non-fiction book recommendations

[emilyf]

I am a big reader, but mostly read fiction. I was thinking I'd like to throw some non-fiction in the mix, and add some books to my amazon list. I'd prefer something very readable but almost any subject matter (history, science, nature, travel etc) Anyone read anything good recently?
Emily mom of Charlie born 11/02 and Zoe born 9/05

[tarabenet]

Most of my NF reading lately has been parenting and TTC, but I do have a couple of others! Walter Isaacson's "Benjamin Franklin: An American Life" was a very entertaining and informative read. And I know "Freakonomics" was discussed here a whole lot, but I think it is very worth a read. Oh, and my Dad was recommending the latest issue of "Parabola" magazine -- He went out a bought copies for everyone the other day, and I can't wait to get my hands on mine. The focus is on fundamentalism, not in any partiular religion, but how it cycles and why throughout aspects of human cultures.

Have fun! Or "Have serious"? Either way, I'm looking forward to seeing what everyone else is recommending, too!

[kristine_elen]

Hi Emily,

I can't remember if we've talked about it, but "Devil in the White City" is great. About a serial killer who was active during the Chicago World's Fair in the 1800s. It has a lot of interesting architectural information, plus of course, the page-turning murderer aspect.

I just started "The Long Emergency," a book about how society will crumble when we begin to run out of petroleum in the next few decades. Scott recommended it. Very readable so far, but scary.

ETA: Next on my list is "1491" -- about America before Columbus.

from Amazon: 1491 is not so much the story of a year, as of what that year stands for: the long-debated (and often-dismissed) question of what human civilization in the Americas was like before the Europeans crashed the party. The history books most Americans were (and still are) raised on describe the continents before Columbus as a vast, underused territory, sparsely populated by primitives whose cultures would inevitably bow before the advanced technologies of the Europeans. For decades, though, among the archaeologists, anthropologists, paleolinguists, and others whose discoveries Charles C. Mann brings together in 1491, different stories have been emerging. Among the revelations: the first Americans may not have come over the Bering land bridge around 12,000 B.C. but by boat along the Pacific coast 10 or even 20 thousand years earlier; the Americas were a far more urban, more populated, and more technologically advanced region than generally assumed; and the Indians, rather than living in static harmony with nature, radically engineered the landscape across the continents, to the point that even "timeless" natural features like the Amazon rainforest can be seen as products of human intervention.

I also want to read "Blink."

[cilantromapuche]

I loved a book called "The Peabody Sisters" about these 3 sisters who were huge in the Transcendentalist movement. One was a very independent woman and published Hawthorne, Emerson, etc. and one married Hawthorne (the other was engaged to him) and another one married Horace Mann.

Christine

mama to A (7/03)

[babystuffbuff]

Oh, how do I pick? I've read some great ones recently.

"Travelling Mercies" and its sequel, "Plan B" by Anne Lamott are both extraordinary. Super stories, not really religious, but definitely spiritual.

If you haven't read it, "Nickel and Dimed" by Barabara Ehrenreich is super -- about the economy and how virtually impossible it is for anyone to survive at minimum wage.

Alan Alda's new autobiography, "Never Have Your Dog Stuffed", is great.

"The Perfect Store" by Adam Cohen - about the foundation and beginning of eBay. Great story; it's fascinating to read about how quickly it grew.

If you like to read about books (!) "Ex Libris" by Anne Fadiman only took me a few days to read and I was laughing out loud much of the time.

And (last one, I promise) I just started "Lance Armstrong's War" by Daniel Coyle. Even if you don't watch the Tour, reading about the man himself is interesting. He (Lance) also has a bio, "It's Not About the Bike", that I enjoyed.

HTH!

Sarah

[jbowman]

I recommend "American Taboo: A Murder in the Peace Corps" by Philip Weiss. IMHO it is not terribly well-written, but it is a fascinating and engrossing book about a tragic murder of one Peace Corps volunteer by another.

Although it was written more than a decade ago, Susan Faludi's "Backlash," IMHO, should be required reading for everyone (same goes for "The Feminine Mystique" by Betty Friedan). Both books are worth checking out if you've never read them.

