I’ve been puzzling over how I feel about what radio shock-jock Howard Stern said about Precious star Gabourey Sidibe.

Yeah, it was a terrible thing to say. Yeah, Stern is all about ginning up controversy. Yeah, he’s said equally disagreeable things about other people. Yeah, it would be nice if a more diverse selection of body types were presented as desirable to American women and young people.

And yeah, I’m someone who falls in the weird sartorial world between single-digit sizes and the  so-called average American woman’s size.

But you know what? I’m not filled with crazy joy when I look at Sidibe.

She is amazingly confident and seems to be quite secure about her size. Good for her. But as has been said before  (I knew I hadn’t invented the description ‘pathology porn’!), Precious the character and the woman who portrayed her are metaphorically and literally unhealthy.

I’m well aware that it’s possible to be obese and fit, but even so, obesity itself correlates long term with risk of diabetes, arthritis and heart problems, so I wouldn’t describe it as anywhere near an ideal state.

And overweight problems and obesity affect far too many black women. Four out of five! That’s ridiculous! Even the most fat-positive among us have to be aware of a problem there.

So as happy as I am for Sidibe — she gives great interview, doesn’t she? — I wince when I look at her. And I’m not convinced that Stern is 100 percent wrong, despite that fact that from what I’ve heard, Sidibe is a natural, possibly even great actress.

It would be unfortunate for her to be relegated to smart-aleck-y fat black chick roles. Leaving the success of my beloved Queen Latifah (who was spokesperson for a weight-loss program) aside, aren’t there enough of those?

All this is to say that I’m beginning to be troubled by the blase references and celebration of black women as “curvy” and “big boned.”

And did I mention that I hate the word “thick” when used as a euphemism for “fat”?

Don’t worry, I’m getting to the book. Eventually.

As I’ve mentioned on this site a time or two, I’m something of a failed aspiring vegan.

But now that my daughter’s here, I’m more determined than ever to maintain healthy eating habits so I can model them for her. To that end — and the dismay of my Alabama-raised, pork-lovin’, it-ain’t-a-meal-if-it-ain’t-got-meat-sayin’ husband — I’ve limited the animal products we consume in our household.

Add that to my current, post-baby training to run a half-marathon  late this year and a marathon early next year, and the buzz about health is nearly deafening in Casa WriteBlack.

This is not a game for me. Three of my four grandparents died of illnesses that could arguably be associated with their diets and lack of exercise. I know I’ve got to die someday, but I don’t want it to be from something so easily preventable.

Bryant Terry’s cookbook Vegan Soul Kitchen has been invaluable to me as I transform our diet so that it more closely matches the eater’s manifesto proposed by writer Michael Pollan.

Veganism, of course, isn’t for everybody. It’s obviously not for me, as I’m not sure I could live a life without macaroni and cheese. But Terry and Pollan, who also aren’t vegans, have a valid point: Americans just don’t eat enough vegetables.

And as the old saying goes, when America catches a cold, black America catches pneumonia.

That’s why books about subjects like veganism can be so helpful. They may not produce an army of black vegans, but they could produce an army of black people who are more thoughtful about what we put in our bodies.

Enter A. Breeze Harper.

I first discovered her a few years ago while searching madly for information about black vegans. That’s when I stumbled on her Web site about black women, health and veganism. I’ve been Google-stalking her ever since.

This month, Harper’s long-in-the-making book Sistah Vegan: Black Female Vegans Speak on Food, Identity, Health, and Society is finally available. And people who want to learn more about her passion for the subject or about veganism generally are in luck: she’s giving away a copy.

So hie thyself to Vegans of Color to enter to win.