I have always loved books. I always say that I stopped reading for fun when I had HBear but that isn’t necessarily true. I graduated from John Taylor Collegiate in 1997 and I wanted to be a journalist for National Geographic so instead of heading directly to university, I took a year of photography in hopes that it would help me on my future career path. That was the last year I read for fun. I clearly remember reading Anne Rice’s, Memnoch the Devil, in the Sturgeon Creek field, in between photography classes. At that time there were no cell phones, in fact, I don’t even think there were digital cameras yet! At that time I was supposed to be taking a picture that needed a long exposure so while the lens stayed open, I finished what was at the time, the last book of the Vampire Chronicles. I hugged it. I held that book so tightly! I briefly remember reading the Mayfair Witches a few years later, but Memnoch… That was the last book I read for fun for many, many years.
The next year I went into university! I read a ton of books there, but not because I wanted to, because I had to. I read a ton of classics, hundreds of history books, and reams and reams of ancient Greek archeology tomes. I used to spend so much time in the Ancient library and the gases from the old books made everybody toot. That library, was my least favourite on campus! 😂
When I got pregnant with HBear, I went directly to Chapters. I lived across the street from Chapters, and it was my favourite place in the whole city. Before that it used to be The Bookshelf, on Portage Avenue, a used bookstore that smelled like home. Before that, it was the Westwood library. Places that are filled with books, make me happy. Anyways, I bought all the books! What to Expect When You’re Expecting, books and books of baby names, and books about what to put into my body, and what products were the most natural. When HBear was 7 months old, we came to Penticton for a family vacation and to look into business opportunities. Ninja stayed a week and then I remained with HBear for 3 more weeks. I remember that my Mom was so insistent that I lay down and take some time for myself, that I read the entire Twilight series that vacation! I know, but my Mom had the first book, and after I read that, well, I’m not a quitter 😂. Funny enough, the next series that I remember reading was after I had SBean. My Mom was going through chemo at the time and had started a new series that she insisted I had to read, Fifty Shades of Grey. So yeah, between the year 2000 and 2013 I read, 8 books… The Twilight series, and the Fifty Shades of Grey series. I’m so embarrassed 🤦🏻♀️😂.
It wasn’t until a few years later that I met SBesty, and she lent me the Outlander series. I remembered what it felt like to let yourself go, into a different world, a different life, to read some thing that was all encompassing, and made me think of the characters long after I closed the books. Since I’ve been diagnosed with MS, I have thrown myself into catching up on some of the latest and greatest books of the past few decades. I missed so much! Here are 10 fantastic books that I read recently that are perfect for summer! Enjoy, I know I did!
The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave This book had a lot of twists but it wasn’t hard to follow along. Sometimes mysteries are so mysterious you don’t know what’s going on, but this book was not like that. The flashbacks let the reader see the love between Owen and Hannah but the relationship between Hannah and Bailey was my favourite. Watching their mother/daughter relationship blossom was really the story. An interesting book that kept me following along from start to finish.
Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune This book was like comfort food to me. It felt like a Canadian Hallmark movie! This is a good beach read. I read it in 1 day as it was an easy read with a good storyline and interesting characters. I always relate to books with a dead Mom and I loved getting to know her Mom through her diary.
While Justice Sleeps by Stacey Abrams I love Stacey Abrams, so I guess I expected something different from this book. Once I got into it, I had to see where it went, but there were a lot of moving parts to this book, and it seemed a little convoluted at times. But I like Avery. I’m excited to see where her career goes in the next book!
Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell I don’t normally take out these types of books, but it was on everybody’s list of 2017. This was a fantastic book! A one sitting read! The characters were beautifully written, even characters you didn’t want to like, you felt bad for. All of the twists were so good! And although I kind of saw where it was going, I didn’t realize where it was going at all! I thought about this book for many days, even weeks after. This was a really good book!
Can You Keep a Secret by Sophie Kinsella: When I took it out, I didn’t realize how old it was! On page 21 when she thinks about using a seat phone on the plane I had to flip to the front to see what year it was published lol, 2004. I was the same age as “darling“ Emma at the time. If you like, Sophie Kinsella books, you won’t be disappointed in this one. This has the same humour as Bridget Jones diary, hilarious! This was an easy read that made me laugh and was 100% relatable. Loved it!
The Immortals by Jordanna Max Brodsky As someone that studied in the classics department at the University, this book hit all the right places for me! I loved the mystery, the romance, and the lesson in mythology. The murder mystery/sacrifices were interesting and the storyline wasn’t hard to follow, even for people that don’t know mythology well. I can’t wait to see what Artemis and her human sidekick will do next!
The Maidens by Alex Michaelides This book had Greek mythology, secret cults, love affairs, murder and mystery! It was interesting reading from the perspective of a therapist. I loved the descriptions of Cambridge and London and the literature and poetry references. I was following along the whole time trying to figure out who did it but I was wrong in all my guesses. This was a slow burn with a great storyline.
Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell even though this is a young adult book, if you are in your 40’s, this book would be perfect for you. It had SO many wonderful references to different comics, The Smiths, Joy Division, U2, and movies like Short Circuit!!!! I really loved Eleanor. She really brought me back to being 16 with all of my own insecurities and I loved how perfectly unperfect Park was.
Get A Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert I had to renew this one because I put it off to the end, thinking it would be a typical, modern romance. And it was! In the best possible way! This book is funny! Possibly my favourite book of the year so far! Chloe Brown is exceptional! As someone that also has a chronic illness, I absolutely love how this character was written. She is so funny, self deprecating, and honest. I love her! I love Red, too! Even the supporting characters were well done and I can’t wait to read the next 2 books to see what Chloe’s crazy sisters are up to now!