And if you're interested, I could suggest a lot of art history books! ;)

[ddmarsh]

Non-fiction is my primary reading so I have tons. Some recent favs are:

The World is Flat Thomas Friedman
Oh the Glory of it All
Freakanomics
The Year of Magical Thinking Joan Didion
My Friend Leonard
A Million Little Pieces
What's the Matter With Kansas

[Mommy_Again]

These are the ones I have on my list to check out from the library when I am done with the stack on my nightstand. I have not read them, but they sound interesting to me:

Stiff:

"Uproariously funny" doesn't seem a likely description for a book on cadavers. However, Roach, a Salon and Reader's Digest columnist, has done the nearly impossible and written a book as informative and respectful as it is irreverent and witty. From her opening lines ("The way I see it, being dead is not terribly far off from being on a cruise ship. Most of your time is spent lying on your back"), it is clear that she's taking a unique approach to issues surrounding death. Roach delves into the many productive uses to which cadavers have been put, from medical experimentation to applications in transportation safety research (in a chapter archly called "Dead Man Driving") to work by forensic scientists quantifying rates of decay under a wide array of bizarre circumstances. There are also chapters on cannibalism, including an aside on dumplings allegedly filled with human remains from a Chinese crematorium, methods of disposal (burial, cremation, composting) and "beating-heart" cadavers used in organ transplants. Roach has a fabulous eye and a wonderful voice as she describes such macabre situations as a plastic surgery seminar with doctors practicing face-lifts on decapitated human heads and her trip to China in search of the cannibalistic dumpling makers. Even Roach's digressions and footnotes are captivating, helping to make the book impossible to put down.

Oh The Glory of it All:

A memoir, at its heart, is written in order to figure out who you are," writes Sean Wilsey, and indeed, Oh the Glory of it All is compelling proof of his exhaustive personal quest. It's no surprise that as a kid in the '80s, Wilsey found similarities between his own life and his beloved Lord of the Rings and Star Wars--his journey was fraught with unnerving characters too.
Wilsey's father was a distant, wealthy man who used a helicopter when a moped would do and whose mandates included squeegeeing the stall after every shower. Much of Wilsey's youth was spent as subservient to, or rebelling against this imposing man. But the maternal figures in Wilsey's childhood were no less affecting. His mother, a San Francisco society butterfly turned globe-trotting peace promoter, seemed to behave only in extremes--either trying to convince young Sean to commit suicide with her, or arranging impromptu meetings with the Pope and Mikhail Gorbachev. And Dede, his demon of a stepmother, would have made the Brothers Grimm shiver.

As always with memoirs one must take expansive sections of recalled dialogue with a grain of salt, but Wilsey's short, unflinching sentences keep his outlandish story moving too quickly for much quibbling. In the end, Wilsey says, "It took the unlikely combination of the three of them--mother, father, stepmother--to make me who I am." It's a fairly basic conclusion after 479 pages of turning every stone, but it's also one that renders his story--more than shocking or glorious--human.

The Sky's the Limit:

Buying real estate in Manhattan is like buying real estate nowhere else in the world: a hoity-toity book called the Social Register dictates who can live where; co-op boards in luxury buildings often require a buyer to have at least 20 times the price of the apartment in assets; and the cost of an apartment rarely holds any relationship to the true value of the space. Indeed, Manhattan real estate is a cutthroat, baffling but thrilling world, and Gaines takes readers on a spectacular ride through it. The author of Philistines at the Hedgerow profiles some of the game's influential brokers, with a roving eye for detail (e.g., Linda Stein, who's sold homes to Bruce Willis, Steven Spielberg and Andrew Lloyd Webber, "has a brash, husky voice with the delivery of a red-hot mama, and her expressive face telegraphs the subtlest of emotions"). Gaines is at once intrigued and appalled by the excesses of this world, gloriously rehashing, for example, the juicy details of how Gloria Vanderbilt sued the board of directors of River House, a posh Upper East Side building, for rejecting her as a buyer. But Gaines isn't just concerned with modern-day foibles: throughout this addictive narrative, he weaves a captivating history of the city and its toniest neighborhoods

740 Park:
Of all Manhattan's fabled East Side dwellings of the super-rich, 740 Park Avenue has perhaps the best pedigree. Designed by Rosario Candela and developed by James T. Lee, Jackie O's maternal grandfather, as a cooperative haven for the elite, it had the misfortune to open just as the stock market crashed in 1930 and was forced to operate partly as a rental for some decades. The last sale was to Lee himself, for son-in-law "Black Jack" Bouvier, his wife and daughters Jackie and Lee. John D. Rockefeller Jr. signed a rental lease in 1936 for a massive apartment (more than 20,000 square feet), and Marshall Field III took another. Gross (Model) has solidly researched the denizens of the building, who they were, what they did, and who and how many times they married. This information, while exhaustive, is also exhausting. Things perk up as we approach the modern era, and the old rich give way to a newer cast of sometimes dubious billionaires. Ron Perelman, Henry Kravis, Steve Ross and Steve Schwartzman are cited among the newer tenants. A bit of a bore for average readers, this will be a useful tome for those interested in New York's social history.

