Laurie, I just re-read your entire post and have copied it to keep. It's so helpful. Thank you for taking the time to share all that.

My favorite is the British hardback.

Some Kindle books on sale today: Olive Kitteridge Gods and Generals Queen Isabella Things Fall Apart

I read Dogs as I See Them - 5 Stars - The older I get, the more I love dogs. This charming book was out of print for many years. It’s now back in print with a forward by the author Ann Patchett. The dog sketches are captured beautifully. If you love dogs, this book is an absolute joy. If you know someone who loves dogs, this would be a perfect gift. I haven't read much else. I've started and given up on a few books. Not sure what I'll be reading next. Two Kindle books on sale today: A Tale of Love and Darkness The Kingdom by the Sea MY RATING SYSTEM 5 Stars Fantastic, couldn't put it down 4 Stars Really Good 3 Stars Enjoyable 2 Stars Just Okay – nothing to write home about 1 Star Rubbish – waste of my money and time. Few books make it to this level, since I usually give up on them if they’re that bad.

Robert Louis Stevenson is probably one of our favorites and this poem in particular. We love "A Child's Garden of Verses". I read this a few years ago and felt exactly the same as you did.

I just joined and am excited! :) I see this as hopefully something that I will try to do for life. Great job on the weight loss! I really enjoyed your post, especially about relying on God. Love the update! Great job - both you and your son! Thank you, Beth. No, low carb wouldn't appeal to me either. I wouldn't be able to sustain that over the long-term.

Wow. It's wonderful to read such encouraging posts! :) You've dong great and you said it perfectly. I have already decided that if I join and if I hopefully do well, I will stay a member for life. Good for you on your weight loss. This is me also. I definitely need boundaries and accountability. I didn't know that about weekly points. I'm not done with all my research yet. Kimberly. great job also! Thank you for the info on the app. I'll look into the Facebook groups, but I'm often a little wary of groups since I get overwhelmed by too many posts clogging up my feed. Carol, MFP is an option that I'm considering. I'm at the point where although I'm leaning most towards WW, I'm also considering MFP, TOPS (?) - heard it about it on these boards and need to read up more, and THM. I was leaning towards Intermittent Fasting for a while, but having tried it for a bit and having read up on it more and more (including some FB groups), I realized that it's not for me. I'd often thought about WW, but it was always in the back of my mind. Then I did a search for the best diets or something like that and came up with this from US News and World Report. I like their layout - they include weight loss, heart healthy, you name it. I also like their rankings. Krissi, you've done great and I completely agree about having to stick with it, like any program really. Losing is so much easier than maintaining. Wow. That's wonderful!

Sorry that this is an old thread. I'm just beginning to consider WW and am starting to do some research. This is all very new to me. If I do decide on WW, it would all be online. No meetings where I live. This concerns me. Did these women still continue with WW when they put the weight back on? Beth, good for you! This is encouraging to hear. Is this the link for the free online calculator? This is what I like to hear. :)

The Kindle version of Paris to the Moon is on sale today.

You're sweet and you're most welcome. I didn't get too far with fasting, mostly 12 hour ones and some 16 hour ones as well. I smiled at your comment about love of cake. Yes! Cake sounds great after any type of deprivation! :D

