The lack of nutritional information is a huge oversight. The menus are pre-planned for 30 days. A mix and match system would be better for those of us who don't eat certain meats or veggies. Because the grocery lists are pre-built around a 30 day menu a simple alteration of a major ingredient in several recipes reduces the simplicity greatly.

All that said, in providing 30 day meals for healthy, non-allergic, total omnivores who don't track their intake this book is very well planned and executed.

I am an avid meal planner. I plan my meals for the month and shop for the majority of the food once a month. This alone saves me time knowing that I have the product in my cupboard waiting to be cooked. I stumbled upon this book and thought OK I will give it a try. It took me about a year to finally try the system and to my amazement, it wasn't so bad. It was a LONG day of cooking, but very organized. Than I was pleasantly surprised that every recipe was actually very flavorful. This is an excellent book for busy moms that loves to make home-cooked meals for their family. I strongly suggest buying and using this book. Just don't wait a year like I did.

I have had the first edition of this book since 1995 and use it over and over. I have cooked all the plans. My family still loves the recipes, and it saves me money. I have taken a break from it from time to time. Sometimes I have incorporated my own recipes. Sometimes I have modified the ones in the book to fit our pantry stock. That is the beauty of it! We are a family of 5, and a lot of meals give us leftovers my husband can take to lunch the next day. It's easy to double recipes and have another night's meal, too.

I have the spiral bound book, so it's easy to lay open. It's pretty splattered! I did check this newer edition out at the library. There is not much difference except for a couple of the recipes are changed in the monthly plan A. There is a whole new two week plan. I'd like to try it. I know the recipes will be good.

I have come to trust these ladies' recipes. Who would have thought to add cloves to Mimi's Chicken Soup? (Yummy) Who would have thought to add a hint of baking spices to the Balkan Meatballs? (to die for) My favorite is the Wild Rice Chicken. (Yes it has a can of cream of mushroom soup, so what!) It's easy and delicious. Mrs. Ringle's Brisket is heavenly tasting. My husband raved last night about the Joes To Go. There are so many delicious meals. I like the extra recipes in the back, too, when I need a side dish suggestion or a dessert. When I don't cook this way, my family asks when am I going to do it again. They think I'm a gourmet cook. They love it!

I had a friend do this with me the first time. Ever since, I have done it alone. It's not hard to follow. I like that the directions tell me exactly what to do, when to do it. They tell you to do the prep work beforehand so it's easier to just assemble the meals. Following their step by step directions makes it go faster.

This is my most used cookbook, and I highly recommend it to any fellow cook that has trouble with "what's for dinner" like me.