sues

Best-selling crime writer claims millions in earnings have gone missing

The $10m-a-year author Patricia Cornwell acknowledges she is 'much luckier than most', but adds: 'I don't want to complain about this, except that it's not right'

A flashy Ferrari disappears. Then the aggrieved owner begins to suspect that her bank accounts have leaked tens of millions of dollars without explanation. If this was the plot of an airport suspense novel, you'd expect violence before 20,000 feet. If it was real-life America, you'd expect a fat lawsuit.

We are in lawsuit territory here. But the plaintiff, as it happens, is none other than Patricia Cornwell, the crime writer who specialises in skulduggery and, indeed, the occasional murder. Better still, her latest book featuring, as ever, the forensic pathologist Kay Scarpetta, called The Scarpetta Factor, is partly about victims of a giant crooked Ponzi scheme of the Bernard Madoff variety.

While touring for the new book, the 17th in the Scarpetta series, Ms Cornwell was peppered with questions about a lawsuit quietly filed last month against a New York-based financial management firm, Anchin, Block & Anchin, which looked after all her affairs until July. She is claiming that she should be about $40m richer than she is and is accusing them of mismanaging her funds.

Because the case is ongoing, Ms Cornwell, 53, has so far restricted herself to only the occasional, oblique comment about her cash reserves (she is reported to earn about $10m per year as one of the world's most prolific best-selling novelists) and what it was that the defendants may or may not have done.

The details of the complaint include: that since 2005, the company has been negligent in handling rental properties and other assets and that one of the partners of the firm wrote a cheque for $5,000 for the bar mitzvah of their daughter on funds in a Cornwell account. The writer had not even met the young lady.

And there is the revealing snippet that she blurted at the weekend to an interviewer with the Courier-Mail newspaper of Australia, about the vanished sports car. "We have no records of what happened to one of my Ferraris," she said. "You trust someone to sell it for you and you don't have any idea what you got for it."

To read the full article click here

BOOK NEWS: 100 Books That Defined The Noughties

100 books that defined the noughties

Zadie, Nigella, Steig and, of course, the boy wizard. The decade has seen publishing phenomenons like no other, but which books, for better or worse, have summed up the noughties?

Never in the history of bookselling has there been such a phenomenon as Harry Potter; JK Rowling’s series sold in tens of millions and appealed to adults as well as children. The great success of the British book trade this decade was the Richard & Judy Book Club. It ran in the late afternoon on Channel 4, and made instant bestsellers of Victoria Hislop, Audrey Niffenegger and Zoë Heller, among others. The 100 titles they selected sold 30 million copies.

A decade defined in Britain by Tony Blair is represented in this list by two revealing books about the making of New Labour and the rivalries, quarrels and often poisonous relationships among the leading personalities – Cherie Blair’s memoir and Alastair Campbell’s diaries.

Across the world, it was a decade defined in blood by al-Qaeda and the 9/11 att

acks on America, which precipitated the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq – see books by Rajiv Chandrasekaran, Ed Husain, Ahmed Rashid and Khaled Hosseini.

It was also the decade of often tawdry celebrities, such as Russell Brand and Ashley Cole, and those, such as Katie Price, who didn’t even pretend to write their own books. Alan Hollinghurst won the Man Booker Prize for an explicitly gay novel; Ian McEwan rose above his rivals as the country’s pre-eminent literary novelist; and a black man became president of the United States – and wrote two bestsellers.

For the full list of 100 books see this article at
www.telegraph.co.uk

BOOKS READ IN OCTOBER 2009

Another great month of mixed books, the favourite of which was Desperate Highway -- the memoirs of a 'criminal genius' Jack Alexander -- written by Jesse Stretch

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson 8.5/10

Winter Ghosts by Kate Mosse 5/10

Sassy by Gloria Mallette 7/10

It Happened in Italy by Elizabeth Bettina 8/10

Desperate Highway by Jesse Stretch 9.5/10

The Accidental by Ali Smith (AudioBook) 3/10

Book Review: ACROSS THE POND BY STORYHEART

Genre: Young Adult Fiction

Pages: 117 (Paperback)

Publisher: Xlibris Corporation (2008)

My Rating: 7/10






ACROSS THE POND BY STORYHEART

First Line:

Burrrdonk! The wheels locked as the plane descended toward the airport.

