OBSESSED

The co-host of MSNBC’s Morning Joe parlays her lifelong preoccupation with food into re-educating an increasingly corpulent nation about smarter eating practices.

Best-selling author and mother of two, Brzezinski (Knowing Your Value: Women, Money, and Getting What You’re Worth, 2011, etc.) honestly discusses her history of food addiction, from teenage years indulging an insatiable urge for junk food in a family of overachievers to early days in her entertainment career binging on the fat and sugar in “hyperprocessed” fare. It’s no surprise to her, she writes, when people immediately draw eye-rolling conclusions based on her outward appearance, dubbing her a “privileged skinny bitch with food issues.” In fact, her past has been one torturous battle after another with food and a lifelong “determination to be thin,” yet it seems the struggle to control her weight and increase her vitality has kept the author surprisingly grounded. Longtime best friend, award-winning news anchor and co-author Smith joins with Brzezinski to share their dietary failures and triumphs in knowledgeable, accessible parlance. The pair also enlists notable media personalities and celebrities to offer their own observations on weight, diet and the obesity epidemic. Among those sharing experiences and fresh perspectives are New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Dr. Nancy Snyderman, Gayle King, Jennifer Hudson and the late author/director Nora Ephron, plus numerous dieting experts and clinical researchers. An additional section advises on how to address food and nutritional balance gracefully and tactfully with children. Brzezinski and Smith's timely message of healthy harmony makes a smart, personalized complement to the brilliant journalistic advocacy of Michael Moss’ Salt Sugar Fat (2013).

A motivational, inspirational addition to the ever-expanding library of total-health guidebooks.