De Los Reads: Ximena Vengoechea’s ‘The Life Audit’ and other books by Latino authors we’re reading in January

As the new year kicks off, it’s hard to ignore all the talk about resolutions and vision boards. The Life Audit “The life audit is an exercise, it’s a methodology,” Vengoechea said, and adds, “It’s a way for you to really tune into yourself and uncover some of those deep desires that maybe you’ve never made space to articulate before, or maybe you did at one point, and tucked it away into the attic of your mind.” The author calls the exercise a “spring cleaning for the soul” as a way of looking inward and figuring out what we want in life by asking, “Where do I want to start?” To begin the journey, you need a few simple tools: a thick marker and sticky notes. Vengoechea encourages readers to “wish like no one’s watching.” The author highlights that one of the biggest challenges in this activity is overcoming the initial difficulty of articulating longings. Instead of simply stating, “I’m going to write a book next year,” it’s important to outline smaller checkpoints that lead to that outcome. De Los Reads January picks: Mamá Didn’t Raise a Pendeja by Carolina Acosta and Aralis Mejia This book is a lively collection of Latin American sayings that, as the authors wrote, “Our ancestors wielded like verbal machetes through the jungles of life.” Filled with wisdom to inspire, guide you through daily challenges and remind you that the Latinx fuerza is within you.