Title: Sober Stick Figure: A Memoir
Author: Amber Tozer
Publisher: Running Press
Publication Date: May 31, 2016
Length: 272 Pages
About The Author
Amber Tozer is a stand-up comedian and comedy writer.
One Day At a Time
This is a memoir of a young woman's struggle with addiction and recovery.
The book is illustrated with simple stick figures drawn by the author.
My Thoughts
This book begins with the following words;
"This is a dark and funny story about alcoholism. I hope it helps anyone who needs it."
I like this book. It informs, enlightens and entertains the reader.
Amber Tozer grew up in a dysfunctional family with an alcoholic father and codependent mother. It is no surprise that she began drinking at a young age.
The problem was, she did not realize that her drinking was a problem until her life was spinning out of control and she was on the verge of despair.
After seven years of binge drinking and destructive relationships, Amber finally admitted that she was an alcoholic and needed help. This decision changed everything.
The stick figure illustrations really cracked me up. Ms. Tozer has the ability to keep the reader laughing even through the most heartbreaking and tragic situations.
I believe this book will be very beneficial to anyone wanting to learn about the devastation that alcohol (or any drug addiction) can have on an individual. This book contains profanity (including some F bombs), so I recommend it for adult readers.
MY RATING: 5 Stars Out Of 5
FYI - I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.
Please share your thoughts in the Comments Section below.
Family: The Good "F" Word: The Life-Changing Action Plan for Building Your Best Family
Author: Troy Dunn and Dr. Phil McGraw
Publisher: Bird Street Books
Publication Date: April 21, 2014
Length: 321 Pages
About The Author
Troy Dunn is the creator and executive producer of the #1 rated show on WE Network, “The Locator” and host of the TNT series “APB with Troy Dunn.” As a husband and father, Dunn truly is an expert on family — he and his wife have been married for more than 25 years and have 8 children.
The LCA Plan (Life-Changing Action Plan)
Troy Dunn is a dedicated family man and owner of a business that reunites separated and distressed families. He shares his love, enthusiasm and passion for family life in this book.
Mr. Dunn has created the "LCA Plan" to help restore families to full strength. This plan contains the following four steps;
- Determine what is wrong with your marriage/family relationship. This involves taking a personal inventory and taking responsibility for your actions in the relationship.
- CHANGE. The author puts this word in capital letters because without it you will not be able to fix your family
- Repairing damage and rebuilding your marriage or relationship.
- Empowerment and attempting to permanently stabilize your family. This includes embracing forgiveness and moving forward without clinging to destructive behaviors.
The author admits it will not be easy to implement the LCA Plan, but the benefits can be tremendous if you desire a better marriage and family life.
My Thoughts
I read this book from cover to cover and found it to be an outstanding guide for marriage and family improvement and growth.
The author includes quizzes to help evaluate areas of your marriage that need improvement. He emphasizes the importance of communication and states that silence is a silent killer in a relationship.
My very favorite part of the book is where Mr. Dunn recalls his own childhood and his father's problem with alcoholism. He states that his mother tried to make the marriage work, but she eventually packed up her three children and separated from his father. Several months later, a young Troy came home from school and found his father sitting on the front porch of the house where his mother had moved the family. His father had gone to AA and was willing to take responsibility for all the bad behavior that he exhibited during his drinking days. His family was reunited and his father's example was a strong positive influence on the author.
I highly recommend this book to readers who are ready for positive change in their family and their life. This book is the real deal and will be well worth the time it takes to read it.
RATING: 5 Stars Out Of 5
FYI ~ I received a complimentary digital copy of this book to read and review from NetGalley.
Please share your thoughts in the Comments Section below.
Life Code: The New Rules for Winning in the Real World
Author: Dr. Phil McGraw
Publisher: Bird Street Books
Date: November 13, 2012
About the Author
“Dr. Phil” (Phillip C. McGraw, Ph.D.) is the host of America’s number-one
daytime talk show and is perhaps the most well-known expert in the field of
psychology and human functioning in the world today.
BAITERS - The Bad Guys
Do you give other people the "benefit of the doubt"? Dr. Phil believes you can get in trouble just by being in the wrong place at the wrong time and not listening to your basic instincts. This is why the "benefit of the doubt" is not advised in the new "life code".
Dr. Phil McGraw states that some people "win" just because they play the game of life according to a different set of rules or no rules at all. In the real world, the cheaters sometimes win, the early bird doesn't always get the worm, and doing unto others as you wish they would do unto you doesn't always get you what you want, need or deserve.
