Gluten-Free Girl: How I Found the Food That Loves Me Back...& How You Can, Too

by Shauna James Ahern

Book Overview

"A delightful memoir of learning to eat superbly while remaining gluten free." -Newsweek magazine

"Give yourself a treat Gluten-Free Girl offers delectable tips on dining and living with zest-gluten-free. This is a story for anyone who is interested in changing his or her life from the inside out " --Alice Bast, executive director National Foundation for Celiac Awareness

"Shauna's food, the...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0470137304
• ISBN13: 9780470137307
• Release Date: October 2007
• Publisher: Trade Paper Press
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.4" x 9.6"

Customer Reviews

Good story of an adventure with food

First off: If you are looking for a guide to being gluten-free or a cookbook of gluten-free recipes, this is not it. This has a lot of tips, some good explanations of various gluten-free grains and where they shine, and a good smattering of recipes embedded, but it is first and foremost the story of Shauna's journey through becoming gluten-free. What this book IS: This is a compelling story of a love affair with food. Raised on overly-processed foods, then forced to eliminate gluten (an extremely pervasive ingredient) entirely, Shauna had to reshape her connection to food, and found a true passion in the process. This is her story, beautifully written.

this book changed my life

This is the first book I read after going gluten free and it really helped me cope with a very difficult transition. Unless you have had the experience of being sick your whole life and then finding out that you must make such a drastic lifestyle change to save your health, it might be hard for you to apprecite the true value of this book. But the experiences Shauna writes about so well are shared by thousands of people (1 in 100 people has this disease!) Going gluten free is overwhelming and terriifying at first. It feels impossible. The toxic substance which is slowly and painfully killing us (celiacs have an increased risk of cancer and other autoimmune disorders, just to name a couple of things) is everywhere every day-- bread, pasta, cookies, crackers, licorice, barbeque sauce, salad dressing, soda pop.... the list in endless. It is even in our shampoo, toothpaste, soap, medicine and vitamins. It is in gumballs, for goodness sake! When you first go gluten free, the world feels like a very dangerous place indeed. And many celiacs get depressed, eat a very limited diet of things they know are safe and they have breakdowns over never being able to eat a sandwich again, or never being able to eat a big old cinnamon roll again. They cry. It happens to all of us. It is a stage of coping with the disease. We also must all learn how to cook gluten free food. Restaurants become dangerous places. Packaged food must be scrutinized. Companies must be called and every item in your shopping cart is questioned. The joy goes out of eating. That's where this book comes in. Shauna throws open the windows and lets the sunshine in. She embraces the restriction (yes!) and sends us the message to look at it as an opportunity to explore a new world. She invites us to learn how to cook and rejoice in our new life. In her hands, going gluten free is far from being the life sentence that many celiacs feel it is. Rather, it becomes a marvelous adventure of trying exotic and wonderful new flavors. She brings the joy back to the food. Rather than looking at the things we cannot have, she lets us eat and enjoy the things we can. When you read her book, you no longer think in terms of a restriction. You look forward to eating. Hers was the first book I read after going gluten free and she infused me with a positive attitude towards the diet and this made all the difference in the world for me and my experience of this new life. I will carry this attitude forward with me and do my best to pass it on. Shauna deserves major good karma points. So you can go ahead and criticize the book if you like, but you are really missing the point. The book is not about childhood packaged foods or a particular writing style. It is about coping with a terribly difficult thing in a truly positive way and helping other people do the same thing. And this she has accomplished with style and attitude. Shauna has inspired a lot of people and given all

Lovely

I enjoyed every word. Not only is Gluten-Free Girl a useful and practical handbook to a healthier way, but it's written beautifully, thoughtfully and with a wonderfully contagious sense of living well, mindfully and joyfully that seems to leap from every page. I found myself smiling so often while reading this book, and finished feeling so connected to James-Ahern's open, clever, communicative and delightful joie de vivre. Would suggest it without hesitation to anyone, gluten-issued and gluten-tolerant alike.

Living & Loving Without Gluten

Not only is this book written by a gifted author, it is also a much needed reference book. If you are living the gluten free life, then make this book your best friend along with Bette Hagman's series of gluten free recipe books. The recipes in this one are excellent and can be prepared by anybody. She explains coeliac and gluten (wheat) allegeries so well while complimenting her readers' intelligence. I like that. No doubt many will find this book a helpful resource tool. This book will certainly help many to enjoy their lives more; feel healthier and get more satisfaction out of whatever they are doing. Good health, which this book promotes transcends all aspects of one's life. This book will certainly motivate and inspire countless people.