While finding time to write, exercise and manage household chores, I've been reading steadily - a balance of both YA and adult novels. Here are a couple of books I've lost myself in lately.
The Gardener, by S.A. Bodeen.
The intriguing cover and blurb attracted me to this high concept teen sci fi novel about a breed of genetically engineered children called autotrophs who produce their own food and water. When high school sophomore, Mason, discovers that his single mother isn't simply an overworked nursing home aide with a drinking problem, but rather a former research scientist who once worked for TroDyn Industries - a biotech firm that owns half the town - he delves deeper to uncover yet more startling secrets. In the mean time, he also helps one of TroDyn's experiments -a terrified girl named Laila - to escape from TroDyn. She's particularly frightened of somebody called the Gardener who turns out to be the mastermind of the autotroph project. The novel explores the problem of sustaining an ever growing population but falters with a succession of neat coincidences and a rather greedy, one dimensional villain. Both Mason and Laila are intriguing but not fully realized characters. Although the novel could have used more inspired writing and left off the too neat epilogue, The Gardner is a fast, engaging read that will appeal to teens.
The Gargoyle, by Andrew Davidson.
A physically attractive man leading a decadent lifestyle as a pornographer and coke addict drives over a cliff one night and suffers painful, disfiguring burns over most of his body. He's taken to the hospital where he hopes to recover well enough to leave and commit suicide, for he is now a monster, both inside and out. While recovering, he meets Marianne Engel, a schizophrenic sculptress of gargoyles. She visits often, claiming that they were once lovers in medieval Germany. At first the narrator, who remains nameless throughout the novel, thinks she's just a crazy woman but over time he begins to believe her as well as love her. When it comes time to leave the hospital, she brings him home with her to live. Gradually, however, he becomes more addicted to the morphine he's been prescribed. Then Marianne tells him she has received word from God that she has 27 sculptures left to complete before her time on earth is finished. A beautifully and powerfully written book about love and redemption featuring stories within stories.
Ash, by Malinda Lo.
A lovely, lyrical retelling of Cinderella. When Ash's mother unexpectantly dies, and then her father, Ash is left in the care of her cruel, bitter stepmother, Lady Isobel, who makes Ash her servant. Her stepsister, Ana, isn't any better. Her younger stepsister, Clara, attempts to treat her kindly but their relationship is hardly sisterly. Ash's only pleasures are rereading the book of fairy tales her mother once told her and wandering the wood by her home. One evening she meets the mesmerizing fairy prince, Sidhean, who promises her a life among them if she consents to give herself up to him. She agrees but soon after she meets the King's huntress, Kaisa, and a relationship blossoms in this LGBT version of the old fairy tale. This was the first time I've read a LGBT YA novel and I wasn't sure what to expect. What I discovered was a story every bit as beautiful and romantic as the classic retelling, but with a more empowering protagonist. I wasn't surprised to learn that Ash was a finalist for the William C. Morris award.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Life-Changing Diet?
I thought I knew most of what there is to know about diet. After all, I often read articles about diet, nutrition and health in general. But lately, my blood sugar had been creeping up, up, up and during my last physical, the doctor had increased my diabetes meds. Apparently, I didn't know everything. I was ashamed of myself. What was I doing with diabetes? I started having nightmares about amputations, blindness and deafness. This was not what I wanted to deal with in my future.
Desperate, a month or so ago i began researching the link between diabetes and nutrition. I'd read here and there that type 2 diabetes is reversible. If so, I wanted to accomplish this task for myself. My father suffered from type 1 diabetes for over 40 years, often taking two shots a day to control his blood sugar. He wasn't overweight but he wasn't much of an athlete either.
I came across Dr. Joel Fuhrman's website (http://www.drfuhrman.com/default.aspx) and his book, Eat To Live. I was impressed with the amount of information posted on his web site, the stories of his patients who'd reversed their heart disease, asthma, arthritis, lupus and diabetes as well as lost tons of weight. His book looked like a sensible guide to changing your life, so I ordered it. I read Eat To Live in a few days and passed it on to my husband, who'd had a heart attack about 10 years ago. Dennis is in good shape, compared to most people. He's thin and runs marathons but heart disease is in his family, as diabetes is in mine, putting us both at greater risk for these two deadly diseases.
