Stand back, Heloise, here comes the Queen of Clean. Armed with both common sense and ingenuity, Linda Cobb made a name for herself on Morning, Arizona. For those of you who don't happen to live in Arizona, she has written this helpful little book. Talking Dirty with the Queen of Clean tackles just about any household stain, stink, or accident you can think of.

"There are five cleaning products you should never be without," says the Queen, "and most of them are things you already have in your home." What are they? White vinegar, baking soda, lemon juice, club soda, and Spot Shot Instant Carpet Stain Remover (her favorite brand). With these simple items, you can clean and deodorize nearly every room in your home, thereby saving money on expensive store-bought cleaners and reducing the amounts of chemicals in your home. Did you burn a casserole? Fill the dish with hot water, one tablespoon of baking soda, and soak. Try cleaning brass and copper with half a lemon sprinkled with salt. It should shine right up (and smell good, too).

The chapters are short and sweet, and besides the usual home/pet/kid/upholstery cleaning techniques, the Queen also tackles patio furniture, the grill, electronic equipment, plants, and smoke and water damage. Did you know you can distract grasshoppers by planting basil around your flowerbeds? They'll eat that and leave your flowers alone. Here's our favorite tip: when painting or washing walls, wrap washcloths or old rags around your wrists and secure them with rubber bands. When you lift your arms, the paint or water drips will be absorbed instead of running all the way down your arms. Keep this book handy. --Dana Van Nest


From AudioFile
Cobb and her pesky cat, Zach, cheerfully dispense cleaning advice, with short breaks of jazz and classical music thrown in. In a squeaky-clean Midwestern accent Cobb narrates rapidly, justifying her warning at the beginning to take notes. Her humor about poor housekeeping (including jokes about dust bunnies doing a rodeo in the living room) keep the listener amused as she gives practical tips about every room of the house for every season of the year. Anyone who cleans (or needs to clean) will enjoy this peppy production. A.G.H. © AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine


Review
John Nuzzo WBVP Radio, Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania We all look for solutions to life's little accidents that spot our daily lives. Linda helps with simple remedies using everyday products. Talking Dirty with the Queen of Clean is a must-read and a book to have at your side at all times. You're in for a real treat.


Book Description
NOW UPDATED WITH MORE EASY, TIME-SAVING TIPS FOR TURNING YOUR HOME INTO A SPARKLING PALACE! Talking Dirty with the Queen of Clean® The down-to-earth housekeeping guide that brought the Queen of Clean® into your home is now better than ever! As always, her marvelous collection of tips and shortcuts gives you the keys to conquering dust, rust, stains, gum, clogs, odor, mildew, smudges, scratches, allergens, pet problems, and water damage. And she works her magic with the hidden cleansing powers of natural, inexpensive ingredients such as baking soda, lemon juice, petroleum jelly, tea, vinegar and more. Now, the Queen expands her domain with: More penny-saving tips... Thrifty hints for frugal living. Waste not... Don't trash it! The Queen finds fun, creative uses for everyday products. An ounce of prevention... Foil common household problems¨before they begin. The Queen's favorite tales... Happy endings to the most unusual and daunting cleaning challenges! You'll also find handy sidebars, an updated index, and a revealing cleaning quiz to help you measure your status as a domestic diva. Never be a slave to housework again! Includes Helpful Hints From The Royal Guide To Spot And Stain Removal!


Download Description
Want to clean a coffeepot in a flash? Unclog a sink with a simple homemade solution ? Do away with microwave odors? Banish those dust bunnies? Let her royal highness of housekeeping show you how to turn your home into a sparkling palace -- in no time at all! Step aside, Martha...Here comes the Queen of Clean, and her down-to-earth housekeeping guide for those of us who live in the real world. After all, the Queen has better things to do than be a slave to housework. That's why she has assembled a marvelous collection of miraculous cleaning tips and surprising shortcuts that get the job done quickly and well.


About the Author
Linda Cobb first shared her cleaning tips with readers in a weekly newspaper column in Michigan, where she owned a cleaning and disaster-restoration business dealing with the aftermath of fires and floods. After moving to Phoenix, she appeared weekly as a guest on Good Morning Arizona; since then she has shared her housekeeping tips on radio and television shows across the country, and in two New York Times bestsellers, Talking Dirty with the Queen of Clean® and Talking Dirty Laundry with the Queen of Clean®. She is also the author of a bestselling month-by-month cleaning guide, A Queen for All Seasons; The Royal Guide to Spot and Stain Removal, a handy, pocket-size laundry guide drawn from her previous bestsellers; and The Queen of Clean® Conquers Clutter, a collection of quick and easy organizing tips. Linda Cobb lives in Phoenix with her husband. Visit her popular website: www.queenofclean.com.

FROM OUR EDITORS

It is simply amazing how much cleaning Linda Cobb can accomplish with a cadre of vinegar, lemon juice, baking soda, club soda, and Spot Shot. Now readers can achieve the same when armed with Talking Dirty with the Queen of Clean. Cobb, the Queen of Clean, shares her tips on how to repair scratches in wood -- lightly color over with a matching crayon, blow-dry it to melt the wax, and then buff with a soft cloth...what scratch? So the next time you need a handy solution to a household puzzler, reach for Talking Dirty with the Queen of Clean.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

The down-to-earth housekeeping guide that brought the Queen of Clean into your home is now better than ever! As always, her marvelous collection of tips and shortcuts gives you the keys to conquering dust, rust, stains, gum, clogs, odor, mildew, smudges, scratches, allergens, pet problems, and water damage. And she works her magic with the hidden cleansing powers of natural, inexpensive ingredients such as baking soda, lemon juice, petroleum jelly, tea, vinegar and more.

FROM THE CRITICS

AudioFile