[tarahsolazy]

How about some humorous stuff about Teddy Roosevelt, National Parks, and Presidential assasination? Sound like fun?

Check out Sarah Vowell. The Partly Cloudy Patriot, which is varied essays, and Assasination Vacation, about the Garfield and Lincoln Assasinations.

[mama2galpals]

i just read "what remains" by carole radziwill and that was really quite good.


rita
mommy to
olivia '97
stella '00
emma '03

the truth can hurt your feelings, but lies can break your heart.


http://lilypie.com/baby3/030123/3/4/1/+10/.png

[tarabenet]

Ooo! That was the other one! "Blink" was good. Requested his earlier one, "The Tipping Point" for Christmas.

[Rachels]

LOVE Anne Lamott's books. Operating Instructions is also great. I also loved Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods and A Short History of Nearly Everything, and Joyce Maynard's At Home in the World. Other faves are Baby Catcher by Peggy Vincent, and (sorry, it sounds totally self-serving, but it's true: I learned a great deal from this one) Cradle of Freedom, which my dad wrote. I also love Barbara Kingsolver's High Tide in Tucson and enjoyed Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes. Michael J. Fox's autobiography is also very well-written and fascinating.

Now I want to go read. :)

-Rachel
Mama to Abigail Rose
5/18/02
http://www.gynosaur.com/assets/ribbons/ribbon_amethyst_36m.gif
Nursed for three years!

and Ethan James
10/19/05
http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/bf.jpg


"When you know better, you do better."
Maya

[mommyj_2]

I was also going to recommend Barbara Kingsolver's High Tide in Tucson. Small Wonder, also by her, is great too. These are both essay collections.
Allen Pred's The Past is Not Dead is a moving book about how racism from the past is reshaped and reconfigured in the present. It's an academic book, but his prose often reads more like poetry.

[Mommy_Again]

That is really neat that your father wrote a published book! I just checked it out on Amazon, and it looks very impressive. Did you grow up in Alabama, or what is his connection to that place in history?

On a totally frivilous note, I noticed his (and your former?) last name: Gaillard. I live on Guillard Street. One letter off, but an unusual name.

[Rachels]

Thanks! My dad is actually an author by trade, so he has written lots of books (19, I think?). It's fun now to see them in stores, but when I was a kid it didn't particularly impress me. It was just his job, kwim, soI haven't actually read most of them, blush. But this one was really good. He does a lot of civil rights teaching and writing, so I thought I had a pretty good handle on the history of that, but this book taught me quite a lot. His gift is that he writes nonfiction so that it reads like a novel. I like that.

I didn't grow up in Alabama, but some of my dad's family is still there. I'm actually more emotionally connected to my mom's extended family, but my dad and I are very close and I like learning about his (our) roots.

-Rachel
Mama to Abigail Rose
5/18/02
http://www.gynosaur.com/assets/ribbons/ribbon_amethyst_36m.gif
Nursed for three years!

and Ethan James
10/19/05
http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/bf.jpg


"When you know better, you do better."
Maya

[MarisaSF]

The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman is a MUST READ!

It is one of the few books that everyone in my book club LOVED. I've never met anyone who didn't. Very readable, as you wanted. About Hmong in California and the cultural clashes between them and the mainstream central valley medical providers who were trying to help their epileptic daughter. Amazing writing and story.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0374525641/qid=1133415304/sr=8-1/ref=pd_bbs_1/002-8173097-2408829?n=507846&s=books&v=glance

[Lucia]

Here are few that I enjoyed recently and a few that were also recent favorites of our book group:

1) Reading Lolita in Tehran ...fascinating look at the classics through the eyes and discussions of http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/081297106X/qid=1133429078/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/103-0208080-2419816?s=books&v=glance&n=283155a group of Iranian women meeting in secret to share their love of reading

