GRIT IN YOUR CRAW

Friday, February 20, 2015

GRIT IN YOUR CRAW
The 8 Strengths You Need
To Succeed In Business And In life
By Robert Luckadoo

OVERVIEW: This book will leave you with a tear in your eye, a big southern smile in your heart, and a recharged desire to be your best and find your true purpose in life. You will be enlightened and entertained as author Robert Luckadoo's life stories tug at your heartstrings and inspire you to dig deep inside yourself to find the eight strengths you need to succeed in your personal and professional life.

AUTHOR: Robert Luckadoo has a knack for success. Whether it's in the world of NASCAR racing, collegiate fast-pitch softball or financial services, he's always found a way to win. It's no wonder that audiences find him to be such an inspiring speaker. A geophysics major with a master's in business management, Robert started his first company—a geological consulting firm—in 1989, and since then he's become something of a startup expert, starting six more businesses and growing them to maturity before selling them for profit as going concerns. Currently, he's a financial professional with Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company.

MY REVIEW: I agree with Dick Vitale, ESPN Sports Analyst who said, "Grit in Your Craw will help develop the strengths you'll need to attack the many problems you'll encounter on the road to success." This is a good book. A very good book! I recommend it to you whether you're an athlete, in financial services, a real estate or insurance salesperson or another performance-based position. This book will inspire you to do your best in everything you do.

Robert Luckadoo wanders off into theology on page three of the book and I think that is a mistake. He says that winning the lottery and a child that dies with cancer is a part of God's plan. I don't think so! I do believe that it is God's circumstantial will and that all things work together for good to those that love the Lord, but I do not believe the Scriptures teach that God plans for you to win the lottery or for a child to die with cancer. However, this does not take away the great value of the book. It just happens to be a point of disagreement that I, as a Christian minister, have with one thing that Robert believes. He certainly may be right in his view and I may be wrong.

This is a book I wish I had read when I was a teenager. These eight strengths will benefit anybody who will carefully consider them and apply them to their life. You may want to consider buying a few copies to give as gifts to your friends.

(I received this book from The Cadence Group in exchange for a fair and honest review.)

THE PALEO CHEF

THE PALEO CHEF
Quick, Flavorful Paleo
Meals for Eating Well
By Pete Evans

OVERVIEW: "Ever wonder what kind of Paleo dishes an internationally acclaimed chef might prepare? Wonder no more. The Paleo Chef brilliantly combines Pete's passion for real food with his sophisticated, flavor-first approach to cooking. Best of all, the ravishing meals in these pages were designed for home cooks, making them a cinch to prepare in your own kitchen. This book is brimming with delicious inspiration, and deserves a permanent place on your counter."  —Michelle Tam, author of the New York Times bestseller Nom Nom Paleo  (From the back of the book).

AUTHOR: Pete Evans is an award-winning international chef, restaurateur, author, television presenter, adventure seeker, and father. Pete recently made his U.S. debut as host of The Moveable Feast on PBS. He has authored seven internationally successful cookbooks and has contributed to such publications as Fine Cooking magazine. As a graduate of New York's Institute for Integrative Nutrition, a health coach, and an enthusiastic supporter of the Paleo movement, Pete's mission is to revolutionize the way we eat and live.

MY REVIEW: The Paleo lifestyle is not something that someone came up with recently. It takes ideas about what made our ancestors healthy and strong survivors and adapts them to twenty-first-century life. This is a good book. It is beautifully done and it is unique. The recipes offer full flavor and are brought to life with stunning, full-color photography.

The book cover appeals to me, a "down to earth" type because Pete Evans is pictured on the cover barefooted. And then the first picture in the book is of a beautiful pork chop. But after that, I must admit that the recipes do not appeal to me until the dessert section. I grew up in Oklahoma and I have a Cracker Barrel mentality. The recipes I like best come from my favorite magazine —Southern Living. The recipes in Pete Evan's book may be delicious but I would not be classify them as comfort food.

So, do I recommend this book? Maybe not to my close friends who see food the same way I do. But for  that large group of people that are discovering the health benefits of the Paleo lifestyle and are cutting out processed, sugary foods and instead eating quality proteins and fats, fresh vegetables and fruits, nuts and seeds they will love this book.

(I received this book from Blogging For Books in exchange for a fair and honest review.)