Yes You Can: Timeless Advice from Self-Help Experts (Paperback)

by Jennifer McKnight-Trontz (Author) "In the Land of Opportunity success is available to anyone who can afford a book or record..." (more)
Key Phrases: jacket cover, The Law, New York, Magic Couch (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"[An] impressive, funny collection...You might be surprised at how many of these tips seem sensible and wise even today." -- US Weekly

USWEEKLY
Leigh Russell
Win friends and influence people with this cunningly designed collection of twentieth-century self-improvement guides.
If you've ever wanted your therapist to just tell you what to do already or felt that 12 steps are a few too many, you'll appreciate Jennifer McKnight-Trontz's yearning for an earlier era of positive thinking, quick fixes and glossy advice pamphlets. As this impressive, funny collection of self-help literature illustrates, personality was considered as malleable as postwar plastic in self-improvement's heyday (circa 1920 to 1970), and many believed that a bright smile, an optimistic outlook or a vibrating machine could solve just about anything. The dates quality of these slickly packaged guides—featuring cheerful, cleanshaven men and efficient, bright-eyed women—will undoubtedly amuse: ads for Toosh, the padded panty; books with such ominous titles as Mastery of People; entire treatises on "how to help your husband relax" and what to do "when a fellow gets fresh." (Simply say "Not now, Ambrose—let's go get a hamburger.") Still, you might be surprised at how many of these tips seem sensible and wise even today.

Product Description
Be thinner, smarter, and sexier now with this irresistible collection of ready-to-use tips and tricks from the optimistic golden age of self-improvement, when a better you was never more than three steps, fifteen minutes, or a lie-down on the Magic Couch away. Yes You Can is a jaw-dropping, life-changing gallery of material from books, records, gadget packaging, and advertising from the 1920s-1970s, before the modern complex and endless recovery, when you could still Solve Your Sex Problems with Self-Hypnosis or Raise Children in Your Spare Time. Author Jennifer McKnight-Trontz assembles over 200 color and black-and-white illustrations and real charts, tips, and advice. Mind-expanding and waist-reducing, Yes You Can is here to help.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books (April 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811827135
• ISBN-13: 978-0811827133
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 7.5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,397,282 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars part cute part funny part wise, June 10, 2000

By	"mthrjones" (Nashua, NH, USA) - See all my reviews

A little too much fluff & illustrations, but the good stuff is just so good. Shows you how far we've progressed, in some ways (sexist attitudes, gender roles, pychology), and how far we've strayed off course in other ways (values, wastefulness, life skills).

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bought several for my friends - Great Book!, July 1, 2000

By A Customer

This is a terrific compilation of text and illustrations chronicling America's unending quest for personal perfection. As I read through it, I was constantly getting "nostalgia hits," as well as fascinating information on this fascinating subject. Ms. Trontz has clearly devoted much work to this book and struck the perfect balance between pictures and text. The book has a lot of "show," but a lot of "go", as well. I couldn't put it down. The copy at the center of my coffee table is dogearred, now, and I've bought many for my friends. It makes a very reasonable, appreciated gift. Highly recommended.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Amazing what people will do . . ., August 21, 2001

By	"timmie_a_la_mode" - See all my reviews

it was a nice book, with great examples of the lengths we'll go through to be better, and i liked the tips - but i wanted more. if she actually put in more excerpts than covers it would have been a five-star book. oh well, i just deducted one!