The diet is a radical departure from the normal recommendations. Fuhrman proposes that we need to completely change our way of eating, putting aside all meat and dairy products, all our refined grains and oils. That means no croutons on the two big salads I now eat daily, no cheese on my chili or eggs for breakfast. Yes, I am a vegan or, as he puts it, a nutrarian. That means that I try to eat the foods with with the most nutrients per calorie so my diet now consists of vegetables, fruit, legumes, nuts and some whole grains. Instead of Cheerios for breakfast, I eat oatmeal with fresh berries. I've been following the diet for a little over a week and my blood sugar has dropped precipitously - about 40-50 points, on average. I've also lost weight, though I'm unsure how much (because we don't have an accurate scale in the house). I know that my clothes are looser and I have less of a belly (yay!). Though I fall well within the standard norm for weight, according to Fuhrman, I should weigh about 107 pounds. There's a number I haven't seen since college! I'm excited. Next week I go for my A1C test which gauges how well I'm managing my blood sugar. Since I'll have only been following the diet for a few weeks, I won't expect miracles but I am hoping to see a bit of a drop.
I know this whole post sounds like an ad for Dr. Fuhrman, but so far his diet is doing something I hadn't expected - working. I'm suspicious of most diets because they often call for doing without important nutrients. This diet, however, seems to be right on track. Over the next few months I'll learn whether or not it really will change my life by reversing my disease.
Desperate, a month or so ago i began researching the link between diabetes and nutrition. I'd read here and there that type 2 diabetes is reversible. If so, I wanted to accomplish this task for myself. My father suffered from type 1 diabetes for over 40 years, often taking two shots a day to control his blood sugar. He wasn't overweight but he wasn't much of an athlete either.
I came across Dr. Joel Fuhrman's website (http://www.drfuhrman.com/default.aspx) and his book, Eat To Live. I was impressed with the amount of information posted on his web site, the stories of his patients who'd reversed their heart disease, asthma, arthritis, lupus and diabetes as well as lost tons of weight. His book looked like a sensible guide to changing your life, so I ordered it. I read Eat To Live in a few days and passed it on to my husband, who'd had a heart attack about 10 years ago. Dennis is in good shape, compared to most people. He's thin and runs marathons but heart disease is in his family, as diabetes is in mine, putting us both at greater risk for these two deadly diseases.
The diet is a radical departure from the normal recommendations. Fuhrman proposes that we need to completely change our way of eating, putting aside all meat and dairy products, all our refined grains and oils. That means no croutons on the two big salads I now eat daily, no cheese on my chili or eggs for breakfast. Yes, I am a vegan or, as he puts it, a nutrarian. That means that I try to eat the foods with with the most nutrients per calorie so my diet now consists of vegetables, fruit, legumes, nuts and some whole grains. Instead of Cheerios for breakfast, I eat oatmeal with fresh berries. I've been following the diet for a little over a week and my blood sugar has dropped precipitously - about 40-50 points, on average. I've also lost weight, though I'm unsure how much (because we don't have an accurate scale in the house). I know that my clothes are looser and I have less of a belly (yay!). Though I fall well within the standard norm for weight, according to Fuhrman, I should weigh about 107 pounds. There's a number I haven't seen since college! I'm excited. Next week I go for my A1C test which gauges how well I'm managing my blood sugar. Since I'll have only been following the diet for a few weeks, I won't expect miracles but I am hoping to see a bit of a drop.
I know this whole post sounds like an ad for Dr. Fuhrman, but so far his diet is doing something I hadn't expected - working. I'm suspicious of most diets because they often call for doing without important nutrients. This diet, however, seems to be right on track. Over the next few months I'll learn whether or not it really will change my life by reversing my disease.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)