VenCo by Cherie Dimaline This is the first book in 10 years that I’ve read and wish I could share with my Mom. She would’ve loved this book as much as I did! First of all, I love how Canadian it is! I also love the main character Lucky, she is so strong, and smart, and loyal. It is a book about magic and family, whether not that is blood related or by circumstance. I hope this is the first book of a series about this fun and eclectic little Salem coven!
Honourable mentions:
The second sister/book after Chloe Brown (above) Take a Hint, Dani Brown, by Tallia Hibbert
I also finished the Cursebreaker Series:
A Heart So Fierce and Broken and
A Vow So Bold and Deadly by Brigid Kemmerer
Check out How Was Your Week, Honey? Episode #338: Who’s Listening? HERE! This week, I get a few things off my chest! Topics: better communicating, stalking, teen years, Grapefruit Paloma, Jazz Kool, Superstore, the Corn Man, summer movies, Zellers, & RIP Tony Bennett.
We are at that time of year, when zucchinis are in season!!! I’m not a gardener but I question why people plant so many zucchinis? I mean, 1 large zucchini makes a LOT of stuff! 😂 My neighbour gifted us 2 giant zucchinis last week and I made 2 dinners, a cake and 2 dozen muffins PLUS I shred and froze enough to make 2 dozen MORE muffins! I love zucchini! I have been looking for my Mom’s chocolate zucchini cake recipe, it has a cooked frosting that you pour on when it is still hot. That’s all I remember. That and the taste. It was so good and it was one of the thongs my Mom baked really well. Chocolate Zucchini Cake. I found this recipe and while it doesn’t exactly remind me of Mom’s cake, it was very good. I made it for my SIL and JQ when they were here last week. JQ gobbled it right up before he found out it was made with veggies!!! 😂 We were enjoying ourselves so much that I forgot to take pictures of my giant piece and by the time I remembered the next day, it was all gone!!! I guess the Kids liked it 😜.
I had a few ripe bananas the other day so I found a recipe to use up zucchini AND my bananas! These muffins are DELICIOUS! They are SO moist and tender! The cinnamon spice is amazing and the banana flavour is not as strong as regular banana muffins. These were instant winners! I packaged my extra zucchini in 2 cup bags so that we can make more of these yummy muffins soon!
Adapted from Cookies & Cups
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1 3/4 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
2 3/4 cups flour
3/4 cup cocoa powder
3 cups zucchini, grated
3/4 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup cocoa powder
Preheat oven to 325°.
Spray a 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
In bowl of stand mixer beat butter, vegetable oil and sugar together until smooth. Add in vanilla, baking soda, baking powder, salt and eggs and continue mixing until smooth and combined, scraping sides as needed.
Add in sour cream alternately with the flour, mixing after each addition until smooth.
Next mix in cocoa powder until evenly combined.
In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat melt butter, milk, and cocoa powder together, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and whisk in powdered sugar until there are no more lumps.
Pour frosting over your cake while it’s still warm.
Banana Zucchini Muffins
Adapted from I Am Baker
2 cups zucchini, shredded
2 cups flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
1 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 ripe bananas
Preheat oven to 350°F and prepare a muffin pan with cupcake liners.
Rinse the zucchini and trim off the ends. Use a grater to shred the zucchini. Wrap the shredded zucchini in a clean towel and squeeze out any excess water. Set aside.
In a large bowl sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.
In a separate large bowl, add the bananas. Use a fork to mash. Add in the sugar, eggs, oil, and vanilla. Stir well until fully combined.
Add the dry ingredients, and stir until just combined.
Add in the zucchini and stir until incorporated.
Add ⅓ cup of batter to each cupcake liner.
Bake for 22-26 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick is removed with some crumbs, but not wet batter. Tops should be rounded and golden brown.
This week was pretty quiet as we regrouped from our visitors and prepared for the next wave of visitors. I met my MMBesty for our monthly cake & coffee date, HBear was in Jazzcool Camp all week, and I rested. HBear and Ninja went to see the jazz teachers perform at Hwy 97 Brewing, and he took the Kids to Earls for dinner while I slept and then they went for an ice cream and a walk on the beach. It has been incredibly hot out so far this summer. On Friday we watched HBear and her friends perform what they have been learning at band camp and we finished the weekend with some blockbuster movies! The Kids went to Barbie, which they LOVED and Ninja and I saw the new Indiana Jones movie. Also, great! It was a nice week and we are looking forward to more summertime adventures coming up!
5 thoughts on “Summer Reading Guide & 2 Delicious Zucchini Recipes”
The only book I've read from your list was The Last Thing He Told Me; though Meet Me at the Lake is on my list. I never stopped reading and while it definitely slowed down for a few years when all my boys were small I still managed to squeeze in a couple of books a month. I'm a pretty fast reader though and I always have a book close at hand.
Lovely the drum pics. And your gorgeous girl's jumpsuit. Not read any of those books tho quite a few I've seen ads for on tv (as new series) #SeniorSalonPitstop
Thank you for sharing your links with us at #271 SSPS Linky. Love your muffins – I am a muffin nutcase.
If my girls knew there was zucchini in a cake, they would never try it. I always have to let them know after they think it is good.
Thanks for this detailed post! I see some great pick for reading! The chocolate zucchini recipe is a combination I would never think of. I usually prepare them salty, but you idea truly shifted my perspective.