I love books.
Not only is my Nook full of ebooks waiting to be read, but so are my bookshelves. The list of books I want to read grows daily, and I don’t think I will ever EVER catch up.
Most of the time I lean towards fiction. What type of fiction depends on my mood. Sometimes I want fluff–something girly, fun and easy. Sometimes I want scary or thought provoking. But occasionally, I find a good Nonfiction I want to read.
Here are a few of my favorites:
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
You’ve probably heard of this book by now. It’s about Henrietta Lacks, known by the name HeLa, for the cells that were taken without her knowledge. The cells that changed history. HeLa cells were the first cells grown in culture and are still alive today. These cells were responsible for the Polio Vaccine, as well as so many advances in Cancer research. But here’s the most interesting and heartbreaking part– Henrietta’s family has no health insurance. The story of how these cells were taken, and how it affected her family is intertwined with the history of the HeLa cells and their impact on science. I hate science, but this book is totally not boring. It’s informative, heartbreaking, and reads like a fiction.
The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic and Madness at the Fair That Changed America
This book combines the story of the first World’s Fair in Chicago in 1893 with the story of a serial killer who used the World’s Fair to lure his victims in. The story of the World’s Fair truly blew me away. Did you know the Ferris Wheel was created to beat out the Eiffel Tower? Did you know that Cracker Jacks debuted at the World’s Fair? I’ve been dying to go to Chicago since reading this story. It’s so informative, but written in a very captivating way.
This is a memoir by Jeannette Walls about her childhood. Raised by an alcoholic father and a mentally ill mother, she and her family lived a nomadic life, drifting from place to place, often with little or no money. For a time they were homeless, living in their car, and often resorted to eating margarine and sugar for lack of other food. Jeannette later traveled to New York, where she found success against all odds. It’s a courageous and inspiring story and I highly recommend it.
Here are a few Nonfiction that are on my To Read Soon List:
Benjamin Franklin: An American Life (hey, I can get down with some Ben Franklin knowledge…I AM practically an inventor, after all)
The Secret Life of Houdini: The Makings of America’s First Superhero (my son is obsessed with magic and Harry Houdini)
The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11 (as someone who still has difficulty coming to terms with what happened on 9/11, I’m really interested in learning more about the events leading up to that day)
If you haven’t read the books on this list, grab one or two of them and get yo’ learn on!! And I’m always looking for new books to read, so if you have any nonfiction favorites to add, let me know!!
My non-fiction favorites:
1. A few years ago, I borrowed the audio version of Nancy Reagan’s book, “I Love You, Ronnie; the Letters of Ronald Reagan to Nancy Reagan.” This book left a lasting impression on my life, and not simply because I am slightly [ahem.] Presidential-obsessed. To put it simply, this book is breath taking.
If you are in the mood for a good story AND a boat load of true romance, get this book NOW. And I don’t mean sugar-coated, candy colored, too much you can’t stomach chick flick romance [not that I don't love a good girly-film. ]…I mean authentic stuff you will want to read [or hear] again and again.
Also, I highly suggest you try and get your hands on an audio copy of this book. The letters of Ronald are read by a male voice, and the letters from Nancy are read by a female voice – and the way the actors perform the stories told throughout these letters lends much to the experience.
2. Neal Gabler’s biography of Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination is a fabulous recollection of the man and the wonderful world of Disney we all now know. I absolutely LOVED learning about “all things Mr. Disney” and I plan on rereading to it before my next trip to Walt Disney World.
3. Summer at Tiffany by Marjorie Hart. It’s good. I promise.
4. And if you like your non-fiction with a side of laughter, any of the non-fiction/memoir works by the following: Jen Lancaster, Anne Lamott, Susan Jane Gillman, Laurie Notaro, Brian Frazer, Sarah Vowell, or Bill Bryson (especially if you are intersted in travel/culture/etc)
5. oh. and if you like celebrity biographies, here are a few I’ve enjoyed recently: Tina Fey – Bossy Pants, Rob Lowe – Stories I Only Tell My Friends, Valerie Bertinelli – Losing It, and Kathy Griffin – Official Bookclub Selection.
I kind of have a historical crush on Ben Franklin. I need to get that book.
Thanks for the recommendations! I’ve recently been delving into nonfiction, and well-written ones can be just brilliant reads. Some of my favourites:
•Outliers, by Malcolm Gladwell – This is a brilliant look at all of the different theories of what goes into making a successful person. Fascinating.
•The Demon Under The Microscope, by Thomas Hager – The story of how Sulfa drugs, the first antibiotics, were discovered. Now this one is a bit more sciencey, but you don’t have to have a scientific background to enjoy it.
• This one is more interest-specific, but as a girl who has passed the six-foot mark, I love The Tall Book, by Arianne Cohen. It’s a really interesting look into the biology of tall, the phsychology of tall, and why I can never find pants long enough for me.
•On the memoir side of things, I love all of James Herriot’s books (All things Bright and Beautiful, All Creatures Great and Small, all things Wise and Wonderful, The Lord God Made Them all, and Every Living Thing). They are, I believe, semi-fictional, but based on his life working as a veterinary surgeon in rural England from the late 1930s to around the 70s or 80s. The writing is beautiful, and these are my favourite books to curl up with when I just need something to cheer me up
My Thoughts Be Bloody…the story of the rivalry between John Wilkes Booth & his brother Edwin…dascinating look at the 19th century…and the audio book is so well done.
thanks for the book recommendations…I am always looking for something great to read. The glass castle is one of those books that has stayed with me and changed me. I think it should be a must read. it’s truly well written and heartbreaking.
You are the third person recommending devil…so I may have to get that on my nook after I finish what I am reading now.
My favorite, read almost every year book is Stuffed: adventures of a restaurant family by patricia volk. so good!
right now I am reading the 4th in the virgil flowers series by john sandford (his lucas davenport/prey novels are more famous) it is very good…I always recommend john sandford to people
jww
The Glass Castle is one of my all time faves. She has a new book out, Half Broke Horses, told from the perspective of her grandmother (maternal). It’s really good also. After reading it, I re-read Glass Castle to get a sense of the timeline.
If that 9/11 book conveniently leaves out the fact that Bin Laden was trained by our CIA, it’s garbage.
Seems we have similar taste. I’ve read them all except The Devil in the White City so I just put that on hold at the library, I listen to a lot of non-fiction and when the reader is good, it really enhances the book. With that said, I just fiinished Cleopatra a couple of weeks ago but read the book rather than listen to it. The reader about put me to sleep but the story is fascinating.
My 15 year old daughter is reading Glass Castle for sophomore English-may have to borrow it when she is done