Chic & Slim: How Those Chic French Women Eat All That Rich Food and Still Stay Slim

Rating:
Summary: poorly written...laughably simplistic information
Review: Ms. Barone's book (more like a phamplet) contains a wealth of information you undoubtedly already know (eat less exercise more) and offers little if anything new that can't be gleaned from any of the popular magazines women read today. To compound her lack of substanitive information, Barone's tone throughout the book is grating and irritating which made it almost impossible for me to enjoy this book at all. My advice: save your money, or go in search of another book on the subject, of which there are plenty...many of the other authors seem to be more articulate and better educated.

Rating:
Summary: Bizarre!!!
Review: Okay...where do I begin? I purchased all three of her books last year. If only I had known what the author was all about I would not have wasted my money. Yes, the books do have some good tips, but her web site that accompanies the books, is a good thing gone really, really, bad. Over the past year her postings have become so bizarre and judgmental that they border on the comedic. I don't know how politics came into a simple book about diet, and style, but any well-balanced person from either side of the political spectrum would be turned off by her comments. For a classy, and charming book on the French lifestyle I would suggest Debra Ollivier's Entre Nous A Woman's Guide to Finding Her Inner French Girl.

Rating:
Summary: Mostly common sense, too much USA-bashing
Review: Theis is a very light read with some good tips for those who need help dropping pounds. If you like some things about the French lifestyle, you may enjoy reading this. That being said, Ms. Barone is sadly out of touch with Americans. She seems to worship the French, doesn't mention any of their culture's shortcomings (and there are quite a few. Rarely washing their clothes builds up quite a stench after a while - especially on the subway in May), and is fond of making Americans sound like a bunch of hee-haw, redneck prudes just because we choose to wear swimsuits that cover (most of our) private parts and we approve of monogamy. Her part about the French woman washing her dog while wearing her expensive silk blouse and not getting a drop on it is laughable. That's just another one of her examples of American=bumbling, fat slob and French=refined. A visit to her website will make it clear that she feels hatred toward anyone who doesn't share her political views. She actually calls anyone who voted for G.W.Bush ignorant and they are not welcome to read her comments about the Chic & Slim lifestyle. She makes some very bizarre comments and even claims of wanting to "get out" of the country but then tries to show her patriotism by commenting on how beautiful the American flags on her street were for Veterans Day. I have friends on both sides of the polical spectrum and we respect each other. She seems to be a sad, lonely angry woman and extremely immature for someone of 60. Her website comments make me question the validity of her books. How can someone so intolerant and shallow write books to supposedly benefit Americans. I'm not sure one can. But when your skills are limited and you need the money, a surprising number of people turn to writing books.