SHUT UP & DANCE!

Fans of Falcon Crest will be happy to see Vickie Gioberti back onstage with relationship advice.

During yet another petty argument with her boyfriend, Rose decided to use what she’d learned in an Argentine tango dance class: “Let him lead.” Her diplomacy diffused the spat, and thus began her high step to a better relationship. Influenced by a hardworking supermom, the author describes herself as “opinionated, ambitious, and forceful” and doesn’t think that women should be doormats, like she was during a previous relationship. She advises women to know when to cede control, and she provides a series of dance analogies and journaling suggestions, such as composing a “gratitude list” or thinking of good qualities in admirable women. Some exercises are fun; for example, the “Shopping Cart Tango” is a lighthearted dance/walk for channeling inner goddesses at the grocery store. A “Lead/Follow” exercise puts one partner behind a blindfold, following the body movements of the other. Even those with two left feet probably know most of what’s here—e.g., learn how to love yourself and actively listen. But Rose is gifted with a sharp and humorous pen. When a waiter accidentally brought her man spaghetti without meatballs, Rose was tempted to make him send the pasta back. Instead, she decided that “a man can handle his own meatballs.” Sometimes, as the author writes in this charming debut, it’s good to just shut up and dance.