Speed Shrinking

If you've ever had a therapist, been in therapy, known people who've become addicted to therapy, or ever needed therapy, you have to check out Susan Shapiro's new novel, Speed Shrinking.

Speed Shrinking follows self-help expert Julia Goodman, whose books on quitting booze, pot, cigarettes, and diet soda have made her something of a household name. Goodman credits her success to her no-bullshit therapist Dr. Ness. But when the good doctor moves to the other side of the country at the same time her husband is called to L.A. to work on a television pilot, the one-two losses sends her seeking comfort in the figurative arms of her most formidable nemesis: junk food.

The emotional spiral--and attendant weight gain--couldn't have come at a worse time for Goodman; her latest book Food Crazy is being released, and she's slated to appear on the Today Show. Most people would find a new shrink, but Julia, never known to take the path most taken, takes things a little further--by test-shrinking eight therapists in eight days in an attempt to get back to her pre-binge svelteness.

If it sounds crazy, that's because it is. But it's also funny, well-written, and a brilliant debut novel from essayist, mentor, and nonfiction author Susan Shapiro. No one renders the addictive nature of the therapist-patient tango like Shapiro. You'll become as addicted to reading it as I did!

Speed Shrinking will be released on August 4 and available via Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, Borders, Powell's Books, Abe Books, and a slew of other booksellers. Make sure to check SusanShapiro.net for information on readings and in-store appearances.