This is such a lovely, feel good short story which starts as 14 year old Fred arrives in America (across the pond) to stay for two weeks with his father's best friend's family -- Phil, wife Julie and daughter Brittney -- as his parents have won a holiday of a lifetime to Australia and couldn't take him with them.

A romance soon develops between Fred and Brittney and Fred's time in America is full of ups and downs, including getting into trouble on more than one occasion by the difference in the meaning of words, a misunderstanding with Brittney's flirtatious friend, protecting her honour and how attending a baseball game has unexpected repercussions!

My only problem with this book is how quickly Brit and Fred 'fell in love' which I thought was a little bit unreal.

But, overall, a quick, easy read with some funny moments and one that I would recommend for teens.

Book Review: AN EXPERT IN MURDER BY NICOLA UPSON

Genre: Historical Crime Fiction

Published by: Faber and Faber (Feb 2009)

Pages: 292 (Paperback)

ISBN-10: 0571237711
ISBN-13: 978-0571237715

My Rating: 8/10



AN EXPERT IN MURDER BY NICOLA UPSON

Synopsis:

"An Expert in Murder" is the first in a new series which features Golden Age crime writer Josephine Tey as its lead character, placing her in the richly-peopled world of 1930s theatre which formed the other half of her writing life. It's March, 1934, and Tey is travelling from Scotland to London to celebrate what should be the triumphant final week of her celebrated play, Richard of Bordeaux. However, a seemingly senseless murder puts her reputation, and even her life, under threat. Cleverly blending fact and fiction, "An Expert in Murder" is both a tribute to one of the most enduringly popular writers of crime and an atmospheric detective novel in its own right.

First Line:

Had she been superstitious, Josephine Tey might have realised the odds were against her when she found that her train, the early-morning express from the Highlands, was running an hour and a half late.

This is a very clever and unusual idea, using a real life writer (Josephine Tey) to help in solving a fictional crime set in the theatre world of the 1930's. It was full of believable characters with depth and richness and I was constantly changing my mind as to 'whodunnit'!

A very entertaining read which I would recommend for fans of Agatha Christie type novels.

Nicola Upson's website

BOOK NEWS: Chick lit offers fully rounded heroines for fully rounded women

Chick lit offers fully rounded heroines for fully rounded women

US publishing trend, 'bigger chick lit', booms as women respond to more realistic take on weight

"Chick lit" has relied for years on repetitive plot lines with heroines who agonise about their weight as they swig chardonnay, smoke cigarettes and have sex with their boss.

But the latest publishing phenomenon to sweep America, which has just arrived over here, features a new heroine: the young woman who is seriously overweight – and doesn't care.

"This is a completely new genre of chick lit and it's a breath of fresh air," said Mink Elliott, author of The Pi**ed Off Parents Club, which will be published next month by Little Brown. "These books are spearheading the revolution towards a more realistic perception of real women in easy-reading literature.

"Women are getting sick of the bullshit that has been perpetrated in chick lit until now. Bridget Jones, for all her agonising over her weight, was never heavier than nine-and-a-half stone, whereas the average weight of British women is well over 10 stone.

"This new genre is proof that women are finally learning to love each other and themselves – warts and all. Chick lit is finally holding a real mirror up to its readers, and they can't get enough of it."

A slew of books in which the protagonist is not just "curvy" or "voluptuous" but is actually "fat" are about to hit the bookshops. As well as The Pi**ed Off Parents Club, there is The Wife's Tale by Lori Lansens, bestselling author of The Girls, which was the Richard & Judy Best Read of the Year in 2006 and a finalist for the Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction.

"It's classic wish-fulfilment: readers want to read about women learning to love themselves whatever their weight, because then they don't have to go through that pesky world of dieting themselves. There's a big market of people who want to hear that message," said Julia Llewellyn, author of Love Nest, to be published in February by Penguin, in which one of the central characters is overweight.

"Serious weight issues are a far bigger problem than they were in Bridget Jones's day," she added. "It's the most overwhelming issue in the life of many women. Which is precisely why it's something readers and authors are wanting to explore."

To read the whole article click here