Saras' book club

Now, what I am about to say may sound very odd, but it's true, at least for me. Reading and eating are inversely correlated. That is, when I read a lot, I don't eat a lot, and vice-versa. I think it's to do with the fact that a really good book occupies my mind in that late night lull and also it helps to think about something that is NOT diet or fitness related. People that have struggled with weight can get very inward focused and it's therapeutic to focus outward, to concentrate on something that is not my weight, my food, my bad feelings about my thighs.

Perhaps I should now start work on the 'Read More Weigh Less' diet book?

Here some books which I have enjoyed lately. As I'm short on time, I'll just tell you what I liked about them.

Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami. Read it and experience the awesomeness. This book is right up there for mind-bending, total absorption surrealism.

Angel Puss byAustralian author Colleen McCullough. This is one of her lesser known and less well received books but I loved it. It's offbeat and heartwarming with some very quirky twists and turns. Having struggled through 'Antony and Cleopatra' I thought I'd never read another McCullogh novel, but this one captured me from the start. It's about a student nurse and her relationship with a little girl that does not speak. The girls mother is a fortune teller and it's all set amound the brothels and bohemia of Sydney past.


The Managed Heart by Arlie Hochschild. This is non-fiction and is a recommended text for my sociology paper. It examines the 'commercialisation of feeling' - the way that, just like every other natural resource, our emotional expression (smiles, friendliness) has been hijacked by our employers for the purpose of making a profit.

Pandora by Jilly Cooper. What can I say? Pure junk-lit, full of beautifull people that have sex with everyone. I liked this novel because it's set in the art world and captured my imagination. I then yawned my way through the prequel 'Score' and the sequel 'Wicked', neither of which was worth the hours I gave up for them. Pandora seems different. If it's escapism you want. Read this one.