It's a New Book Review, Coming Right At You

Several weeks ago, I got a really cool email. From a really cool guy. A guy that writes a BLOG that I recently discovered. A blog I now happen to enjoy....a lot. Cuz this blogger named Charlie is ONE FUNNY DUDE. In a "tell it like it is but don't be afraid to sprinkle it with a little humor" way. Well, actually a lot of humor. Cuz Charlie is funny. Charlie is witty. Charlie is engaging.

And Charlie asked me to do him a favor.

See, Charlie is (drum roll please) a PUBLISHED AUTHOR. Like a real, honest to goodness, wrote a book (actually more than one) had it published, now makes money off of it kind of way. And he asked if I would REVIEW HIS LATEST WORK.

Can you believe it? Me...little old Hallisicle from little old WWoW. He asked me to read his book and tell the world what I think. (Still smiling and shaking my head in awe that he chose me. Feels about as awesome as it did way back in grade school when I was picked ALMOST first for kickball!)

AND I SAID HELL YEAH!! Cuz it's not often (ok, not at all so far) that I get asked to review a book. From a PUBLISHED AUTHOR. An author NAMED CHARLIE HILLS. A man who has published more than one book.

After readily agreeing to undertake this very important task, I also got him to agree to let me interview him.....WWoW style. Which means I get to ask him anything. Anything at all. Anything. At. All.

And he said yes. (silly man)

Which forced me to come up with 10 thought provoking questions....questions I HOPED no one else had asked him.

See, Mr. Hills has been on a VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR in BLOGGYLAND for the last week. As a matter of fact, I am his second to last stop. (saving the best for second to last, huh Mr. Hills???) Which means a bunch of cool bloggers have not only already reviewed his book, but some have asked him some interesting questions. Which made me even MORE determined to come up with a few "unique unto Hallie" questions. And I think I succeeded.

*Tell me one thing about yourself that people would be SHOCKED (see juicy) to know about you.

That I was this close to being cast as the next James Bond after Roger Moore. And the reason I didn't get it? Unbelievable! The producers balked when they found out I actually posessed a license to kill.

*If you only had 1 day to live, how would you spend it?

First off, I'm pretty sure I would go to .... wait a minute. One day to live? What do you mean? Do you know something I don't!?!?

*Which Muppet/Sesame Character is your favorite and why? BE SPECIFIC!!

If I'm allowed to stretch the term "muppet" to mean "any puppeting device under the design and control of Jim Henson's studios" then it's definitely Ludo from Labyrinth. He looks big and scary, but he's the nicest guy you could ever meet. And who wouldn't want someone on your team with the ability to call rocks? (Never mind the fact that you always need to know at least one person who talks about himself in the third person.)

If we're talking muppets proper, I'd really have to go with Kermit. Because it really isn't easy being green.

*Do you identify yourself as a published author? How has being published changed your life?

Not yet. Sure, I've published three books but they've all been through my own publishing company. So none of them count. But mark my words one day I'll be a real writer. I will come back here and comment on this post and let you know how it changed my life.

*How do you feel about wiener dogs? BE HONEST (I can tell wiener liars from a mile away)

When I was young (and by "young" I mean less than a year old) we had a dachshund named Liebchen (German for "darling" or "sweetheart", if I recall correctly.) So obviously it was etched into my brain very early on that DOG == DACHSHUND. All other dogs are just posers.

*Summarize your life in ONLY 10 WORDS.

Still trying to do what I was meant to do.

*If you could eat any one item for the rest of your life without it EVER causing you to gain weight, what would it be?

A thin-crust pepperoni pizza covered with cheeseburgers and french fries. I'm sure I couldn't eat all of it in one sitting, so I'd save the leftovers for the next day.

*Have you received negative reviews about this book? And if so, how did you handle that/how did it make you feel?

Actually, I haven't. The worst was maybe, "It's not really my kind of book." That's fair and I wouldn't consider it "negative." (Nor were those comments an official "review" anyway.)

