Pretty Happy: Healthy Ways to Love Your Body

Actress Hudson's debut has a gentle, down-to-earth style that complements its message about creating a healthy mind-body connection. Hudson notes that she was not "born thin," but works to stay connected to herself, listen to her body's inherent intelligence, and create a natural response to it. This came through building good habits and working with changes in her life and her body. The book's tone is especially sweet and encouraging in a section on body-image issues, with Hudson stating how important it is for women and girls to accept and honor themselves. She breaks down her system into "Four Pillars of Health," outlining how to develop an "intuitive" relationship with one's body, restore nutritional balance, awaken the body with movement, and tap into mindfulness. Hudson emphasizes easy-to-follow advice and strategies such as self-assessment charts and action plans, rather than a rigid, step-by-step regimen. Though the book doesn't contain any groundbreaking information, it does present diverse ideas and numerous practical methods in an attractive format, filled with appealing drawings, varied fonts, and hi-res photos. This guide to becoming "pretty happy" is a simply charming path to calm self-confidence. Agent: Cait Hoyt, Creative Artists Agency. (Feb.)