BAITERS (Backstabbers/Abusers/Impostors/Takers/Exploiters/Reckless) are those who exploit, cheat and abuse other people. They win at any cost, especially if it is at the expense of others. Dr. Phil explains the tactics, strategies, techniques and behaviors that BAITERS use to hurt you.
New Rules For Wining in the Real World
The second part of this book explains how to be a winner in life. In order to be successful, you have to play smarter and harder in every part of your life. That means changing what you are doing and how you think. Dr. Phil created a "Sweet 16" list of strategies, mindsets and behaviors that he believes are necessary to change your life for the better.
The final part of the book deals with the importance of knowing how to negotiate what you want and need. Almost everything in your life is based on negotiation.
Dr. Phil writes a special chapter to parents at the end of the book. He believes that people who want to harm your children have more access to them than ever before. Parents must teach their children the new rules for dealing with people in their world.
My Thoughts
The world has drastically changed in the past 50 years. I believe Dr. Phil delivers some sound and sensible advice on how to live in modern times.
I wish I had read a book like this many years ago. I have been exposed to many BAITERS in my life. Unfortunately, I have also used some of the tactics that BAITERS use to further my own agendas and causes.
This book should motivate you to take a good look at how you are living your life. It is never too late to make positive changes in your choices, behaviors and relationships.
I read the digital edition of this book on my Kindle Fire. The formatting is a bit rough around the edges, but the content is really outstanding. I think this is the best book that Dr. Phil has written. It is time to "get real" with a new life code!
My Rating: 5 Stars Out Of 5
FYI ~ I purchased the digital edition of this book with my own funds.
Please share your thoughts in the Comments Section below.
It will soon be Valentine's Day and love is in the air. Unfortunately, many people have given up on love and the hope of finding that special person to share their lives with. Laura Lee Carter, the Midlife Crisis Queen, has written a new book about believing in love again....after divorce and well into the midlife years. How To Believe In Love Again; Opening To Forgiveness, Trust and Your Own Inner Wisdom
is based on experiences from the author's professional and personal life.
In 2004, the author found her long-time career as a librarian coming to an end. She was 49 years old and divorced with no children. She had a graduate degree in counseling psychology, so she decided to start a professional matchmaking service. She interviewed hundreds of midle-aged singles who came to her service looking for love. The problem was, most of these people were putting all their focus on finding the perfect date instead of working on themselves and their attitudes toward love.
Ms. Carter has written an inspiring book about how to clear your mind of the negativity that you have toward love and being loved. She asks readers to take a "Love Quiz" in the first chapter to better understand why it is necessary to adjust our thoughts and attitudes toward finding a love partner. She emphasizes that self-love is the first step towards believing in love again. We must all find that self-loving place inside before we begin to bring others into our life. Emotional and spiritual healing is needed before we can believe in love again.
The author gives many practical ways to go about healing. She tells about her own journey to find self-love and self-acceptance. She expains that journaling, positive affirmations, reading books, watching movies with positive messages about love and listening to music are all ways to increase self-esteem. The important thing is to spend time alone and really get to know yourself. The author asked, "Are you the kind of person that you would want to be married to?"
Ms. Carter provides another quiz at the end of the book, "Have Your Beliefs About Love Changed?" Yes, I think my thoughts about love have changed since reading this book.
This book is not just for middle-aged singles who have given up on love. I married my soul mate almost 20 years ago but still found a wealth of useful information in this book. Yes, even married people have a need to believe in love again.
There is an awesome list of books in the Bibliography of this book. I would love to read every book on the list. The author has made a YouTube video to promote this book. The book is available from Amazon.Com in both paperback and Kindle edition
.
I would like to wish everyone a Happy Valentine's Day! It is never too late to believe in love.
Disclosure: The author provided me with a free digital copy of this book to read and review.
We can all learn to avoid showing off how much we know, or trying to prove how much better, smarter, and stronger we are than the next person. When you become quietly self-confident, you won't have to shout, like Annie Oakley, "I can do anything better than you can."
After she had proven this very point, Annie lost her man in the play and film, Annie Get Your Gun. She didn't win him back until she tried just the opposite tactic—letting him prove that there were some things he could do better than she could.
Whenever you are tempted to be an Annie Oakley (and this applies whether you're a man or woman) stop and think. What good will it do you or the other person to prove that you're smarter than he is? He will only resent you for having shown him up.
It sometimes takes a lot of restraint to refrain from using four simple words: "I told you so." God bless everyone who learns this habit of restraint.
