Tuesday, April 15, 2008

New Book Review From The Entertainment Critic: Hungry Girl by Lisa Lillien


Hungry Girl: Recipes and Survival Strategies for Guilt-Free Eating in the Real World

THE ENTERTAINMENT CRITIC BOOK REVIEW, BY JAMES MYERS
www.theentertainmentcritic.com
www.theentertainmentcritic.net
www.theentertainmentcriticmagazine.com

HUNGRY GIRL: RECIPES AND SURVIVAL STRATEGIES FOR GUILT-FREE EATING IN THE REAL WORLD
By Lisa Lillien
Published by St. Martin’s Press
Publication Date: April 29, 2008
Price: $17.95
317 Pages
ISBN-13: 9780312377427
Four Star Rating ****

FOUNDED HUNGRY GIRL, INC., IN MAY OF 2004
HUNGRY GIRL IS A FREE DAILY EMAIL SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE ABOUT GUILT-FREE EATING THAT LAUNCHED WITH JUST 200 SUBSCRIBERS
THERE ARE CURRENTLY OVER 410,000 PEOPLE WHO RECEIVE HG'S DAILY EMAILS FILLED WITH TIPS, TRICKS, PRODUCT REVIEWS, RECIPES, SHOCKERS AND MORE.
HUNGRY GIRL ADDS 500 - 1000 NEW SUBSCRIBERS TO THE DAILY EMAIL LIST EVERY DAY, WITH MOST NEW SIGNUPS COMING FROM WORD OF MOUTH REFERRALS.
TAGLINE IS "I'M NOT A NUTRITIONIST, I'M JUST HUNGRY."
HUNGRY GIRL CONTENT IS SEEN REGULARLY ON YAHOO TV, WEIGHTWATCHERS.COM, SEVENTEEN MAGAZINE, PEOPLE, STYLE WATCH, THE NY DAILY NEWS, AND ON THE TV SHOW EXTRA.

“This book was so much fun to write (I have to admit, the recipe testing was my favorite part!) and I hope it helps you realize that eating better is not about depriving yourself. You can easily find ways to eat the foods you love (even so-called “bad” ones) by whipping up fun and easy, better-for-you versions right at home.”



Lisa Lillien has written a brilliant, new and refreshing book in response to the overwhelming demand that she has received for her recipes. The book, Hungry Girl: Recipes and Survival Strategies for Guilt-Free Eating in the Real World is the latest outgrowth Lisa has achieved from her renowned site, Hungry-Girl.com. The Hungry Girl phenomena started with Lisa and just one employee back in 2004. Wisely, deciding that she would come to her customers as opposed to forcing them to find her, Lisa began a newsletter concerning one of her favorite passions/obsessions, eating. With just herself, and one employee, she began to send out a weekly newsletter to about 200 close friends and contacts. Like many of us that love to eat, Lisa struggled with the “yo- yo” effect of loosing and gaining weight, fad diets, and frustration. She made a conscious decision to take control of what she ate, and she wanted to exercise such control that she not have to deprive herself of the food she loved and craved. Her obsession became her inspiration, (Lisa came up with Hungry Girl when she was taking sweets to a laboratory to have them tested to see if in fact they were low fat). Her alterative was brilliant; why not make and create guilt-free versions of her favorite craves and indulge to her heart’s content? The trick is to use replacement ingredients that are low in calories and fat, but don’t sacrifice taste.

Lisa’s thoughtful strategies have paid off. Her daily newsletters/emails are received by almost 500,000 subscribers. They had identified with the fun presentation and sassy style, far removed from boring, dull diet content normally delivered by nutritionists and doctors. The guilt-free recipes, food and product reviews, dieting news, shockers, and all things food approach have expanded Hungry Girl’s sphere of influence to Yahoo Weight Watchers.Com, Seventeen Magazine, People Style Watch, The New York Daily News, Woman’s Day Magazine, Good Housekeeping, and on the TV Show ‘Extra.’ In fact, some of her tasty and easy to make recipes were co-developed with Weight Watchers. The expanded staff of 6 that works at Hungry-Girl now addresses the 500-1000 new subscribers everyday to newsletters, most of the signups coming from referrals and word of mouth. Called the “Hollywood Diet Guru,” Lisa has been asked over and over again for copies of her recipes. The book was written in direct response to that.

