Dieting with The Duchess: SECRETS AND SENSIBLE ADVICE FOR A GREAT BODY

Once harshly scrutinized by the unyielding glare of the media, Sarah, The Duchess of York has come into her own as a chic, slimmed-down single mother with a new and exciting career. With her weight woes well behind her, she truly has become a role model for anyone who wishes to turn his or her life around. In fact, her triumph over adversity is just one reason why she is the perfect Weight Watchers member. "Dining with The Duchess" is a unique collaboration, combining the Duchess's taste and style with the culinary and dietary expertise of Weight Watchers. With thirty menus that boast over 125 recipes, "Dining with The Duchess" is a compendium of easy-to-prepare recipes that are perfect for almost any occasion. Whether it's a simple weeknight dinner, an elegant holiday feast, or a perfectly modern English tea, these menus make everyday meals a fine dining experience. In addition, recipes include the basic nutritional breakdown important to any dieter, as well as helpful cooking and presentation tips and hints, making "Dining with The Duchess" the perfect cookbook for anyone who wants to prepare light, healthy, and delicious meals with distinction and flair. Lively, personal anecdotes precede each menu, offering readers an intriguing glimpse into The Duchess's life and style. The Duchess of York is an odd candidate for the role of Everywoman, but in Dieting with the Duchess, she inhabits the part convincingly. She relates the trouble she's had controlling her weight, how living in the royal fishbowl exacerbated those problems (every fluctuation in her weight was noted by the voracious English media), and how she finally discovered a weight- management program she can live with through Weight Watchers (for which she's a spokesperson) and workouts with a personal trainer.

She enthusiastically relates all she's learned about diet and nutrition, which is (fair warning) the same basic stuff you'll find anywhere. And the book's exercise advice is all in the same vein. If there's anything here you don't know, then you really haven't cared enough to pay attention.

Fortunately, the book puts the basic information together in interesting ways. The recipes for dishes like pizza provencal, portobello mushroom panini, and gingered shrimp emphasize the idea that watching your caloric intake doesn't mean living without delicious food. And the exercise programs draw the distinction between exercising for general health and longevity and doing so for weight loss--a fine point that's often missed in mass-marketed fitness advice.

Mostly, though, this is a book about changing attitudes, about going from predominantly negative feelings about your body and your health to positive ones. Weight loss is a part of the equation for many women, but much more important is feeling a sense of control over one's body and one's health. Dieting with the Duchess may get you started on that path, if for no other reason than that it's comforting to know one of the most famous women on earth goes through all the same stuff you do. --Lou Schuler