Review: You Will Feel It In Your Gut
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 01 31, 2013
This is the story of Dee; Dee the radiographer who becomes Dee the yoga teacher and then, to her surprise, Dee the tv star and finally Dee the businesswoman.  In between she does a gig as Dee the waitress.  She is also daughter, sister, aunt, best friend, colleague and, eventually, lover.  But the path to finding her identity and her place within the world is complicated by fear.We are brought into her life at a moment of unease.  What happens when money is scarse, everyday expense are high, her roommate moves out with all the furnishings, debt to repair damage to said departing beloved roommate's car is added to the mix and work as a yoga instructor is oft times interrupted by the holidays and the schedules of the rich or illness of one particular private client.  Supplementing income as a waitress for a friend's catering business threatens to upend potential nerve-wrecking, nail-biting foray into the world of modeling as a real to life yoga aficionado, when she upends a tray of pastries on herself in front of the client and perhaps, more embarrassing, the heartthrob board member, brother of her friend/client.  Yes, there is a train running rampant here and it is randomly making stops at some choice locations as well as some on less solid ground.We are reminded that life is not always fair.  We learn to empathize with Dee.  That can be difficult when we also want to scream at her to grab opportunities and muttur to ourselves that if we were in a similar position we would take immediate advantage of every opportunity being presented.  After-all, how often do we have the chance of capturing the attention of a bachelor millionaire?Repetition of movements is key to teaching ones muscles the flexibility necessary to master yoga moves and principals.  That is taken one step further in this novel.  We are often given insight into how Dee is feeling through descriptions of her gastro tract.  I lost track at 19 references such as "anger brewing in her belly", "vaguely nauseous" and "huge glob of anxiety in her belly".  This sits well with the concept of needing yoga as a way to rebuild her life after a future altering car accident.  Deep breathing and movements that require serious concentration are part of the foundations that make yoga.The author does not reserve her better descriptives for intestinal reactions.  One of my favorite images was "she oozed herself into the chair next to him".Dee's belly may give "a funny little jingle jangle" when she is near Ethan, but he becomes more than a rich, confident playboy as the story moves on.  Like his appearance changes whether he is wearing a suite and tie compared to casual clothing, so does Dee when she is seen in her yoga attire or more infrequently in a cocktail dress and ill fitting heels.  Each of them changes throughout the story and not just out of their clothing.Smart descriptions, a strong understanding of anxiety and comprehension of the frightening pathway from the end of one presumed life track to repaving another makes this a read with many realistic moments and feelings for the reader to connect to.