Hungry Girl is a collection of 165 recipes (over half are brand new, never seen before) and survival strategies for anyone who loves rich, decadent food. From burgers to chocolate cake, breakfast, lunch and dinner, eating out, eating Mexican, eating Chinese and more, this book covers the waterfront. Unlike other books of this genre, the recipes are simple, short, fun, and easy to make. They are understandable, even by a total novice cook like me. Lisa tells you up front, what ingredients to get at the store, what to avoid, and the inaccuracy of labels. Once you have the ingredients, the rest is easy. Examples of favorites that even I recognized: Eggs Bene-Chick, Breakfast Pizza, Chili Cheese Nachos, Burgers, Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge, Onion Rings, Tuna Melt, Burritos (big ones), and Cookies and Cream Ice Cream. (Lisa gives them much catchier names, but my point is that they are things I love to eat). Key to all of her recipes is that the nutritional information is disclosed with each one. For the recipes alone, the book is one you should buy.

My favorite part of Hungry Girl is the “survival strategies” for eating out at restaurants, when you travel, cocktail parties, dealing with cravings, and even must have snack food for the office. Where else are you going to get tips for how to “Survive a Trip to Starbucks”? These are very practical tips that you can use every single day. Consistent with newsletters, the book has Hungry Girl’s famous “Shockers” (things that most of us don’t realize and take for granted that really hurt us) and “Chew on This” (insightful facts of guilt-free eating).


Overall, the book is put in a pleasant to look at package, branded just like the Hungry Girl website on the outside, etched in light brown and pink on the inside, making reading a pleasant experience. Written with the typical Hungry Girl sass and humor, content and style-wise, it is one of the few ‘cookbooks’ that delivers what it promises: helpful information with humor and insight. The unstated theme of the book is that by obtaining the knowledge of the things that we eat, and the alternative, healthier choices we can make give us the power of control. Making smart decisions and planning ahead, even when you go out to eat or are in some other away from your home environment are all a part of this very fine book. The winning principle of eating the guilt-free versions of the food that you love and that you crave is continued in this book. Probably the best feature of this book is that you can take what Lisa has taught us, and apply it to your own craves. With the invaluable tips and tricks contained in the book, I foresee eaters everywhere taking the ingredients and tips and applying them to their favorite foods, creating and modifying their own recipes. Guilt-free junk food sounds like a winner to me. I recommend that on the 29th of April, 2008, you make you way to your favorite booksellers and pick this one up. Lisa is on tour, and will be talking and giving demonstrations. Check out her website at http://www.hungry-girl.com, for more information. Avoid the crowds, get there early. Just like they used to say about Elvis; 500,000 screaming fans cannot be wrong.

Thursday, April 10, 2008

New Interview: Jim Butcher on Small Favor


I just posted a new interview today with Jim Butcher, Author of Small Favor on my site, http://www.theentertainmentcriticmagazine.com/
Please check it out.


James Myers
The Entertainment Critic
The Entertainment Critic Magazine

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

Book Review From The Entertainment Critic: Christ the Lord-The Road to Cana by Anne Rice



Christ The Lord: The Road to Cana

THE ENTERTAINMENT CRITIC BOOK REVIEW, BY JAMES MYERS
http://www.theentertainmentcritic.com/
http://www.theentertainmentcritic.net/
http://www.theentertainmentcriticmagazine.com/

CHRIST THE LORD: THE ROAD TO CANA
By Anne Rice
Published by Borzoi, an Imprint of Alfred A. Knopf, a Division of Random House, Inc.
Publication Date: March, 2008
Price: $25.95
241 Pages
ISBN-13: 9781400043521
Four Star Rating ****

SHE HAS WRITTEN 27 BOOKS
ANNE RICE’S BOOKS HAVE SOLD OVER 100 MILLION COPIES
COMPLETED HER FIRST BOOK, INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE, IN 1973 AND PUBLISHED IT IN 1976. THIS BOOK WOULD BE THE FIRST IN RICE'S POPULAR VAMPIRE CHRONICLES SERIES, WHICH INCLUDES 1985'S THE VAMPIRE LESTAT AND 1988'S THE QUEEN OF THE DAMNED

HER BOOKS HAVE BEEN MADE INTO FILMS INCLUDING INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE, FROM RICE'S OWN SCREENPLAY. THE MOVIE STARRED TOM CRUISE AS LESTAT, BRAD PITT AS THE GUILT-RIDDEN LOUIS AND WAS A BREAKOUT ROLE FOR YOUNG KIRSTEN DUNST AS THE DECEITFUL LITTLE CLAUDIA.

