By the looks of this post, it’s been almost all cookbooks and audiobooks these days. I think there is a reason for this, but I won’t get into it now! 🙂 This was a really good selection, though. And these are books I read probably over a month ago. Let’s see what I retained…

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How Not to Die:
Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease
by Michael Greger (nonfiction) – must read

For the past few years, I’ve heard it said numerous times from various sources that we should be eating “real food, mostly plants”. Dr. Greger explains why. This is a doozy of a book! With a section on the most common diseases that lead to death and in-depth explanation why food is the root cause and how the right food can heal us, too. He opens with his example of his grandmother’s diagnosis of a terminal disease and in changing her diet – lived 20 more years.

There is a lot of information to back up his claims, so much that I skimmed over most of it, taking greater note on certain diseases that afflict loved ones. I wholly admit that I didn’t read every word of this book, but that I find what Greger writes to be candid and enlightening. The second half of his book focuses on how to approach a healthy diet with a checklist of your daily necessities and a stop-light approach to foods (Green light – EAT! Yellow light – think twice, don’t eat often. Red light – don’t eat).

Why is this all not common knowledge? There is no such thing as Big Broccoli!

I followed up by reading his cookbook of the same name which was recently released. You can also find information about specific diseases, foods and studies on his website at www.NutritionFacts.org.

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The Hate U Give
by Angie Thomas (fiction, audio) – must read

I absolutely adored this book on audio! I don’t know what constitues YA, but this one has a lot of not-necessarily-just-young-adult themes that are appropriate for these times. The book is being adapted for the screen and the trailer has just been released! I haven’t watched it yet, but I will say I think Amandla Stenberg will make a perfect Starr Carter.

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This is Me:
Loving the Person You Are Today
by Chrissy Metz (nonfiction, audio) – worth a read

This popped up as a suggestion on Hoopla Audio where I download books from my local library. I promptly snatched it up and listened to it while picking up around the house and doing dishes. I really liked learning about Chrissy’s journey to Hollywood and also her philosophies now. She really puts her personality out there in the writing and reading of this story as well! She offers little nuggets of truth, too, like “Hurt people hurt people.”

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My Kitchen Year
136 Recipes That Saved My Life
by Ruth Reichl (nonfiction, cookbook) – worth a read

I didn’t really know what this book was about, other than that it was a cookbook and that the recipes were possibly healthy: “136 Recipes that Saved My Life”. But what I came to learn is that these recipes came to save Reichl’s “life” after she became unemployed. They inspired her mentally and she illustrates how the methodical repetition in their creation could be meditative. The book is written like a story, which I love, as I read cookbooks like novels. The sections are divided by season and I found it quite lovely to read about such things while sitting out in the lounge chair on my patio on a spring afternoon. (Only a few of the recipes I could actually see myself making, but would probably eat quite a few if they were offered my way. 🙂 )

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Hunger:
A Memoir of (My) Body
by Roxane Gay (nonfiction, audio) – worth a read

 

Whoa. This is a heavy, but real book. I’ve only read one of Gay’s books and it was entirely fiction. I can see where draws her ideas and feelings from now. This is a very vulnerable topic of which to write and is not a feel-good story, but one of Truth. Want a really in depth review/reaction to this book? This is one of the best I’ve read.

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What do you like to read outside in the summer?

Cheers~
Carrie