Most Helpful Customer Reviews
72 of 73 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Read it in one sitting, couldn't put it down!, June 13, 2003
I've read quite a bit lately on raw foods, and this book is different from them all. I finished it in one sitting because I couldn't put it down. The Boutenko's welcome us into their lives and share their journey from dire illness to raw foods as a family. Written in such a way that each family member's voice is included, this book chronicles their introduction to raw foods in 1994 when Sergei, then in 3rd grade, was diagnosed with "incurable" juvenile diabetes. Following her instincts, his mother Victoria refused to put him on insulin, instead beginning to research the effects of diet on health. Amazingly, the whole family went raw together a short time afterward, and this story includes all the thoughts and feelings, all the changes they experienced as a result of their live food diet. Reading it does something that other more technical raw food manuals and cookbooks cannot do: it allows the reader to actually see what life might be like as a raw fooder. Though the Boutenko's and their children were experiencing health problems due to their diet and lifestyle which strongly influenced their desire to go raw and encouraged them to stick with it, their story offers hope that making the transition with older children is indeed possible. This is an inspiring book, and it includes a small recipe section and some before and after photographs of the family. A gem!
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78 of 81 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent book, August 25, 2001
This is an excellent book for inspiring people to try a raw foods diet. Excellent prose are not needed to accomplish this; all that's needed is the heartfelt words of the authors. Here's the benefit I've derived from this book and the Boutenko family: After 13 years as a vegetarian (usually at least 10 pounds overweight the whole vegetarian time - rarely overweight that much before becoming a vegetarian, except for the year before), the most effective route for me has been the 100% raw foods route. I've lost ten pounds in 15 days on this diet, and plan to stay with it to shed several more overweight pounds. I include 3-4 times of 1/2 hour - 1 hour of exercise (Stairmaster, t'ai chi, one round of weights minimum every other day). I had the benefit of being convinced to try this raw foods diet without intent when (1) meeting the Boutenko raw family and (2) knowing a trustworthy acquaintance who knows well and vouches for the reliability of the Boutenko's claims (e.g., that the mom shed away her 280 lb. frame on raw, her son lost his juvenile diabetes, her husband lost his serious thyroid condition, and her daughter lost her asthma). I'm doing a simple raw diet. To make it easier to eat raw all day rather than going frustrated with a lack of time or recipes, I have not used any machinery (juicers, dehydrators, blenders, food processors). Besides, summer is a great time for an abundance of delicious raw foods at reasonable prices (including tomatoes, cucumbers, avocados, bananas (year round), the broccoli family, summer fruits (melons, plums, nectarines). In colder weather, there remain numerous vegetables, citrus (I eat citrus daily), dried fruits, winter fruits, raw nuts, and transported tropical fruits. In this short time, I'm feeling better overall. My body feels cleaner. I don't feel the sniffles that I often had a few times a week for at least an hour. My cravings for un-raw food are slim to none. Jon Katz,
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32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Awaken Yourself and Those You Love, September 9, 2003
I love this book. I found it inspiring, truthful, concise, and obviously born of a mothers love. My husband, a lifelong meat-and-potatoes man, read this book and literally became a raw foodist overnight. This book taught him in one read what I had been unable to in 7 years. This book very well may inspire you and your family to become healthy, happy, and harmonious. Beautifully sincere and possibly life altering book!
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