CONTESTS: Awards Set Your Book Apart But Ya Gotta Enter Contests to Get Them By Carolyn Howard-Johnson Excerpted from the new edition of the Frugal Book Promoter I pity the poor reader these days. Reviews can’t be relied on for unbiased opinions, so a reader may have trouble telling which book is most likely to set her heart a’ beating. As she shops, she often turns to the blurbs or endorsements on the back of the book. She may read a few of the first pages. But a book that has won a contest for book awards from organizations like Jeff Keene’s USA Book News award (http://usabooknews.com)... Read More

The Miracles of Modern Technology By Leigh Anne Jasheway NABBW’s Boomer Humor Expert It seems as if there are new inventions almost every day using computer technology, from sunglasses that you can view movies on to watches that access the Internet. While these are fine ideas for people who are capable of walking and watching reruns on 30 Rock while listening to their iPod and reading the latest Stieg Larsson novel on their Kindle, I can’t even walk and talk without falling down. Nor can I see my SmartPhone without having to get out a pair of reading glasses. How smart can it be anyway? I... Read More

Sexting and Parenting in the Digital Age By Phyllis Goldberg, Ph.D. and Rosemary Lichtman, Ph.D. Now that your teens are in school again, are you concerned they\’re back to risky behaviors on the Internet – sending inappropriate sexual pictures and texts on their cell phones? If so, you\’re not alone. A recent survey of parents with children between the ages of 10 and 18 found their number one worry was not school shootings, bullying or grades, but sexting. Nearly half said their child had received some kind of racy message or image in the past. And with impulsive teens not... Read More

I.O.U. Sex: A Novel Author: By Sandra Nachlinger and Sandra Allen Website: https://www.createspace.com/3504716 Reviewed By: Anne Holmes for the NABBW What happens when two women, friends since high school days in Dallas, decide to co-author a book? In this case, the result is a self-published novel, I.O.U. SEX, written by longtime friends, Sandra Nachlinger and Sandra Allen. The authors met in junior high school, in Dallas, Texas. Over the years they stayed in touch, as best friends always hope they will, despite attending college, marriage, careers, children, several moves and eventually retirement.... Read More

Eat to Defeat Menopause: The Essential Nutrition Guide for a Healthy Midlife Author: Karen Giblin and Mache Seibel, M.D. Website: http://www.redhotmamas.org Reviewed By: Anne Holmes for the NABBW Author Karen Giblin knows her stuff: Recognizing that leadership in the menopause healthcare services arena was sorely needed, she founded Red Hot Mamas®, which has become the largest menopause management education program in the US and Canada, in 1991. Her mission: to broaden the base of women\’s knowledge about menopause and empower them to become educated healthcare consumers and active participants... Read More

Empty Nest Support Group By Natalie Caine, M.A. NABBW’s Empty Nest Expert Whether you are on your way to emptying your nest or already sitting in it, the role you lived as parent shifts. Who are you beyond mother? Who are you beyond father? When you sit with others who are on a similar journey, you feel a bonding, a clan, a place to be right where you are with your full range of thoughts and feelings. Until you hug your children goodbye and come back home to their empty room and silence, it isn\’t real. You think about. You wonder how you will be and what will be next for you?... Read More

Maintaining and Using Perennial Flowers By Deborah Clark NABBW’s Gardening Expert Perennials have different lifespans and while some, like peonies, can live for many (some say up to 50) years, all plants will die sooner or later. But you can keep them going by dividing and replanting, or by keeping the seedlings. After flowering, let the leafy tops die down naturally, as they feed the roots which need to survive through the winter, and don\’t cut them off until the plant is dormant. Some plants go dormant and disappear in the summer, but their roots continue to grow and will send up... Read More

The Simple Life: Intentional Living for the Chronically Ill By Mary J. Yerkes NABBW’s Living with Chronic Illness Expert Simple living can seem elusive. In a world focused on achieving and accumulating more and bumper stickers that read, “He who dies with the most toys wins,” the reality of simple living seems like some pie-in-the sky ambition, a trend. Despite the proliferation of products, books, magazines, classes, and organizational systems guaranteed to simplify our lives, most of us continue to hurry through life, pursuing activities and making purchases that ultimately add to... Read More

BEYOND WEIGHT WATCHERS: Does Weight Watchers Help You Prevent A Heart Attack? By Janet Brill, Ph.D., R.D., LDN NABBW’s Healthy Heart Lifestyle Expert Weight Watchers (WW) has got to be doing something right. WW, now Weight Watchers International Inc., is the world\’s largest and most successful commercial weight loss program. It all began in 1961, when an overweight housewife named Jean Nidetch, living in Queens New York, organized small group meetings with her overweight friends to provide each other with mutual support and to, well, discuss weight loss. In 1963, Weight Watchers... Read More

For Weight Control, There\’s Only One Formula By Janet Brill, Ph.D., R.D., LDN NABBW’s Healthy Heart Lifestyle Expert South Beach to Sonoma, eat every 3 hours or exercise for just 8 minutes: what\’s the best advice for a lifetime of weight control? You can\’t fit into your favorite pair of jeans and stepping on the scale is simply out of the question for fear of the psychological ramifications. It\’s time to take control of the situation and lose weight. Should you run to Barnes and Nobles to buy the latest diet book to solve your never-ending battle of the bulge?... Read More