Women Food and God: An Unexpected Path to Almost Everything Paperback – February 8, 2011

*****Geneen Roth hits a home run with her latest book about overeating and so much more in "Women Food and God". The theme of the book is that the way we eat, the way we think about food and handle ourselves around it is the way we do everything. The author then shows us how and why this is the case. She describes the food retreats she runs and the women who attend them, and as a reader you will surely identify in some way with every single person--and with the lesson she illustrates from their lives. This is a more complex book than her earlier books because of the spiritual dimension; she sees problems with overeating as gateways to spiritual enlightenment. She convinced me (and will convince you as well) that instead of trying to get rid of or fix our eating problems, we need to use them to see within ourselves, to learn important spiritual life lessons from our feelings, and to grow and heal so that we will end up eating as a spiritual practice. And so that we'll have a permanent end to the misery of always struggling with our weight and self-image, and always striving to improve our relationship with food.The book is so good that for me, just reading it was like a spiritual awakening in this area of my life. I found it motivational, inspirational, and scary in a good way--and the author makes the whole process doable with descriptions of practices that can be used on the food healing/awakening journey such as meditation, inquiry, and eating guidelines. These practices are all specific to the process and they are described in detail. This spiritual dimension is generic and does not require a particular religious belief, or even any religious belief. It would be compatible with any type of spirituality. The type of eating practiced is intuitive eating (listening to your body to discern what it wants), and no matter what your way of eating, you can apply an intuitive approach to it--this book is about a way of living and relating to food, not about a food plan.If you have read the author's other books (as I have) you will find much new information here. Other key themes of the book include mindfulness, presence, and feeling your feelings. The author is brutal but honest in describing how destructive the dieting industry is to women. Again, this is definitely not a diet book or eating plan, but instead a way of experiencing life which allows you to be present and aware so that you are able to listen to your body and choose food based on nourishment and self-care.Although it is a quick read (I read it in one evening), this book is so valuable that you will want to refer back to it, highlight it for future reference, take notes in the margins, and use parts for journal prompts. There is only one negative, and it is a biggy: the paper in this hardback book is similar to super cheap mass market paperback-type paper. I have never seen an actual book of any type with such paper, though! I tried to highlight sections and the highlighter not only would bleed through to the reverse side of the page, but sometimes onto the previous page! It is hard to describe how frustrating this was---a book that is a true keeper on throw-away paper. I highlighted anyway and my book is a mess, but I decided to rebuy it on Kindle when it comes out. I've never done this before, but it's that good of a book--worth months (or maybe years) of therapy. I also would buy it again if it is reprinted (and I'll bet it will be) with a paper that matches the quality of the book.That flaw aside, I'm so glad I bought this book. I have read many, many books on overeating, diet and nutrition, self-help, styles of eating, and more, and this book stands apart from the crowd. The message is an important one for any woman who wants to handle her relationship with food, her weight, and her spirituality in a healthy way, and to become whole. If that is you, you will not be disappointed, I promise.Highest recommendation.*****

I read several reviews cautioning that there is not enough instruction or 'how to' in this book. Having just very carefully and PRESENT-LY read this book, I can see why...because it is so simple and basic that it is easy to mistake the stories and insights as just stories & insights.I, too, had seen Geneen on Oprah and hear a lot about her book, so I too, expected a step by step breakdown of exactly what Geneen, in all of her wisdom wanted me to do to lose weight and improve my relationship with food. What I found, instead, was something much deeper. Ironically, Geneen talks about people who try every diet and search for years for THE solution and THE answer and the search, itself is what is keeping us from finding the answer. Because the answer was never somewhere "out there" but rather somewhere "in here." For me, that was big.As someone who never thought of myself as an emotional eater, I have most definitely realized how disconnected I have grown to be with myself. Knowing all about food and body issues, I really wanted to raise my 2 year old daughter with "healthy" habbits and a taste for healthy foods, rather than junk, like me. So, reading this book was just another way to help me do "the right thing" with my daughter, because I didn't trust myself to have the answers and make good choices. In reading this book, I learned a lot about my trust in myself(or lack thereof) and about learning more about myself and being true to myself in more ways than through food.And THAT is just the tip of the iceberg. I feel like this book has presented me with a broom to dust off a door I didn't even remember existed. Now, I am curious. I want to go through. I feel like I can go through the door and see what's there and it won't be scary and it won't obliterate me and I will be fine. Stronger. A more whole and true me.How to approach reading this book(in my very humble opinion):Don't begging by searching for the answer from Geneen. Have some sceptisism at the onset: It's healthy. Keep an open mind. Don't hurry through to get to the end, but, rather read, feel & explore. Be fully present & engaged as you read.That was what I did--especially the part about skepticism--especially at first! LOL! Upon reading Geneen's thoughts on how much we are so often not truly present in our lives, I made a commitment to be fully present as I read. I won't talk about what stood out to me most. I won't oversimplify. Because the truth is, I've heard a lot of this stuff countless times and just been in the mindset of, "I hope THIS is 'the answer.'" My honest belief is that reading this book in its entirety was very opening and cleansing for this particular skeptic and I don't want to take that away from anyone. It's a quick read. For me, 10-15 minutes at a time for a couple of weeks and one hour to devour(very presently) the last quarter of this book. I give it my full reccomendation! Thank you, Geneen!!