The Organic Suburbanite:
An Environmentally Friendly Way to Live the American Dream

By Warren Schultz
Rodale, $16.95
ISBN 0875968600

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Your Naturally Healthy Home:
Stylish, Safe, Simple

By Alan Berman
Rodale, $24.95
ISBN 0875969313

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Turned-off, tuned-in suburban style

With electric power shortages and skyrocketing gasoline prices in the news, the need for conserving our natural resources has taken on a new urgency. Most of us are energy hogs, but America's suburbanites -- with their gas-guzzling SUVs and power hungry gourmet kitchens -- seem particularly in need of reform.

In The Organic Suburbanite: An Environmentally Friendly Way to Live the American Dream, author Warren Schultz shows how even a suburbanite can achieve some measure of success at living in tune with the environment. Tackling this serious topic with a light-hearted approach, he avoids the preachy attitude that afflicts some environmentalists. An award-winning garden writer and the author of several books, including The Chemical-Free Lawn, Schultz takes us on a tour of the typical suburban home and offers practical advice for organic solutions. In the bedroom, for example, Schultz points to the dangers of dry-cleaned clothes (they're drenched with potentially harmful chemicals). In the home office, turn off those halogen torchiere lamps (they use 10 times as much power as regular light bulbs). In the kitchen, bathroom and laundry room, chlorine-based cleaners are at the top of the enemies list. Illustrated with campy vintage photos, The Organic Suburbanite delivers its much-needed message with an appealing offbeat style.

If you're interested in extending the environmentally friendly approach to home decorating, another book in Rodale's Organic Style series offers valuable advice. Your Naturally Healthy Home: Stylish, Safe, Simple focuses on choosing safe, efficient and sustainable design elements for the home. From organic carpet (using natural, unbleached fibers) to lighting design, author and architect Alan Berman recommends choices that are safe for the environment and for the homeowner. This attractive guidebook, which includes more than 200 photos, proves that living in harmony with nature can indeed be beautiful.