Reviewed by Mamta Madhavan for Readers' Favorite

The Naked Truth About Men (And Romance) by Kathryn Foster Ph.D. is an engaging book that speaks about the equation between men and women and also teaches them to develop more tolerance and insight into their partners' behaviors. The author discusses the romantic notions we harbor in our minds, the lonely lives we lead, dissatisfaction, expectations from a relationship, divorce, and many other truths that shed light on relationships and romances. The stories from clients, along with the author's research and interactions with clients of both genders on the topic, make this a profound and insightful read and gives a fundamental viewpoint on what one can expect from relationships and how to work on them to make them fulfilling and happy.

I found the book easy and simple to understand, and the author's observations and techniques are practical and easy to implement. It helps all those who are in marriages, romances, and relationships to look into them and see where changes can be made to improve things. The author speaks about the topic extensively and her observations are genuine, logical, and will be helpful to many when it comes to improving the way they handle their relationships.

Male and female hormones are different which, in turn, make men and women think differently too. The author tells readers what to expect from their partners so that they don't become too disappointed in their relationships. The author's approach to the topic is helpful, and is useful in enabling readers to understand their partners better and how to handle their relationships more effectively.

Reviewed by Milan Fila for Readers' Favorite

Erotic Integrity: How to be True to Yourself Sexually by Claudia Six, PhD, is more than a non-fiction book about relationships or sex. It is about finding out who you are as a person and being authentic to that person, regardless of what society, religion, or your parents think or say about it. It is about empowerment and enlightenment. The questions raised within this text are meant to start a dialogue that will help you discover who you are, what you like, and if you are living a life authentic to those desires. It is meant to awaken your inner self and realize your full sexual potential, regardless of what that means for you as an individual. Six believes if you start a dialogue with your partner, share stories and experiences, and learn to love yourself and your sexuality that only then will you have a happy, balanced life.

Erotic Integrity is a very interesting read. First, I appreciated the open and frank way Six talks about sex. Six gives permission to people to live a sexual life that they want, without limitations or constraints, outside of any “rules” that society thinks it has the right to impose upon you. Some people might be offended by some of the concepts within this book. However, just as some people might be turned off by this, many people will celebrate this book and the freedom that it offers. Six has a PhD and is very knowledgeable and passionate about this topic, which clearly comes through in her writing.

Reviewed by Eduardo Aduna for Readers' Favorite

Graceful Last Chapters: Helping Seniors Who Need More Care by Cynthia Neher Martindale is a comprehensive manual on everything one needs to know about the travails and intricacies of elderly care. Told in a frank, no-nonsense style, the book covers every detail caregivers, family members and even the elderly themselves would wish to know about the various care options available today.

Cynthia Neher Martindale writes in a crisp, authoritative voice, one that comes from years of experience in handling a multitude of queries regarding the numerous aspects of elderly care. She manages to capture various perspectives and to break down the psychological and emotional barriers that prevent family members and caregivers from giving the elderly the assistance they need. The early chapters are very welcoming for readers new to the world of elderly care, and her message of "trust me, I've been there, I know what you're going through" is an easy one for readers to receive.

For a book that is all about helping seniors get the care they need, Martindale never fails to highlight the emotional and physical toll the job takes on the caregiver themselves, and manages to come up with several ways to make this difficult task more bearable. It is this comprehensive and insightful knowledge that makes this book "the book" on elderly care, and a must-have in every home, hospice, and senior facility. The elderly and their caregivers will find Graceful Last Chapters: Helping Seniors Who Need More Care a fascinating read that will greatly enrich their knowledge about this extremely important matter.

Reviewed by Susana Pena for Readers' Favorite

Masterdate: The Handy Guide to Internet Dating For Guys by George Reagan is an informative book filled with helpful dating advice and tips for single guys looking for dates via the internet. George gives his readers his honest opinion on various topics, ranging from the importance of posting an updated profile picture to being a gentleman during a date. The author also reveals different dating scenarios that he went through in his personal life in order to caution men on what they might encounter during a date. This book is written in a funny and down to earth style. The author aims to inject confidence into those lonely guys out there who want to find their significant other.

I loved reading Masterdate: The Handy Guide to Internet Dating For Guys by George Reagan because it was brutally honest and very funny. I literally laughed out loud a couple of times because the author was not afraid to speak his mind about certain topics. For example, the author wrote, “and if you are considering wearing a lime green belt for your next date – do everyone a favor and just stay home.” This was so hilarious to me! George compiled this book using his own life experiences of going through bad and good dates. He wants to teach guys the proper way of landing dates and keeping them, so that they can live happy and exciting lives, and not end up being lonely and miserable.

