As promised...

Book reviews!
(plus a great giveaway!)

Here are some books that I've been reading lately as a part of my summer reading list

Meals That Heal Inflammation

I had the pleasure of meeting Julie Daniluk at the Total Health Show back in April and her book, Meals that Heal Inflammation has been a wonderful resource. Julie lays out the foundation of causes for inflammation, information on allergies/sensitivities, and provides the reader with a ton of recipes that align with the information presented.

You've already seen some of these recipes sneaking into my menus: raw key lime pie, amaranth porridge, baked pears and quinoa porridge. I love her breakfast recipes - they are so yummy! I also appreciate that they generally make two servings, which is enough for me on two days or enough to share with Joey. All of the recipes are simple, with easy to follow instructions, accessible ingredients and can be enjoyed by anyone whether they have inflammation concerns or not. I'm not a huge fan of the pictures in the book, but I'm not docking any points for that! I really enjoyed meeting Julie and am excited to experiment with more of her recipes.

Go Dairy Free: The Guide and Cookbook for Milk Allergies, Lactose Intolerance, and Casein-free Living

I had been wanting to read this book for awhile and was incredibly pleased when I "won" a copy in Ange's Bid for a Cause. It is a fantastic resource for vegans, lactose intolerant or those looking for more information on removing dairy from their diet. Alicia has created a comprehensive resource full of essential information and a ton of recipes which will leave the reader wondering why they ever needed dairy in the first place!

She provides great information on reasons we cut dairy out, where dairy can be hidden as well as tips on dining out, travelling and milk alternatives. So far I've made a dairy free pesto (which turned out more like a pate, but was still good) and an eggplant cannelloni (filled with faux ricotta) which was delightful. I look forward to trying more recipes and using this book as a reference in the future. If you're looking to cut dairy out (or already have!) I highly recommend that you pick up a copy of this book. Alisa also has a great site with lots of information, resources and recipes.

Writing Diet

I love Julia Cameron.

Most people are familiar with her book "The Artist's Way" and I know countless actor/creative friends of mine who have gotten into the ritual of writing the morning pages. In her years of helping others, she noticed a strange phenomenon among participants in her programs: they were losing weight. By unleashing their creativity and finding their inner artist, participants were shedding pounds left, right and center. The Writing Diet discusses strategies for losing weight by unleashing our inner creative being.

I feel like this book would have been more useful to me when I was still actively trying to lose weight. While I enjoyed her "tools" (morning pages, journal, walking, the 4 questions, culinary artist dates, and the body buddy) and found them to be useful, much of the other information included seemed redundant with other things I've personally read/studied.

Julia is not an expert in weight loss (nor does she claim to be). While the information was relevant, I didn't find any of it to be groundbreaking or innovative. That being said, I think there's a lot of good stuff in here for people in the beginning stages of their journey or people who find journalling to be a helpful tool. I enjoyed that the book focused on the "emotional side" of weight loss, which also providing some tips on the eating and exercise elements and I know that there are people out there who would benefit from reading it.

Bitter Is The New Black

I told you how funny "Such A Pretty Fat" was and this book did not disappoint. It cracked me up. If you're looking for a great book to read on the subway or at the cottage, this is the book for you. (It will help clear your head from the other "serious" books you might be reading!!)

Giveaway time!
(Didn't see that one coming, did you??)

Because I want to share the book love, I'm giving away my copy of "The Writing Diet".

To win - leave me a comment telling me about your favourite book or cookbook of all time. Blogging about this giveaway will give you another entry (just leave me a comment to let me know that you've done this)

Comments must be received by Wednesday August 5th at 9:00pm EST.

I will pick one winner via random number generator. Contest open to Canadian & US Residents.

Good luck & Happy reading!