The Undiet by Meghan Telpner

If you are looking for a way to change your diet and the way you cook, or just beginning cooking this is the book for you.  It does have some minor issues, however, if you are just starting out it is still the route to take.

Pushing for a different way of living, Meghan Telpner, a Certified Nutritionist and advocate for home cooked meals with only using the best nature provides (that means no pre-packaged foods), challenges readers to look at the way they are living.  Through her 8-week program in her friendly tone she breaks down the steps to successfully accomplish your goal of healthy eating, with vegan options.

Though I am already a vegan and cook most of my own meals, it was really nice to get some of her tips (my two new favourites are lemon cayenne water in the morning and taking the time to prep my veggies for the week).  This book is full of great tips and tricks to make living the undiet life easier, without the promise of it being simple to change.  Yes, change is a challenge, but this type of lifestyle means all the hard work is worth it.  She even throws in home cleaning recipes and beauty products.

The recipes are broken up into the various sections. For ease of use it would have been better to put them all together at the back of the book, or alternatively put them in the index by their ingredients.  To make my life easier I ended up writing names and page numbers of recipes I liked in the back of the book.  Not the end of the world, and it does not change the fact that this book had such great information that it is worth the minor inconvenience.

One big mistake was the book is directed to solely to the ladies.  It would have been nice if she interchanged between addressing women and men thereby making it approachable for her male audience. Hopefully, if she writes another book this will be taken into account.

For more about Meghan visit http://meghantelpner.com/ (it has great recipes too!)

Grace: A Memoir by Grace Coddington

For this book to be called a memoir is a tad misleading. It is more stories about her long and interesting life.  This book is structured as anecdotes about various notable moments in Grace's life.  Sometimes it follows a time line, but near the end it bounces around. She glosses over her idealistic childhood in Whales, and then her easy breezy years as a model ,were she proclaims she created the iconic 60s look of the doll eyes -- when models had to do their own make-up and hair in those days as this was before star hair and make-up artists became so instrumental to fashion. Then most important of all, she gets to the point where she almost fell into work for magazines with her start at British Vogue. 

The book is full of big names in fashion, like Karl Lagerfeld and of course arguably the most important woman in Vogue history Anna Wintour.  It has touching moments as well, as Grace struggles with her relationships and divorces, well creating a body of work that is absolutely unmatched, while all along having a faithful love of cats.  Her 50 years in the fashion world has seen some amazing moments and it is a pleasure to see them through the eyes of such a funny and often no nonsense woman.
Grace: A Memoir is not a typical autobiography, yet for fashion fans it is somewhat interesting read about one woman's love of fashion.

Stories I Only Tell My Friends by Rob Lowe

Yes everyone knows Mr. Rob Lowe is hot, a good actor, and now thanks to Parks and Recreations we know he is hilarious! But who knew Rob Lowe was such a talented writer!

I read this book because it was so highly recommended by a colleague. I would not have thought about reading it or even known of its existence had she not talked about it so often.  I was excited to read it after such a glowing recommendation.  I was super shocked at how eloquent and well written this book is.

The book is an interesting read. You learn things about him that you would not have known and of course things that were publicized (such as his sex tape).  Also, you get to hear his thoughts on many of the stars he came to fame with, including Tom Cruise, Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore and Matt Dillon.  It is an interesting look into the life of a young 80s movie star. 

Yes it can be a little vague and glaze over things, however, I didn't mind that aspect. It didn't draw out anything and just gave enough details to keep you wanting to know what happened to him next. As autobiographies go I feel like this was one of the most honest.  He is graceful in talking about his family and friends, as well as, certain situations in his life.  He does not over share or bad mouth anyone.  It was a delight to read a book that was so honest and captivating.

So thank you Rob Lowe for writing a funny, introspective, and touching memoir about your life so far.  It was great to get to know you a little better and to have shared in stories that you only tell your friends.  I now feel like I need to watch and read The Outsiders again.

