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More copies of this ISBN:Up for Renewal: What Magazines Taught Me about Love, Sex, and Starting Overby Cathy Alter
Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:By age thirty-seven, Cathy Alter had made a mess of her life. With a failed marriage already under her belt, she was continuing down the path of poor decisions, one paved with a steady stream of junk food, unpaid bills, questionable friends, and highly inappropriate men. So she sat down and asked herself what she truly wanted. A decent guy. A nicer home. More protein. When she took a closer look at her wants, she noticed something that seemed very familiar — with the addition of exclamation points, her list could easily be transformed into the cover lines on every women's magazine: Find the love you deserve! Paint to the rescue! Eggs-actly perfect meals! So Cathy gave over her life to the glossies for the next twelve months, resolving to follow their advice without question. By the end of her subscriptions, she would get rid of upper-arm jiggle, crawl out of debt, host the perfect dinner party, run a mile without puking, engage in better bathtub booty, ask for a raise, and rehaul her apartment. Well, at least that was the premise of her social experiment. What actually happened was much less about cosmetic change and much more about internal transformation. Singular in its voice and yet completely universal, Up for Renewal will appeal to all who have ever wondered if they could actually make their life over. Review:"Realizing she needed to do serious work on her junk food/junk sex — littered lifestyle, Alter, a 'recently divorced thirty-seven-year old' freelance writer, decided to spend each month of the coming year following the advice of a major women's magazine 'without question.' She picked nine titles focusing on a 'how-to ethos' more or less aligned with her own demographic: Elle, Marie Claire, O, Allure, Self, Cosmopolitan, Glamour, InStyle and Real Simple. Each month she'd work on a particular 'damage zone' — diet, social fears, clothes, relationship snafus, cooking, sex, etc. — and follow the advice of her chosen magazine as earnestly as possible. Meanwhile, she'd also begun dating a new guy, which brought up relationship challenges her magazine mentors loved to address — spicing up the sex, learning to cook instead of eating out and deciding if his birthday present meant a marriage proposal was imminent. While she ends up feeling positive about the self-improvement her magazine experiment has brought, she knows if she hadn't been ready and willing to change, all the advice in the world wouldn't have helped. In the end, fans of Bridget Jones will also enjoy Alter — she's funny and endearing. (July)" Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.) Review:"A transformation sensation, witty and soulful."-- Larry Smith, founder of SMITH Magazine and co-editor of Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs By Writers FamousandObscure Review:"A transformation sensation, witty and soulful."-Larry Smith, founder of SMITH Magazine and co-editor of Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs By Writers FamousandObscure Review:"Up For Renewal is a charming, hilarious book that proves that it is possible to change your life in just one year. Using the improbable guide of women's magazines, Cathy Alter transforms her relationship, her job, her body, even the color of her living room. She got me laughing out loud, and also vowing to try her recipe for Mexican Chicken Soup."-- Gretchen Rubin, author of the blog, The Happiness Project, www.happiness-project.com Review:"Cathy Alter's Up for Renewal is witty and whimsical. You'll want to stay with her well-developed voice all the way to the end."-- Rachel Sontag, Author of House Rules Review:"Fans of Bridget Jones will also enjoy Alter - she's funny and endearing." — Publishers Weekly
VideoAbout the AuthorCathy Alter is a Washington, D.C.-based writer whose articles and essays have appeared in The Washington Post, Washingtonian, Self, Fitness, and McSweeney's. Her first book, Virgin Territory: Stories from the Road to Womanhood, was released in 2004. What Our Readers Are SayingBe the first to add a comment for a chance to win!Product Details
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