The fact that global obesity is becoming a widespread epidemic is no secret. For the first time in thousasnds of years, millions of people around the world are suffering from an OVERABUNDANCE of food. Getting your daily meal is as easy as pulling up your car to a drive thru window. In the past, humans exerted many calories hunting animals. finding shelter, farming and preparing their own meals. But in a modern world oversaturated with tasty, convenient, high salt, high fat, OVER PROCESSED meals, we have to work harder than ever to maintain a healthy weight.

Meet Joe Cross. Just your average Aussie, with 100 extra pounds to spare and a rare autoimmune disease. When Joe gets fed up with taking pharmaceutical drugs and using band aid fixes to try and cure his ailment, he decides to make a drastic change in his life. Joe trades in junk food for a juicer and embarks on a cleansing 60 day fast of only fresh fruits and vegetables. During his journey, he touches the lives of those he speaks to, sharing the amazing health benefits of his new lifestyle change. Soon he gets off the pills and begins the road to recovery.

While talking to more than 500 Americans about trading in bad habits for a healthy lifestyle, Joe meets Phil, a truck driver who suffers from the same rare disease. At a staggering 429 lbs, Phil decides it is time to regain control of his life. Following in Joe’s footsteps, Phil quits his job and begins on his own epic journey.

The results of Joe and Phil’s efforts are inspiring and astounding. Joe and Phil create a ripple effect that inspires the people around them. This is an uplifting film that entertains as it educates.

Borrow Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead from your local Vaughan library today!

Age Group:
Mature Youth

Genre:
Non-Fiction, Social Awareness, Social Commentary, Self Help

Summary:
Did you know that the average American kid is exposed to advertising messages more than 3000 times a day?

Did you know that when you pay for a chocolate bar, the cocoa farmer doesn’t even get four cents?

Did you know that in a single day, McDonald’s serves up enough waste to fill the Empire State Building?

Truths like these – and more – are exposed in Rockliff’s fascinating, disturbing and mind boggling book on modern society exposed.

My Thoughts:
What a great book and such an important read! Get Real is the kind of book that will really make you re-evaluate your consumer choices. It is bold and informative, without being preachy.

Borrow Get Real: What kind of world are you buying? from your local Vaughan library today!

Genre:
Realistic Fiction, Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Survivalism

Age Group:
Young Adult

Summary:
Meet Gemma: an average teen with a not so average story. Torn from the only family she knows, and abducted by a mysterious and troubled young man, Gemma is thrust into a fight for survival.

After being drugged, Gemma wakes up to find herself in the middle of a desert wasteland with only her abductor, Ty.

Ty tries to befriend Gemma. But Gemma is stubborn and determined to get home. Despite her best efforts, she soon finds herself falling in love with her kidnapper. But can Ty and Gemma survive in their fantasy world?

My Thoughts:
Written as a letter from Gemma to Ty, Stolen explores the boundaries of the human need to survive vs. the need for love and acceptance. Gemma is a plausible victim. Vulnerable and on the cusp of womanhood, she maintains her strength but is still malleable to Ty’s persuasions.

Stolen delicately treads the fine line between the crime done to Gemma and the innocence of Ty and Gemma’s growing relationship. Christopher never authorizes the kidnapping, but she does show readers the shades of gray that exist in our world.

Borrow Stolen from your local Vaughan Library today!