Reviewed by Jack Magnus for Readers' Favorite

Learning to Love Myself: A Memoir of Recovery and Self-discovery After Abuse is a non-fiction memoir written by Viga Boland. It is the second book in Boland's No Tears for My Father memoir series. The author's father physically abused her and her mother when she was growing up, but from the time she was 11 years old, he began to sexually abuse her as well. Viga and her mother lived in fear of a father and husband who could turn violent and abusive with little or no provocation. When she became a teenager, Viga was kept isolated from her peers, and she was kept as what she describes as a 'second wife' until she was 24 years old. She had become a teacher in a local Catholic school and fell in love with one of the other teachers there, an Australian named John Boland. When she nervously brought up the subject of John's asking for her hand in marriage, she was surprised by her father's lack of outrage; however, one week later, he cast her out of his house. Viga lived with the horrific memories of his abuse for forty years before opening up to her family, who encouraged her to write her story.

Viga Boland's non-fiction memoir, Learning to Love Myself: A Memoir of Recovery and Self-discovery After Abuse is powerful and compelling reading. I had trouble getting my head around the awful reality of her childhood and her resulting sense of guilt and shame. But seeing where Boland goes after that very troubling start in life is so inspirational and transcendent. Boland is a marvelous and fiercely honest writer who tells her story with candor and frankness, and her style makes you soon begin to see her as a friend and to admire her courage, imagination and tenacity. I loved the photographs and poems she includes in Learning to Love Myself. Seeing the photos of John and Viga growing together and raising their children, and looking at their houses which she describes so well, brought her story even closer. And while I did wonder how they could ever have left that house by the beach, I found myself applauding each new challenge and adventure they had taken on. Learning to Love Myself: A Memoir of Recovery and Self-discovery After Abuse is a remarkable achievement, and I recommend it most highly.

Reviewed by Kim Anisi for Readers' Favorite

The Relationship Protocol: How to Talk, Defuse and Build Healthier Relationships by Debra M. Roberts is a self-help book about how to communicate in relationships that might not be as good as they were, or as good as they could be. It can be a friendship, a love relationship, a work relationship - all are covered in this protocol. The chapters take you through the relationship protocol and its steps in a logical way and illustrate how the RP works by using real life examples.

The Relationship Protocol: How to Talk, Defuse and Build Healthier Relationships by Debra M. Roberts is one of those rare self-help books that combines a good layout with good content. Far too often you only get one of both. You know all those pretty books with worthless content? This is not one of them. I was surprised to see that some things I have recently done with a challenging person in my life are actually the right steps. I was using the relationship protocol without really knowing about it, and I was wondering what I was doing right - because over the last few weeks things did improve a lot. And that was with me only using the steps of the protocol. Now that I have read the book, I gained an even better insight into how relationships work, and how you need to communicate if you truly want to be closer to the people you care about. I would definitely recommend this book to people who have some challenging relationships in their lives, and who would honestly want to work on making them better.

Reviewed by Mamta Madhavan for Readers' Favorite

Love Under Repair: How to Save Your Marriage and Survive Couples Therapy by Keith A. Miller is a well written book on couples therapy which will help couples decide the path they want to choose for themselves. In an era where marriages break at the drop of a hat and divorces are becoming more and more common, the author guides couples through marital therapy and the treatment modalities that will help them save their marriage from breaking apart. The personal stories shared by the author help readers connect with different types of problems faced by couples, and how therapy and treatment are helpful in solving problems in the marriage.

The book gives couples an idea of what they are looking for in a therapist and the questions they need to ask while undergoing the therapy sessions. It's a perfect guide for those who want to get their relationship back on track. The personal stories shared are relatable to readers and the entire book is a simple and fun read that connects well with all. The fitting room quiz is helpful in finding out the type of Imago Relationship one has. The Seven Principles for making a marriage work are indeed helpful to readers. It's an engaging book and has good information for those couples who are looking to make their relationships work. An interesting read. The author handles a relevant topic very cleverly.

Reviewed by Mamta Madhavan for Readers' Favorite

Do You Choose Your Dog More Carefully Than Your Husband?: And How to Avoid the Jerks, Creeps and Players by Dr Annie Kaszina is an uplifting book wherein readers get to know how to discover themselves and their worthiness. The book tells readers how to build, maintain and sustain long term, healthy relationships. The author delves deeper into relationships and she tackles a sensitive topic with humor and lightness, making it accessible and entertaining. The book offers insights from the author's experience in working as a therapist. The book is definitely for female readers who want to know how to value themselves yet contribute to a relationship and remain healthy and happy.