A 1994 FILM TITLED EXIT TO EDEN, BASED LOOSELY ON THE BOOK RICE PUBLISHED AS ANNE RAMPLING, STARRED ROSIE O'DONNELL AND DAN AYKROYD. THE WORK TRANSFORMED FROM A LOVE STORY INTO A POLICE COMEDY, POSSIBLY DUE TO THE EXPLICIT S&M THEMES OF THE BOOK.

THE FEAST OF ALL SAINTS WAS MADE INTO A MINISERIES IN 2001 BY DIRECTOR PETER MEDAK.

THE BOOK IS A BOOK-OF-THE-MONTH CLUB MAIN SELECTION


“Who is Christ the Lord? ...I am Christ the Lord. I know. Others know, but what they know they often forget. My mother hasn’t spoken a word of it for years. My foster father, Joseph, is old now, white haired, and given to dreaming.

I never forget.”


Anne Rice has written another memorable book in her life of Christ series. The Road to Cana is the second book, beginning with his last winter before his baptism in the Jordan by John the Baptist, and ending with the miracle at Cana. He is surrounded by the promise of being the Christ child, complete with tales of a Virgin birth and wisdom beyond his years. Yeshua, as he is know, is carefully watch by those who attend the synagogue with him, waiting to see the path he will choose as he grows into manhood. He lives in a time of political unrest, where the Jews wait for the Messiah to free them from their Roman oppressors.

We see him in this book emerging from his baptism to embrace his destiny and confront the Devil. We see him transform water in six limestone jars into wine. He is recognized by his people as the chosen one. What Rice does better than anyone before her with these tales of Christ, is to somehow follow very closely the scholarship of the New Testament, while breathing life and prospective into the young Jesus as he develops into a man. The story is told from his point of view. His thoughts and feelings are laid bare in this book. This makes this something more that an old Sunday school tale; it is an interesting and insightful study into the mind of Christ as he becomes as man. It is a powerful ‘memoir’ that is so well written, it seems real, true and believable.

What’s more compelling is that where the Bible is silent on his middle, adolescent years, and years as a young man, Rice provides us with s portrait of a restless, isolated young man, who realizes to reach his potential, he must by definition give up the normal pursuits of men. Young women cannot be a part of his life. He is taken with a young beauty, Avigail. He wrestles with the desire to marry and mate, in contrast to his destiny. He always comes back to the same point; he cannot be like the others. Yet, like the rest of his family, he experiences all too human emotions. The tension is thick and palatable. Somehow, Jesus comes to accept his role, and the responsibility that comes with it. Rice strikes a believable balance between a being who is man and yet a being who is God. The details of his humanness make this a most unusual book. The story of Jesus is a well-known story, yet the exploration of his complex thoughts and feelings make this telling of the tale completely unique. Rice’s simple and direct prose belies her revealing discoveries. A captivating, vivid story, this is a compelling book that deserves to be read.

Thursday, April 3, 2008

New Interview: Eric Jerome Dickey & Jonah Goldberg



Please check out the interviews that I just completed today with Jonah Goldberg on his new book, Liberal Fascism and Eric Jerome Dickey, on his new book, Pleasure. You can access them on my site, http://www.theentertainmentmagazine.com/. To access the interview, go to that site’s main page, clicking on interviews. On the interview page, there is a musical note on the lower left hand side of the page. Click on the musical note, and an MP3 player should pop up. Inside of the player, you’ll see your name. Click on the name, and the interview should begin to play. Please go to the top right hand corner and click on the wavy lines to turn the music off on the site. It makes it easier to hear the interview.
Please let me know what you think. James