The Plant-Based Power Diet: 10 Simple Steps to a Healthier, Leaner, Energetic You by Leslie Beck

This is an interesting book.  Like all books on health and nutrition I feel it is important to only take away what you feel will work in your life.  It is also important to not go too crazy or any changes you try to make won't last.
This is a good book for the novice or people who are already vegan.  As a long time veggie, I found it informative, yet not too complicated.
The book is broken down into sections and each builds upon the next.  She clearly explains what foods you need to eat in order to be a healthy plant eater.  Though I do feel like may be a little flat to those not familiar with nutrition.  I would be a good starting off point for getting terms and different kinds of grains, vegetables, and fruits many people are not used to eating so you can continue to do research or read other books that are more detailed.  It is also not preachy so it would be a good gift for relatives who are struggling to understand the vegan way of eating.
All in all it is a good informative read, but if left me hungry for more as there are more in depth books out there.  Becoming Vegetarian: The Complete Guide to Adopting a Vegetarian Diet and Becoming Vegan: The Complete Guide to Adopting a Plant-Based Diet by Brenda Davis and Vesanto Malina are great, especially Becoming Vegetarian (so many good recipes!).  Also The Kind Diet by Alicia Silverstone is great for the information and diverse recipes are a tad hit and miss.

Rules of Civility By Amor Towles

Rules of Civility is the first novel from Amor Towles. I now know why this book has gotten a bit of buzz. The novel is well written in a way that made me sad when I had to put it down. It is about Katey, who tells the story of her youth in New York City.  It has a variety of interesting characters. 
The story has elements of sadness, hope, and the prospects that can only come from an independent woman in her mid to late twenties.  The tale occurs from 1937-1940, when Katey and the people she meets have life altering experiences and their lives fell apart, yet slowly come together in a way they would have never expected.
The tale is well told in an almost hypnotic way.  You are transported to a time of luxury and excess at a time when not everyone was so fortunate.  Katey's rise in the social classes of New York in the late 1930s is an intriguing story that carries twists of fate that which a life could produce for such a no nonsense, strong and independent character.  
I highly recommend reading this tale of mystery of what happened between Katey and her larger than life friends.

The Woman Who Went to Bed for a Year by Sue Townsend

I spotted this book when I was killing time in Coles before meeting a friend. Sometimes I get a feeling about a book when I pick it off the shelf.  I was drawn to this novel.   
The characters are not all likable, but there are interesting and believable in that they are not supposed to all be likable, as many people in real life are not all that likable all the time.
Eva, is a mother and wife who has given all her time and energy to caring for others.  Once her twins, Brian Junior and Brianne, go off to University Eva is overcome by the urge to get into bed without even taking off her high heels.  The longer she stays in bed the less she is able to leave it.
To the dismay of her husband, her mother, her mother-in-law and her children Eva refuses to leave her bed for any reason; be it food, water, and even toys with the notion of not even leaving to go to the bathroom.  Evan uses this time to think and become an observer in life, instead of a participant.  Over time Eva becomes a giver of advice to strangers and discovers the possibility to new love.
The Woman Who Went to Be For a Year is an interesting look at how life can change around us even when we don't participate, or in the case of Eva get out of bed.  The characters provide a good range of perspective on the situation and events that occur in the novel.  Though as the book progressed I found myself annoyed with the characters and the last few chapters of the novel did not seem to have the same flow as the rest of the novel.  Sadly, this book is not really worth reading, as there are much better novels out there.  The novel falls flat from its promising beginnings and the characters development is static at best.

We Need To Talk About Kevin Review by Lionel Shriver

I have to admit I was remiss about reading this book.  The topic is less than appealing.  Reading the history about a boy, who murders eight people (6 students, a cafeteria worker, and a teacher), and his mother.  Since Kevin's birth his mother, Eva, has struggled to love him.  He seemed a strange and increasingly vicious child.  The story is told from the view point of Eva two years after Kevin's horrific crime.  His mother is lost in a world that is devoid of career, husband or friends.  She is only left with her son, whom she visits faithfully even though their relationship has always been strained.

The book is a haunting read and I found it difficult to put it down. It was one other those rare books that stayed with you when you weren't reading it and after the last page was turned I yearned for more.  I highly recommend this novel.  Though it is an uncomfortable read at times, not only due to Kevin's behaviour, but Eva's frank and sometimes complete distain for her own child. The relationship between mother and son is strange and complicated and their shared history is full of odd incidences, frustration and earth shattering sadness.