REAL MOMENTS

More Insight Lite from bestselling author De Angelis (Are You the One for Me?, 1992, etc.), this time on the need to stop and smell the roses. Once again, De Angelis takes a common-sense proposition (in this age of anxiety, as she points out with more sincerity than originality, we need to slow down, take a deep breath, and learn how to live in the moment) and stretches it into a book. In the process, she provides generally superficial analyses, credulously regurgitating factoids (``I recently heard a sociologist on the radio share an amazing fact: With the use of satellites, television and computers, you and I receive more information in one day of our lives than our ancestors of several generations ago used to receive in 1000 days!'') and mixing Eastern meditation techniques, neoNative American philosophy, pop psychology, and personal anecdotes into a thin New Age gruel. She liberally salts it with quotes from other grocery store gurus, such as ``Dan Millman, who's written several wonderful books about what he calls the `peaceful warrior.' '' But De Angelis's basic premise, and her advice on how to tune out the static of modern life and concentrate on what matters, are sound, if simplistic. She offers shortcuts to inner peace and harmony for harried Americans eager for a quick fix, including a sort of modern mantra (``Right now'') to help readers focus on the present and a formula for keeping the magic in your marriage (give your partner ``Love Snacks''—a quick kiss, hug, or kind word—several times a day). For people who regret the lack of spirituality in their lives but aren't inclined to seek it through organized religion or rigorous soul-searching, this upbeat, easy-to-digest self-help book could be just the ticket. (Author tour)