If you're interested in her politics, or in one of the caricatures that political pundits so often portray of Arianna Huffington, this book is not for you.

If, however, you wonder whether you can learn anything from Ms. Huffington's continued growth as a writer and commentator while she sustained major personal losses and risks -- her mother's death, her fear of public speaking, a daughter's illness, excoriating media criticism, and, yes, abandoning the GOP for the Democrats -- keep reading.

Ms. Huffington has been scared in her high-profile life and she owns up to that experience in "On Becoming Fearless...in Love, Work and Life." She names her thesis -- to share what her daughters and other women need to hear to conquer fear -- and starts dishing out (blessedly sans gossip) slivers of her own past, Rolodex, brain and heart.

It's female territory: Whether she's talking international policy or men, Ms. Huffington treats the reader like the smart woman in the airplane seat next to hers. Her tone is philosophical not preachy, readable but not "lite." She peppers big ideas about how women can reach their potential and overcome self-sabotage with as many references to books like "Women Who Love Too Much" as to La Rochefoucauld.

Rather than slicing to the bone, Ms. Huffington's personal anecdotes and short interviews carve portrait after portrait of women grappling with individual fears that involve love, motherhood, work, money, aging, illness, God, leadership--or all of the above. Now, this isn't steerage, this is Arianna -- and her ride is infused with champagne and glitterati of the Hollywood and Beltway varieties. But Ms. Huffington does a good job of digging under their armor and hers, along with pit-stops to share the stories of girls, teens, and women with much less glamorous life-paths than her own.

The reader is left with the sense that the author can appreciate true grit and real fear, whether it's found on a Lear or a linoleum floor. By the last page, the reader has met a virtual community of women, all of whom got around -- not necessarily over -- their isolating fear, shame and/or intimidation in order to talk about their feelings.

Outing fear is the secret sauce to "On Becoming Fearless" --and it works. By demystifying the subject in an intelligent, disarming discussion where she offers up a few of her own terrors too, Ms. Huffington provides a starting point for conversations the reader may need to have--beginning with herself.--Lisa Stone

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Okay, folks, those are my two lira on the book. The passage that cracked me like an egg was the intro section where the author talks about conformity as a mask for fear. Hurry up and finish the book and talk to me -- what did you think?

Lisa Stone
BlogHer Co-founder
Surfette

I love sharing my thoughts about the books I read and love to get others' opinions... unfortunately, my two best reading buddies are in different states. So, I recently started a book review blog The Eyes of Dorkness. Of course, my only review so far is of a movie for children rather than a book for adults, but, it's only a couple of days old, so I will defintely be adding to it.

Melanie Perry
***not all who wander are lost***
http://mistressofthedorkness.blogspot.com

I read Ms. Huffington's book "On Becoming Fearless" over the long Labor Day weekend and found myself re-reading several chapters to just let her words and the stories shared by women sink in.

Jumping over, tiptoeing around and muscling through the banishment my own fears through the years is a story in itself. Life presents new challenges to keep becoming fearless in what seems chapter upon new chapter my life unfolds.

Thank you Adrianna for your inspiration and intelligent read on the how and why we need to shake our fears and move forward each day. Life is too short to let fear paralyze what we can do, be and become as women. Yea and A-men to this book!

"If you have knowledge, let others light their candles in it."
— Margaret Fuller

Jody DeVere
President
www.waai.com
President - Ask Patty div CarsMagazine.com
www.askpatty.com

Ph: 888 854 9929
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My review is here.

I'm so glad you all are doing this; I look forward to more BlogHer book tours.

My review is here