I have updated my review for The Complete Guide to Fasting - 1 Star - I read this book a while back and since then, I have spent more time researching and thinking about it. I have also followed some of the advice, fasting off and on for 12-16 hours. I’m updating my review. His first book, “The Obesity Code†was far better. At the time that I read it, I felt that it was among the very best in all the diet books that I have read. Below are some of my observations/the problems that I have with this book. NOT ENOUGH TIPS This book is not “a complete guideâ€. It covers a lot of background information and goes into great details about all fasting benefits and so on. The book is extremely repetitive when it comes to all that, really, really repetitive! Yet when it comes to actual tips and how to put fasting into practice, it is seriously lacking. So this is when I chose to join a few Facebook groups to learn more and to hopefully gain insight. SEEMS TO BE MORE SUITED FOR CHILD-FREE COUPLES When I first read this book, I thought of one major concern. I have to cook for a family and here is where the problem lies. I have never, ever been able to lose weight when I cook and that’s not even considering fasting. He mentions that fasting and cooking are not a good mix. I can understand why. I fast once a year for religious reasons and I barely cook during that time. For me, cooking while fasting is simply not happening. He does have some short and simple fasts: 12 hour and 16 hour ones, but that's when the weight loss starts to plateau, as it inevitably does, he recommends longer and different types of fasts and I honestly can’t see myself being able to do that, unless if the entire family was on board. He mentions that fasting is most successful among couples when both commit to it, but not everyone is in that situation. IT WORKS AT FIRST So again, from all that I have read and the little that I have experienced, when it comes to weight loss, this approach works initially, but then the amount of weight lost starts to plateau, and this appears to be more common among women. That’s when the author suggests that one needs to keep upping the ante and extending the length of the fasts. EXTENDED FAST I don’t have an issue with moderate fasting – 12 hours, 16 hours, the 5:2 diet, 3:4, and so on. What troubles me about the second book, is that they push for longer and longer fasts, in other words, extended fasting, which I think is simply unwise. I’m talking fasting for a week and longer, sometimes as long as three weeks! I think that that's too extreme. During that time, the daily caloric intake is well under 200 calories, when only water, kombucha, and bone broth are eaten. I cannot imagine it can be sustainable and how it can create a healthy relationship when it comes to food. COFFEE One thing that they do recommend is consuming large amounts of black coffee. I would not be able to tolerate that on an empty stomach. HAIR LOSS I was on the Facebook groups for a short while and saw that many complained about this. The idea of losing hair is not an appealing one. Drastic diets like this are known to be a major factor in hair loss. MY FINAL TAKE If you do wish to try intermittent fasting, I would suggest not wasting your money and/or time on this book, but rather only read “The Obesity Codeâ€. If you read and re-read the tips there, that’s really all that you need. This second book really does not add much at all and isn’t worth the price. Some quotes that I thought to share: “Fasting, by taking a completely different approach, is much easier to understand. It is so simple that it can be explained in two sentences: Eat nothing. Drink water, tea, coffee, or bone broth. That’s it.†“Try to physically remove yourself from all food stimuli during a fast. Cooking a meal or even just seeing and smelling food while fasting is almost unbearably difficult. This is not simply a matter of weak willpower. Our cephalic phase responses are fully activated, and to feel those responses without actually eating is like trying to stop a piranha feeding frenzy. This, of course, is the same reason you should not shop for food when hungry, or keep snacks in the pantry.†“Interestingly, I’ve seen the highest success rates with husbands and wives who try fasting together: the mutual support is a big help and makes fasting far easier.†I read The Talented Mr. Ripley - 3 Stars - This book is well-written and the plot is gripping. My challenge was the protagonist. Stepping inside the mind of a sociopath, psychopath, or whatever monster he was, was hard for me. This is another one of those books where I really didn’t like a single character. and Parkinson's Treatment: 10 Secrets to a Happier Life - 3 Stars - The doctor who wrote this book is a world authority on Parkinson's Disease. I love his hopeful approach, which is one of involved doctors teaching and mentoring patients. This is a quick read. My only complaint is that I do wish that there was more practical information and tips. It’s a bit lacking in that area. MY RATING SYSTEM 5 Stars Fantastic, couldn't put it down 4 Stars Really Good 3 Stars Enjoyable 2 Stars Just Okay – nothing to write home about 1 Star Rubbish – waste of my money and time. Few books make it to this level, since I usually give up on them if they’re that bad.

So cute!

Here it is. I hope it's helpful!

:grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug:

The Kindle version of The Summer Before the War is $2.99 today.

