THIS MONTH’S LUCKY SUBSCRIBER,
KRISTY GILES of FOOD DYNAMX
will receive the books reviewed on this page.
B O O K R E V I E W S
Rhian Allen is the founder and chief executive of
Australia’s largest parenting health website for mums,
so it’s no wonder she’s decided to go down the book
path. This is a 28-day plan for weight loss from The
Healthy Mummy online hub, which has more than 1.5
million followers…and Allen’s personal achievements
are as impressive. She established her company in
2010, and her website now has more than 850,000
unique page views per month. She’s also a mum to
two children…whew! The book is for busy mums
who want to lose weight and improve their health and
fitness. Allen has helped thousands of women tone
down the muffin tops with the hugely popular Healthy
Mummy diet plan devised by her team of nutritionists
and health experts – for the first time, condensed into
one book. It’s chocka with more than 100 recipes the
whole family can enjoy, and is the perfect guide for
mums on a budget. “As a mum of two, I understand
that motherhood is demanding and HARD WORK,
which is why the recipes, exercises, products and
everything involved is tailored to suit a busy mum
and a family-friendly environment,” she says. “The
aim is not for women to achieve unrealistic weight
loss in a short space of time: it’s all about encouraging
mums to learn about healthy living and healthy food,
and doing so in a supportive, inclusive environment.”
Strewth – thanks, Rhian.
It’s a sure bet you know more about your gut than
you did ten years ago. In recent years, we’ve come
to realise that the gut is pivotal to a healthy metabolism,
brain and immune system. This book – by
senior research dietician at CSIRO Health and Biosecurity
Taylor and senior research fellow with CSIRO
Conlon – takes a look at the explosion of scientific
research in this field that has led to the discovery
that feeding our gut bacteria with a particular type
of fibre called resistant starch is a major piece in the
gut health puzzle. With information on how the gut
THE BUSY MUM’S GUIDE TO
WEIGHT LOSS by Rhian Allen
(MacMillan, $39.99, available now)
works and can go wrong, the book outlines recipes
high in fibre and resistant starch than can be simple
and practical (and tasty) ways to eat your gut back
to overall health. The CSIRO, Australia’s national
science agency, has been dedicated to the practical
application of knowledge and science for society and
industry since 1928. Today, it ranks in the top 1% of
world scientific institutions in 12 out of 22 research
fields, researching human health, disease prevention,
diagnosis and innovative treatment. It’s a must-read
for any member of the family.
THE BUSY MUM’S GUIDE TO WEIGHT LOSS
If a cerebral read is on the cards as the weather
turns hot and summery, Origin Story by this distinguished
professor in modern history at Macquarie
University is the perfect pick-up. It’s the epic story
of the universe and our place in it, from 13.8 billion
years ago to the remote future. How, Christian says,
did we get from the Big Bang to today’s staggeringly
complex world in which seven billion humans
are connected into networks powerful enough to
transform the planet? “And why, in comparison,
are our closest primate relatives reduced to near-extinction?”
If there’s one man to answer that, it’s
Christian. The co-founder, with Bill Gates, of The
Big History Project, Christian received his PhD from
the University of Oxford, and is a member of the
Australian Academy of the Humanities and the Royal
Holland Society of Sciences and Humanities. He
has given keynote talks at conferences all over the
world, including his TED address on ‘The history
of our world in 18 minutes’ that has been viewed
more than seven million times. “I have written this
book in the optimistic belief that we moderns are
not doomed to a chronic state of fragmentation and
meaninglessness,” he says. “Within the creative
hurricane of modernity, there is emerging a new,
global origin story that is as full of meaning, awe
and mystery as any traditional origin story but is
based on modern scientific scholarship across
many disciplines. That story is far from complete,
and it may need to incorporate the insights of older
origin stories about how to live well and how to
live sustainably.” As Bill Gates says, Christian has
elegantly weaved evidence and insights from many
scientific and historical disciplines into a single
accessible historical narrative.
ORIGIN STORY by David Christian
(Penguin Random House NZ, $40,
available now)
ORIGIN STORY
CSIRO HEALTHY GUT
CSIRO HEALTHY GUT by Pennie
Taylor and Michael Conlon (MacMillan,
$39.99, available now)