Book Twenty Eight

I'm doing my third cleanse this week and quite frankly, I'm just done with health books. I've learned all about Omega 3's and low glycemic diets and hydrating. I'm eating protein at every meal and drinking cranberry juice and organic foods when possible. But, what I really want, is a Potbelly Oreo Shake.

I found Mark Bittman's book just NOT as good as Pollan's In Defense of Food. He attacks meat and dairy with a vengeance but also in a very boring, repetitive way. This might be a good introduction to healthy eating for the new millennium but stay away if you've read others in the same genre.

This book is mostly recipes. Bittman is an amazing chef and I plan to go through his recipes one at a time because I do think they will help my cooking. Just not sure I plan on eating quinoa and barley for breakfast any time soon.

I still love me my Greek yogurt.

Book Twenty Seven

This book was a struggle. I'm grateful I didn't suggest it to Vanaheim or Stillwater as it would have absolutely killed the book club. The synopsis according to BN: "Mary McCarthy portrays the lives, and aspirations of eight Vassar graduates. "The group" meets in New York following commencement to attend the wedding of one of their members— and reconvenes seven years later at her funeral".

Well, here's what I thought. Basically, I missed the whole lesbian subtext, found myself unintrigued by Trotskyism, socialism, Fascism and a whole lot of other isms. The child rearing techniques were interesting, I suppose, and I learned a good deal about birth control and mental health in the 1940s. None of the characters grew on me whatsoever except for Polly at the very end. The author spent a good deal of time with each and yet I wasn't endeared a bit. The writing is just too detailed and meticulous. And so, I missed the satire.

I wanted to like this book because I feel as if it lends perspective into the women's movement and all of the advancements we have made as a society. But, I just couldn't appreciate the plot. Only 1 reader review and 3 editorial reviews. This book does seem to have fallen off the radar despite it's popularity at the time. I think I understand why.