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To be honest, I wasn’t sure what a 20-year-old feminist could teach me about life, so listened to the book hesitantly. 

The author has wisdom beyond her years, and though I am twice her age, I finished the book feeling like I had learned a lot.

This is the book I wish I had when I was a teenager, and I will be encouraging my teenage niece to read it. 

The book is short, but definitely thought-provoking. It’s a good jumping-off point into feminist reads, particularly for younger readers.

#WomenDontOweYouPretty #NetGalley

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The Sister-in-Law by Pamela Crane is a story of intrigue until the very last page. I finished this book in only a few days, and found myself looking forward to picking it up again to continue the read.

Middle-aged Harper is the sister of Lane, a mother, and a recent widow. Her life is falling apart, having suffered the loss of one of her children and then soon after her husband in an apparent suicide. 

Harper and her two children move into Lane’s house, where he is living with his wife of only a few weeks. A wife that Harper had no knowledge of, even though Harper and Lane are very close siblings.

The family dynamics are uneasy and there is animosity between the two women competing for Lane’s attention and affections.

As they saying goes… “you can choose your friends, but not your family!”

This book will be available in April 2021 and is an enjoyable read.

#TheSisterInLaw #NetGalley

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The latest offering from Rachael Johns is a delightful read that takes you on an exciting adventure to New Orleans. You almost feel like you’re right there, with the delicious descriptions of Creole and Cajun foods, jazz music and the night life.

We follow our protagonist Flick from Western Australia to the American South. In the past few years, Flick has endured an unconventional marriage breakup, her two children have grown up and moved out. She is no longer the mother and wife that she was a few short years ago.

After seeing an opportunity advertised on Facebook to manage a business in New Orleans for a few months, Flick seizes the opportunity and escapes to New Orleans.

Just as Flick is finding her way in a new country and new city, her daughter Zoe lands on her doorstep with a broken heart.

New Orleans provides the girls with opportunities to move onwards and upwards, but not without some hiccups along the way.

Another enjoyable read from Rachael Johns.

#HowtoMendaBrokenHeart #NetGalley

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The author referred to her other books frequently – as if I, the reader, knew who she was and what her claim to fame is/was. Sorry Rachel, this is the first time I had heard of you, and will probably be the last time I read one of your books. (Sorry, not sorry!)

The whole premise seemed to be about the author’s success in life and business, while seemingly having it all. The husband, four kids, businesses etc. Things we should stop apologising for: having a nanny to look after our children because we try to have it all. Demanding first class airfares when being booked to speak at an event. It just seemed a but braggy, and not particularly useful. I am not sure how many times the author mentioned being a New York Times Bestseller – so many I lost count. Same with the boob job.

The book seemed poorly structured and quite rambling. The content could have been covered in a couple of one hour podcasts.

I think in another setting the author is probably quite motivating and inspiring – but I just couldn’t see it with this example alone. If you’re interested you could follow her social pages, visit her website etc.

OK, so the good parts:

I did like the author’s commentary around setting good habits. There was one part in the book about the number of decisions we have to make a day, and how many of them we do on autopilot. Therefore if we form good habits, we will be making the right decisions for ourselves more often. This could be related to work, home, health, or lifestyle.

Some of the examples given were really excellent. In one such example she tells the story of an acquaintance who wants to become a writer. This person asks Rachel about the best way to set up a writing nook or office in order to write their book. I did have to agree with the author that it is a case of just getting started, without the luxury of a dedicated space. Whether you need to put on headphones to block out the hubbub, or get out of bed before the rest of your household awaken – the answer is just doing it! Set aside time to achieve the goals you are setting for yourself!

Another example was the people who attend a Gary Vaynerchuk event who want to be just like him – but instead of learning anything stupidly invest their time in scrolling their Insta feed. Like Gary Vee, Rachel insists that the key to success is in the hustle and working hard, and I did like this comment and found it one of the more relatable pieces in the book.

It was an easy enough listen, and I wouldn’t discourage anybody from downloading the book…Gyou might get more out of it than I did.

The audiobook also comes with a PDF add-on, which is 5 pages of motivational quote posters.

All-new Kindle Paperwhite – Now Waterproof with twice the Storage (8GB)

All-New Kindle Paperwhite Leather Cover (10th Generation-2018) – Indigo Purple

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I am currently working my way through the free library of content available to Prime subscribers, including the Lonely Planet books: Europe, England, Great Britain and Scotland. This is in preparation for a month-long trip later in 2019. There is also heaps of other free content including novels, which I am keen to work through.

My Prime Reading List:

Lonely Plant Europe

Lonely Planet England

Lonely Planet Great Britain

Lonely Planet Scotland

Rivers by Martin Michael Driessen

The Well at the World’s End by A.J. Mackinnon

So Much Owed: An Irish World Word 2 Story by Jean Grainger

In addition to free reading material there are other benefits which I am keen to check out including Prime Music.

Check it out here

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After listening to the book I kickstarted the program and followed it for just short of three weeks.

During the almost three weeks I lost 4 kilograms, and more importantly my skin cleared up considerably. This should be no surprise given the cause of my skin problem is inflammation and keto claims to reduce inflammation.

So about the book! Mark Sisson has been following a primal diet for many years and has written at length about this in other books. He also has a very informative blog, Mark’s Daily Apple.

Mark’s combines his own experience and research with peer-reviewed medical research and breaks it down into an easy-to-understand formula for the rest of us.

In this book, Mark provides a 21 day meal plan and recipes. These can be used in a prescriptive way, or just as a basis for your own keto journey. I utilised some of the recipes, and found them useful in order to adapt my own recipes to be keto-friendly. There is something like 100 recipes in the book.

After having a week off the plan, I will be resuming in a couple of days. I found it reasonably easy to commit to, and look forward to enjoying the long-term health benefits on eating in a way to reduce inflammation in my body.

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