We’ve been in a book club with the same eight girlfriends for about five years now. It’s a really wonderful addition to our lives because it not only means that we get to schedule a special night to spend with “the girls” (we shoot for once a month, but sometimes life gets in the way, you know?!), but it also means that we all make a commitment to read at least one book a month. Sometimes it seems like there’s so much to do that the thought of flipping through even Us Weekly can be overwhelming, but having the goal of reading a book each month is pretty great. We can’t lie– some months it just doesn’t happen. But when it does, it’s usually really rewarding. And afterwards, there’s nothing better than comparing our thoughts and reactions to the books with our friends. Not to mention that once we’re done discussing the book, there’s a lot of dishing to be done! So, we decided to start the Tastybaby Book Club to share the fun of it with you! Every few weeks, one of our readers will share a book review or suggested reading. The books we’ll include will range from topics related to Tastybaby’s mission (ie: healthy food, the environment, being fabulous!), as well as children’s books and more! Sound good to you? Send us your Tasty Reading Tips!

Leslie and her son, Tyler (10)

MOTHER'S DAY BOOK CLUB: SCHOTT'S ORIGINAL MISCELLANY BY BEN SCHOTT

- Leslie McMorrow, Contributing Writer

You know how you purchase stuff while you are finishing up at the check-out stand? Stuff like a tin of the new flavor of Altoids, intricate miniature gadgets like tape measures, screwdrivers and colanders (for your mini problems and mini salads?) and even those shiny pewter-y stones in bowls called angel and fairy charms ... all sort of useless, but we've all bought em,' right?
Well, I am in the midst of reading one of the point-of-purchase books, the one you have seen at almost every book store counter and knick-knack store. Schott's Original Miscellany by Ben Schott is a funny little book and one that every mother should read and have on hand. It is a quirky collection of trivia that may earn you the "Coolest Mom Around Award" with homework and class projects.

How else would you be able to recite 17 palindromes like "Madam, in Eden I'm Adam'" or 36 unusual nouns of assemblage such as "a barren of mules" or "a muster of peacocks?" Not to forget, pangrams a.k.a. holalphabetic sentences such as "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy log," frequently misspelled words, scientific names of types of clouds and prime numbers up to 1,000. This may all seem trivial, but believe me, by the fourth grade, my son has come home inquiring about all these academic oddities.

Schott's Original Miscellany step-by-step instructions on how-to-tie-a-tie would have come in handy when I had to rush my son off to cotillion, a sort of finishing school, via a friend's house where a dad was at home to rescue all us helpless moms with their unfinished sons. In years prior, the list of Santa's reindeer and the names of the seven dwarves would have made singing and storytelling a breeze. Finding out if you are a diamond clad rat or a pisces who should be sporting aquamarine rings is made simple with a Chinese calendar, an astrological zodiac and a list of birthstones. I think you will find the trivia either very useful and interesting or extremely useless and interesting either way it's a win-win!

Who knows? Maybe someday soon I will have to know that the national anthem of Kiribati is Teirake Kain Kiribati or that the Statue of Liberty's nose is over four feet in length or the winning words of the National Spelling Bee. After all, fifth grade homework is not far away. 

Available on Amazon.com

TASTYBABY BOOK CLUB: WHAT TO EAT BY MARION NESTLE

- Amy Forstadt, Contributing Writer

In her 2006 book, What to Eat, nutritionist Marion Nestle (also the author of Food Politics and Safe Food) explores the supermarket, aisle by aisle, interpreting labels, explaining the benefits of organic food, dissecting fish and seafood issues, and detailing the pros and cons (mostly cons) of the sugar, salt, fats and additives in processed foods. As far as grocery shopping goes, Nestle tells us that by sticking to the fresh bread, meats, produce and dairy periphery of the supermarket (and avoiding the evils of the processed-food inner aisles), we can find all the healthy nutrition we need.

One chapter of What to Eat focuses specifically on foods marketed to kids-- both what’s in these foods and the marketing theories behind them. That food companies do not have our children’s best interest in mind will be no surprise to anyone, but to actually see the facts in black and white will set off alarm bells in any parent worth her salt (and sugar, and additives).

Nestle tells us that children are actually supposed to eat the same food their parents eat. Dietary guidelines and the pyramid food guide apply to everyone over the age of two. But with parents working longer hours, eating fewer meals at home, and the abundance of soft drinks and fast food, it can be hard to resist a package that promises a complete meal for your children, full of vitamins, minerals and protein.

And there’s the rub. Companies make their food seem healthy. But you just need to read the labels carefully to discover that most of these products still contain huge amounts of sugar, salt, and unpronounceable mystery ingredients.
 
According to Nestle’s research, companies have three goals in mind for marketing strategies to kids:
•    Creating brand loyalty
•    Getting kids to pester their parents to buy the products
•    Giving kids the idea that they are supposed to eat packaged foods rather than unprocessed, home cooked foods.

This kind of marketing is so insidious, it’s impossible to avoid. Even if you lock your kid in his room 24/7 with no TV, computer, or books, he’ll probably still come out demanding Lunchables.

The worst part of these foods designed to make our kids have temper tantrums in the grocery store isn’t the sugar, the additives, or even the food coloring. The worst part is that the marketing techniques are designed to make children think we don’t know what’s best for them, that only the big food companies do.

So what’s a concerned parent to do? Some of Nestle’s suggestions just aren’t realistic (like not taking your kid with you to the store) and some feel more like pipe dreams (don’t even venture into the center aisles). What makes more sense, as with anything kid-related, is to compromise. Let your son choose one thing for himself. Give your daughter a spending limit (which can be as low as $1.00). Tell the twins they can sprinkle a few spoonfuls of sugar cereal over their healthy cereal. And whatever you decide, teach your kids about what they’re eating, the good and the bad, so that they’re equipped to make the best decisions for themselves and their own families when the time comes.