Summer Reading Roundup

I was going to put up three separate posts on the books I’ve read this month, but decided to combine them.

In Fifty Years We’ll All Be Chicks by Adam Carolla is the funniest book I’ve read in years. I was laughing out loud every few pages. The rants, observations, and wisdom in this book were highly entertaining. If you liked his radio show or podcast, you’ll love this book.

Think Smart: A Neuroscientist’s Prescription for Improving Your Brain’s Performance by M.D., Richard Restak is a fast-paced, easy-to-read book on brain performance. One thing that stood out in this book to me was the importance of exercising your memory. With information access so easy today, the need to remember things is quickly diminishing. Some have celebrated this fact and believe that cloud computing and search engines have become extensions to our brains. This book doesn’t tackle that point, but it makes a solid case on why it is important not to let your memory skills atrophy.

I’ve read books on brain performance and creativity before. I always enjoy them and two weeks later the lessons are forgotten. Think Smart stresses the importance of deliberate practice for strengthening memory. I always make time to go to the gym and lift weights, yet I’ve shown none of that discipline when it comes to exercising my brain. Starting now, I’m going to add time on my calendar each week to do brain exercises.

Disconnect: The Truth About Cell Phone Radiation, What the Industry Has Done to Hide It, and How to Protect Your Family by Devra Davis covers the safety of cell phones. I picked up this book after listening to her interview on Underground Wellness (June 9, 2011). The book is a detailed look at the topics covered in that interview. The takeaway lesson is we don’t know how safe cell phones are and that if they do end up causing brain cancer that it could take 20 years. At that point, we may have an epidemic. Additional concerns are for children and pregnant women.

Since I read The 4 Hour Body over the winter, I have been powering off my phone before I put it in my pocket. Just in case. I’d rather miss your phone call than risk lowering my testosterone levels. No offense. 🙂 The book is excessive in details, so I would recommend listening to the interview first and then deciding if you want to read more on the topic.

Williams-Sonoma Essentials of Slow Cooking: Recipes and Techniques for Delicious Slow-Cooked Meals by Melanie Barnard is a decent cookbook that focuses on the slow cooker. Like every other Williams-Sonoma book, the photos are amazing and the book is cleanly edited.

What I felt was missing from this book was a good introduction that really broke down the elements of slow cooking. There is a book out there on slow cooking that is stellar. I was flipping through it at a kitchen store a few months ago. Unfortunately, I didn’t write the name down. I plan on returning to that store soon for the book.