Follow Gürze Origins on LinkedIn
Gürze Books, LLC is a trade book publishing company that has specialized in eating disorders since 1980. Gürze was launched when Leigh Cohn and Lindsey Hall, who are married, wrote and published the first book on bulimia, titled Bulimia: A Guide to Recovery. This groundbreaking book contains Lindsey’s personal story of recovery, questions and answers, and suggestions from hundreds of other individuals who have recovered from bulimia. It has sold over 150,000 copies and is now in a 25th anniversary edition.
For almost 35 years, we at Gürze Books have been dedicated to serving the entire eating disorders community: individuals who are suffering, their loved ones, the professionals who treat them, and the educators who are working toward prevention. Our goal has been to offer our readers quality materials that are practical, reliable, and accessible. We have published a number of excellent books on recovery by a variety of notable authors. Our main focus has been on eating disorders, but we have also published books on related topics, such as size-acceptance, “normal” eating, and body image.
Since 1986, we also published an annual Eating Disorder Resource Catalogue, with articles, recommended books from many different publishers, a list of national organizations, and a treatment directory. Over 5 million copies were distributed FREE through a network of therapists, support groups, college health and counseling centers, women’s resource centers, and at eating disorders conferences and workshops. It was the most widely-used resource in the eating disorders field for almost three decades. We are thrilled that the catalogue found a new home in 2013 with Mike and Kathy Cortese, a mother/son team, who are continuing this worthwhile effort to educate and inspire. The Cortese Team also acquired the EatingDisoderRecoveryToday.com website, a home for lay recovery writings.
For 18 years, Gürze Books also published and distributed the EatingDisordersReview.com, a clinical newsletter for professionals. In 2013, this important resource found a new home at International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals (IAEDP). Gurze Books also created a community of bloggers at EatingDisordersBlogs.com, a space for thought-provoking conversations and in-the-moment inspiration for its devoted readers. This blog site is now owned by Monte Nido.
Follow the Acquisition by Turner Publishing on LinkedIn
In 2018, Turner Publishing Company acquired Gürze Books in a publishing deal. According to LinkedIn, Turner Publishing has 20 employees and close to 1000 LinkedIn followers. Those numbers on LinkedIn suggest the popularity of Turner Publisher. The LinkedIn followers appears to be real and not bought. Turner president and publisher Todd Bottorff said he plans to release more titles under the umbrella of Gürze Books. Whether that materialise or not, you can follow Turner Publishing on LinkedIn to keep up to date on the company’s progress as well as new book releases.
Follow Lindsey and Leigh on LinkedIn
Lindsey Hall and Leigh Cohn have been working and writing together since they met in 1977. They are on the Founders Council of the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA), and are members of the Academy of Eating Disorders (AED), the International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals (IAEDP), the Eating Disorders Coalition (EDC) and other related organizations. According to Linkedin, NEDA currently employs over 100 personnel and has more than 5000 LinkedIn followers.
Lindsey is a graduate of Stanford University with a B.A. in Psychology and was the first recovered bulimic to appear on national television. She has co-authored and edited numerous books on eating disorders, the most recent being The Ritteroo Journal for Eating Disorders Recovery (2013). Lindsey has given presentations on self-esteem and recovery throughout the United States, and from 1990-1992, served as Executive Director of Eating Disorders Awareness and Prevention (EDAP), currently known as the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA).
Leigh, who received an M.A.T. from Northwestern University in English Education, is the co-author of several books on eating disorders as well as the Editor-in-chief of Eating Disorders: The Journal of Treatment and Prevention (Routledge). He is a past-president of Independent Book Publishers of America (IBPA), formerly known as Publishers Marketing Association (PMA), a non-profit trade association of 3,000 publishing companies throughout the United States. He has been a featured speaker at universities and professional conferences throughout the United States and Canada, focusing on the topic of men and eating disorders. In addition to his writing for Gürze, Leigh has had several books published by other companies, the most recent being Current Findings on Males with Eating Disorders (2013). Leigh is also an enthusiastic and talented painter whose work can be viewed at LeighPaintings.com.
Leigh and Lindsey were honored with the Lori Irving Award for Excellence in Eating Disorders Prevention and Awareness by the National Eating Disorders Association in 2008 and an Award for Service by the Eating Disorders Coalition in Washington, D.C. in 2005. They have also both received the Certified Eating Disorders Specialist (CEDS) designation from the International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals. Unfortunately both Leigh and Lindsey are not personally on LinkedIn so you are not able to follow them.
What does Gürze mean?
Gürze is a woman who came to Lindsey in a dream in 1976 when she was fighting a nine-year battle with bulimia. Waking up in the middle of the night, Lindsey wrote down the name, complete with the unusual “ü,” and a quick sketch of the woman’s appearance on the notepad she kept by her bed. Gürze’s loveable face and long legs inspired Lindsey to make a life-sized doll, which was the beginning of a nationwide soft-sculpture business and an integral part of Lindsey’s recovery. In a six-year period, over half a million hand-made dolls were sold.
People often ask what Gürze means. Although we don’t know for sure, a student of Bavarian dialects once told us that it is a casual greeting, like “hello,” which literally translates to, “I greet the God in you.” We at Gürze Books like to think that this is true and that our work inspires others to realize their own greatness.
Videos
Origin of Gürze
Lindsey Bulimia TV 1984
25th Anniversary Release
Gürze Dolls 1984