I read The Nightingale - 5 Stars - This is about the closest I've read to a perfect novel. I was initially reluctant to read it, since I’ve read another book by this author and it wasn’t my favorite by any means, it was just okay. I’m so glad that I gave this one a go! I was engrossed right from the start and could barely put it down. The characters were portrayed beautifully and the descriptions of France and WWII were gripping. One of the characters is based on Andrée de Jongh, a Belgian countess who personally escorted over a hundred downed allied airmen over the Pyrenees to safety. I read one of the most emotional parts while at the bank and could barely see through my tears. If you love historical fiction, you’ll like this one. My favorite quotes: “…love has to be stronger than hate, or there is no future for us.†“As I approach the end of my years, I know that grief, like regret, settles into our DNA and remains forever a part of us.†MY RATING SYSTEM 5 Stars Fantastic, couldn't put it down 4 Stars Really Good 3 Stars Enjoyable 2 Stars Just Okay – nothing to write home about 1 Star Rubbish – waste of my money and time. Few books make it to this level, since I usually give up on them if they’re that bad.

Robin, that sounds like something I might like. I've added it to my never-ending wish list. :grouphug:

Two Kindle books on sale today. The Cellist of Sarajevo Led by Faith: Rising from the Ashes of the Rwandan Genocide

The Kindle version of Getting Things Done is on sale today.

Yes, the other book that I read by her was "The Goldfinch". Again, I do believe that she's definitely a good writer, but I just don't care for her stories and characters at all. You are both so lucky to be able to meet up soon! :)

I read The Secret History - 2 Stars - Oh boy, I ended up not liking this one much at all. The only reason that I’m giving this two stars rather than one, is that she is a great writer. Initially, it was promising and I could barely put the book down in hopes that it would improve. It didn’t. The plot became more and more predictable and the characters were pretentious and abhorrent. I’m not exactly tolerant when I don’t like a single character. I need to feel sympathy for at least one person. I didn’t care for any of them. At the end, I asked myself, “What was the point?†and felt frustrated that I had wasted time on it. This is the second book that I have read by Donna Tartt and it will be the last one. One thing that I have to say for her books is that you don’t forget them easily. They really do stay with you, which is not necessarily a good thing. MY RATING SYSTEM 5 Stars Fantastic, couldn't put it down 4 Stars Really Good 3 Stars Enjoyable 2 Stars Just Okay – nothing to write home about 1 Star Rubbish – waste of my money and time. Few books make it to this level, since I usually give up on them if they’re that bad.

The Kindle version of Children in the Holocaust and World War II: Their Secret Diaries has a reduced price today.

I read The Gifts of Reading - 4 Stars - My daughter picked up this short and sweet essay when we visited the “Shakespeare and Company†bookstore in Paris. It’s a small booklet that was sold near the cashier, the sort of booklet that you pick up on a whim. The beautiful cover artwork caught our eye as well. This touching book is something that almost any booklover already knows: how lovely it is to give books as gifts and to receive them also. and The New Rules of Lifting for Women - 3 Stars - I wish I’d taken the time to realize that this book is rather dated and the authors have come out with a newer book. “The New Rules of Lifting†was their first book for women and they have since updated their research. The older I get, the more I realize the importance of strength training. Although the book is written in an engaging way, I would have preferred it if the workouts were less complicated and better organized. I have to say that reading this has motivated me to take weight training more seriously from now on. Although I’m not much of a paper workout person and definitely prefer videos, I wouldn’t mind getting their newer book. Some of my favorite quotes: “Protein is to diets what black is to fashion: it makes everyone thinner.†“If the weights are unchallenging, your muscles won’t grow.†“Doing traditional ab exercises on your back on the floor, with your legs bent at the knees and hips, isn’t a good use of your time and energy.†MY RATING SYSTEM 5 Stars Fantastic, couldn't put it down 4 Stars Really Good 3 Stars Enjoyable 2 Stars Just Okay – nothing to write home about 1 Star Rubbish – waste of my money and time. Few books make it to this level, since I usually give up on them if they’re that bad.

The Kindle version of The Twelfth Imam is on sale today.

The Kindle version of The Nightingale is on sale today.