I've put excerpts from almost all professional reviews on the http://www.whyyourlastdietfailedyou.com/ web site. Having all positive reviews is good, of course, but it doesn't help me grow. Not the way cheeseburger-coated pizzas help me grow.

*You are granted 3 wishes.....they are? (no "I WISH FOR MORE WISHES" allowed)

First: "I wish the law against wishing for more wishes would be temporarily rescinded."

Second: "I wish all the children of the world join hands and sing together in the spirit of harmony and peace. That is, unless Steve Martin doesn't get this wish granted first."

Third: "I wish I were an Oscar Mayer wiener. That is what I truly want to be. Cause if I were an Oscar Mayer wiener, everyone would be in love with me." And they might read my books. Because who wouldn't read a book written by a wiener?

*Why did you ask me, the very humble creator of the WWoW, to host you on your virtual book tour? Enquiring minds (mine in particular) want to know!

An important aspect of every tour is hitting places you wouldn't normally be seen. I tried to get a wide variety of blogs in on this for that reason. Granted, most cover dieting/fitness/food, but not all of them. The wiener dogs in your blog header told me there was something special about this place. :)

Do you see why I love this guy? He's funny, right?

And his humor rears it's happy head all through out this book. Did I mention Charlie is funny? :)

You can gather just by the title of the book, "WHY YOUR LAST DIET FAILED YOU AND HOW THIS BOOK WON'T HELP YOU ON YOUR NEXT ONE" (which you can buy HERE) that he doesn't hold any punches. And he doesn't candy coat anything either. (Imagine if his book was coated in candy? Mmmm...but I digress) And he obviously thinks a story (HIS weight loss story) is best told when wrapped up in a humorous package. Which I tend to agree with. Unless of course you are talking about a decidedly UNFUNNY topic. Like war or famine. Then humor seems very wrong. (Shame on you for trying to make famine funny.)

But in this case, humor works. And helps. And makes his story seem similar to everyone elses story....everyone else that has weighed themselves EVERY SINGLE DAY FOR ABOUT 20 YEARS. (he has) And everyone else who WALKED AN ENTIRE MARATHON. (he did) And everyone else who gains the equivalent of an entire toddler between Thanksgiving and Xmas each year. (he has many times)

Basically, his story could be anyone's story. Which is why, I THINK**, most people will enjoy reading about his ups and downs. And why, I THINK**, most people will enjoy learning what has worked for him and what hasn't. And why, I THINK**, most people will enjoy discovering that others struggle with weight loss just like them.

**I only say that I THINK most people will like this book cuz for all I know, you might hate it. That's entirely possible. Cuz it may not be everyone's cup of tea. How the hell am I really supposed to know WHAT YOU PEOPLE LIKE TO READ? Jeesh...this reviewing stuff is HARD!!

What I KNOW FOR A FACT, is that I get to GIVEAWAY ONE SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR copy of his book. (He TOTALLY did NOT agree to sign one but I am TOTALLY bullying him publicly into doing so. Can you imagine how crappy Mr. Charlie Hills will look if he says no?!) :)

And all you have to do to enter to win this SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR book (bullying attempt #2) is leave me a comment. That's all. End of story. Easy peasy. Simple is as simple does.

I will ask my handy dandy online random number generator to pick the winning number and VOILA, someone will have themselves an authentic SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR copy of this book. (bullying attempt #3) I will announce the winner tomorrow and will ask Mr. Charlie Hills to mail out the SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR COPY (bullying attempt #4) as soon as possible.

If Mr. Charlie Hills happens to be MIFFED at my obvious bullying attempts and in turn, throws a snit fit and refuses to mail out a signed copy, I will happily sign MY COPY and mail it to the winner! So the winner wins no matter what!! And who WOULDN'T want a SIGNED BY HALLISICLE copy of a book she didn't write? (Don't answer that)

So whatcha waiting for? Go leave me a comment and get yourself entered to win one SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR COPY (bullying attempt #5) of the first book ever reviewed here on the WWoW!

Hopefully it won't be the last! :)

Btw..if you want to follow the tour (past visits or future), you can go HERE (yesterday's stop) or HERE (tomorrow's stop).