Summer always reminds me of the beach, the sun, swimming and a really good tan and book! Luckily I live here on the Central Coast and I have all of that in my backyard… It also reminds me though of the summer reading program I used to participate in each year as a kid, where we tried to read as many books as we could to win prizes. These days, not much has changed! At the beginning of the year my girlfriend Katie and I entered into our own reading challenge created by PopSugar. The challenge is to read 50 books, of a different category and nature by the end of the year, to diversify your reading. For me, it’s a great incentive to educate myself without paying for a master’s degree and I get to take more trips to the library, which is in fact my happy place!
Technically the reading challenge is 52 books because one of the categories is a trilogy and I’m almost positive I’m going to read The Bourne Identity for that one. Oh! So the categories range from a book your mother loved (The Wives of Henry Oades) and a book with bad reviews (The Little Friend) to a graphic novel (All Involved) and a memoir (Daring by Gail Sheehy). Some of the books I chose ahead of time but mainly I just read what I picked up at the library and see if it fits any of the categories. I am having so much fun doing it and I only have 12 more books to read until I finish! And it’s only July! (Can you tell I’m proud of myself?!!!!!)
The print is small, but here’s my reading journey thus far!
All in all I’ve actually read a total of 54 books since the start of the year and I know because I keep track on Goodreads and I have a small notebook where I write the names of the book, author and a brief summary. That way when someone asks me if I’ve read something, I can know for sure… even if I don’t completely remember the whole thing! Here’s the deal, I love school. I mean I absolutely, positively miss college with such an aching that I read whatever I can get my hands on! And I miss writing those little book reports like when we were in elementary school, hence why I keep a running tab on my book’s read!
Also, I’d like to mention that I bought NONE of these books! Thanks to my local Arroyo Grande Library, I’m able to find, or at least reserve, all of the books I could ever want and need. Most new/used books cost at least $5-15 a pop and at the rate I’m going, I’d be spending a fortune if it wasn’t for the library. Help your library by donating old books and magazines for their sales and by paying your late fees… every cent counts and the last thing we need is for more libraries to shut their doors because people would rather read on their “tablet” than the good ole fashion way!
So today, it being summer and all, I thought I would share with you my list of the 10 BEST summer reads! Some will make you laugh, some will make you cry and yadda yadda yadda! I won’t bore you with all of the books I’ve read but if you are dying to know (haha!) they’re listed at Goodreads. I want to know what you’re reading this summer too so make sure and leave me a comment if you’ve got a good one. Currently, I’m reading the new Judy Blume novel In the Unlikely Event. Just seeing the name Judy Blume brings me back to my childhood and into a very safe and cozy place! I’m only a few chapters in but I’m enjoying her writing style, this being the first book I’ve read by her that is NOT for kids!
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The Yummy Yogini Summer Reading Recommendations
1. The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman
2. The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
3. The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
4. Torch by Cheryl Strayed
5. It Was Me All Along by Andie Mitchell
6. Dark Places by Gillian Flynn
7. Let’s Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson
8. The Good Girl by Mary Kubica
9. Girl in a Band by Kim Gordon
10. Us by David Nicholls
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Read on friends! And cook and eat clean while you are doing so! Tomatoes are all the rage right now, no matter where you live, and one of my favorite light and flavorful dishes to serve in the summer is Gazpacho. There’s nothing cleaner than eating a bowl of fresh veggies, marinated in tomato juice with a slice of avocado on top! Am I wrong? No! I am not! If you’re not familiar with Gazpacho, it’s a soup made of raw veggies and served cold. It’s wonderful on a hot day because it’s quite refreshing and cooling. The dish itself originated in the southern Spanish region of Andalusia- not Italy! Just because it ends in a vowel, doesn’t make it Italian my paisanos! A BIG thank you to my friend and yoga student Aimee for the tomatoes from her hearty garden, they were just perfect!
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Gaucho Gazpacho- serves 6 or more
Ingredients:
-5 ripe tomatoes
-1 red pepper
-1 cucumber
-1 red onion
-2 cloves garlic
-2 celery sticks
-2 cups V8 tomato juice
-1/4 cup sherry vinegar
-1 T siracha
-cilantro
-avocado
-1/4 tsp salt
-pepper to taste
Directions:
1. Chop up all the vegetables as finely as you can. Place in a large bowl.
2. Mix all the ingredients together, except for the V8, and let marinate for one hour.
3. Mix in the V8 and stir well.
4. Garnish with fresh sprigs of cilantro and slices of avocado! Enjoy!
Colorful and clean!