Book Review: Rethinking Thin

Rethinking Thin: The New Science of Weight Loss--and the Myths and Realities of Dieting… by Gina Kolata

I really enjoyed her book on the flu, so I had great expectations for this book. But it took me a while to get through this because I kept putting it down. It didn't always grab me, but when it did I thought it was good.

I liked the perspective that there are many factors involved in America's obesity rather than just "eat less, exercise more." There are many people (myself included!) for whom eating better and exercising more would make a huge difference. But that is not the whole picture for all people.

Overall, an informative read.

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Review originally posted to LibraryThing (LT review, 9/27/07).

Book Review: Gifted

Gifted: A Novel by Nikita Lalwani

This is the story of Rumi, a mathematically gifted child, at ages 10, 14, and 15. Her parents emigrated from India to Wales, and Rumi has lived in Wales her whole life with a couple of trips back to India. Her whole life revolves around her father's efforts to get her admitted to Oxford early (strict study schedules, practice exams, etc.). Her mother meanwhile tries to uphold traditional cultural values and roles within the home and is resentful of having to leave India.

I never really connected with any of the characters, and I found myself not really caring what happened to them. Outwardly Rumi seemed to struggle both with her parents' expectations and with normal adolescent nightmares, but I never got a clear sense of what she was feeling or thinking ... just how she reacted to a series of somewhat disjointed situations. I got much more of a picture of the mother's feelings and frustrations throughout the book than Rumi's.

It took me forever to finish the book because I kept putting it down ... and I'm not sure I would have picked it up again if it weren't an Early Reviewer copy. The last section of the book flowed much easier, though, and had me reading right along until the end.

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Review originally posted to LibraryThing (LT review, 8/15/07) as part of its Early Reviewers program.