The author's candor about her life, her experiences, and the mistakes she has made is relatable and readers can connect with it very well. The book is funny and clever and is for all those women who have had wrong relationships with men. The concepts in the book are novel and refreshing, and it will make you think more on relationships. It will also assist readers to make healthy changes in their relationships. This is definitely a recommended read for all the women are looking for a relationship and also for all those who have the uncanny habit of choosing wrong relationships. It's a book that will help readers make changes in their lives. The author's ability to understand unhealthy relationships and address this issue makes this an engaging read. The author's take on relationships is like a breath of fresh air. The book is enjoyable and laced with humor, which is evident from looking at the cover design.

Reviewed by Nandita Keshavan for Readers' Favorite

Naked and Transparent: Six Vital Tools for Knowing Yourself and Attracting Healthy Relationships by Vladimire Calixte is a very useful book for anyone who is interested in transforming negative thought patterns and reclaiming their sense of self worth and inner peace. Initially when I started reading this book, I assumed that it would deal predominantly with relationships. In fact, it deals predominantly with purging the negativity within and increasing one's own inner peace and positive energy.

The book explains that people often grapple with self worth issues and this causes them to generate a fake facade which they strive to maintain since they are fearful of exposing their inner insecurities. Calixte explains that in coming to terms with one's inner vulnerability, you do not become weaker. In fact, you initiate the process of healing and you build a stronger, more secure personality from within. There are several sections that form a workbook approach due to the useful questions and spaces provided to write answers. I found many of these useful and apt, really encouraging the reader to take an active approach to applying the issues presented to their own lives.

There are many realisations that I have had prior to reading this book which I found very simply and elegantly expressed here. However, I feel that many people who read this will begin to initiate their self questioning on whether they have truly owned their inner persona and have healed from past traumas. The messages are truly powerful and worth reflecting on and re-reading until they are practiced in real life. Also, the questions are sharp but in a direct way that allows one to get straight to the most pressing issues at hand.

Calixte has bared her own past traumas by publishing letters in this book written to her absent father. In reading them, you gain a sense of the intense agony, the self esteem issues and hurt that she started off with. But as the letters progress, a change occurs and she begins to work towards inner peace. In showing this, she has proven that she has worked hard to overcome her own issues and she can understand the pain of others. A key point in the book is the importance of journalling which acts as an outlet and a window to one's own thoughts. I agree with Calixte that this method is very valuable in accelerating the growth of people who are in need of healing.

I also wholeheartedly agree with the approach taken by Calixte, which is working predominantly on healing yourself before entering into a relationship, since this process would transform you from within and change the way you interact and what you can contribute to a relationship. It is obvious from Calixte's book that she has a wealth of experience in counselling and that the key goals of the book are to wake people up and motivate them to begin a journey to inner healing and peace.

I found the title truly apt and also I noticed that it resonates with philosophies of some religions, where one is advised to discard the veil of artifice and instead work towards knowing and rejoicing in the inner self. I highly recommend this book to the active reader who is looking to examine their own selves and heal from the past. I would also recommend it to people who have already achieved inner peace if they are interested in reflecting on how far they have progressed, or if they are interested in helping others.

Reviewed by Teodora Totorean for Readers' Favorite

Linked Lives: A Memoir of an Extraordinary 40-Year Friendship by Bonny Brooks is the story of the friendship between Bonny and Lori. They met in their teenage years and their friendship carried on throughout their lives. Even though their lives took opposite directions – Lori stayed in their home town while Bonny moved from place to place several times – they always found the time to call each other. Through their phone conversations, readers find out what the two friends have been through, from love life and raising children to career choices, family events or bereavements. Their lives couldn't have been more different yet they shared something extraordinary: a lifelong friendship and unconditional love for each other. While Bonny graduated high school and then went to college, Lori gave up school shortly before graduation; while Bonny failed to find “the one” in her life, Lori had a happy second marriage after divorcing her first husband at a young age and struggling to provide for her two infant children for several years. Their friendship was not built on their differences, but on the capacity to understand each other’s choices and be happy for one another, and sharing their most intimate thoughts and feelings without the fear of being judged. And this, in my view, is true friendship.

The book Linked Lives: A Memoir of an Extraordinary 40-Year Friendship by Bonny Brooks is enjoyable to read, even though you might shed a tear or two along the way. But the two life stories will bring sheer joy as well to any reader. The story could be the story of any friendship and this is the powerful message of the book. No matter what kind of life you have and whether you'll find “the one”, go to college, have a career or raise children, if you have a Bonny-Lori kind of friendship in your life, you can conquer anything, from illness, poverty, and addiction to achieve happiness and fulfillment.