When Nonfiction Goes Bad

Weight-loss and self-help books are tricky. Many of us have been sucked in by alluring, unbelievable titles and claims from nonfiction books - lose 10 pounds in 10 days! The Fast Metabolism Diet! The Blood Type Diet! These books, and their typically svelte, attractive authors, have been huge sellers over the past few decades. At the library where I work, these types of books seem to be endlessly on hold.

Take for example the case of Kevin Trudeau. Were you one of the unlucky readers who shelled out nearly $30 for one of the 850,000+ copies of Natural Cures "They" Don't Want You to Know About? Trudeau's 2007 nonfiction diet plan seemed too good to be true - and when it was revealed he has absolutely no medical training, a huge backlash ensued - including a lawsuit. U.S. District Court Judge Robert W. Gettleman ruled that Trudeau “clearly misrepresents in his advertisements the difficulty of the diet described in his book, and by doing so, he has misled thousands of consumers.” On Monday, nearly seven years after the release of the book, he was sentences to serve ten years in prison (http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/17/justice/illinois-pitch-man/.)

So, the question arises - how do you perform RA services for these types of materials? How would you respond if you had a patron inquire about this book - or your opinion - on this title? When you look at user ratings, such as those found on Amazon, the book is only listed as having 2/5 stars - but the sales ranking listed the book at #16 on the Amazon Bestsellers list when it was initially released.

Despite having 3/5 stars on GoodReads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/681.Natural_Cures_They_Don_t_Want_You_to_Know_about), reviews are ALL over the place. While one reader claims that this book is a 'must read,' yet another states adamantly that it is 'the biggest pile of poo I have encountered in a long time.' Would you feel it ethical to recommend a book without telling a patron about the controversy surrounding it?