2) Opening Skinner's Box interesting look at some of the most famous psychological experiments
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0393326551/qid=1133429261/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/103-0208080-2419816?s=books&v=glance&n=283155

3) Red Azalea a memoir about a woman growing up during the cultural revolution in China...captivating book
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0425147762/qid=1133429004/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/103-0208080-2419816?s=books&v=glance&n=283155

4)Tales of a Female Nomad ...great travel book by a woman who has lived in many interesting spots!
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0609809547/qid=1133428937/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/103-0208080-2419816?s=books&v=glance&n=283155

5) Dress Your Family in Courdroy by David Sedaris...very funny
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0393326551/qid=1133429261/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/103-0208080-2419816?s=books&v=glance&n=283155

6) Autobiography of a Fat Bride, True Tales of a Pretend Adulthood by Laurie Notaro....laugh out loud funny!
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/037576092X/qid=1133429396/sr=1-4/ref=sr_1_4/103-0208080-2419816?s=books&v=glance&n=283155


Have fun reading! I love these posts because I always get good suggestions for future reading.

[jbowman]

One more recommendation...

Shutterbabe: Adventures in Love and War by Deborah Copaken Kogan

The title is incredibly hokey and the author is a little self-absorbed, but this memoir (the author is a photojournalist) is ABSORBING and a fun, fast read that takes the reader on a trip all over the world.

[jamsmu]

I'm currently reading Devil in the White City and really enjoying it. I never would have known it was NF. Also, Shadow Divers is very good. Very detailed, but another story in how it was written.

[emilyf]

Thanks so much to all! What a great list I have now-if only I had more time.....
Emily mom of Charlie born 11/02 and Zoe born 9/05

[dogmom]

It's a few years old, but given Hurricane Katrina this is an excellent book. It will tell you everything from why we went with levies on the Mississippi to race relations to the purposeful flooding of poor sections of towns.

Rising Tide: The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and How it Changed American, by John Barry.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0684840022/qid=1133473895/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl14/102-0907145-6304105?n=507846&s=books&v=glance

Jeanne
Mom to Harvey
1/16/03

[jbowman]

I didn't see this post earlier, but I agree with the PP and highly recommend Red Azalea by Anchee Min...RUN, don't walk and buy this book! It is one of the best books that I have ever read! Seriously--it's one of those books that I wish I hadn't read yet (b/c the experience of reading it for the first time is so amazing :))!

[murpheyblue]

Stiff is really good. My co-worker loaned it to me after he was always talking about it.

[murpheyblue]

-Kitchen Confidential - Tony Bourdain;
-I'm a Stranger Here Myself - Bill Bryson
-A Dog Year - Jon Katz
-Under the Banner of heaven - Krakauer
-Tales from the Bed - Jennifer Estess
-Tender at the Bone - Ruth Reichl

[jerseygirl07067]

I heard A Million Little Pieces is awesome. That will be next on my list. I also have been wanting to read, You the Owner's Manual.

Call me outdated, but I finally just read Tuesdays with Morrie. A quick read but I loved it!!

Marcy

[himom]

I haven't read it personally, but my boss was absolutely raving about how much he loved Devil's Teeth.

http://tinyurl.com/8xnbb

[kdeunc]

My favorites are anything by Jonathan Kozol. He writes a lot about public education. His new one is The Shame of the Nation. I hope to get it for Christmas! I also really liked Rachel and Her Children by him. It is about homelessness in NYC.

[christic]

I mentioned this book when I was just beginning it in a What are you reading? thread but wanted to mention it again now that I've finished and LOVED it. Julie and Julia. It's a woman's memoir of cooking every recipe in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking. It might not be a good fit for either super serious foodies or die-hard Republicans, or the easily offended or easily queasy, but I thought it was hilarious. Very life-affirming too. People talk about sucking the marrow out of life; this is more about hacking it out with whatever knife you happen to have in the kitchen drawer (yes she does this).

I read Ruth Reichl's Garlic and Sapphires but didn't really like it that much. It seemed contrived or something. So fans of Reichl might not like the Julia book, it's very different.

I bought my dad Freakonomics for his birthday and he liked it a lot so I think I'll get him The Undercover Economist for Christmas. I haven't read it yet but it's getting good reviews and seems like a similar read.

Reading David Rakoff's Don't Get Too Comfortable right now. I'm hoping it gets funnier, but so far it's only so-so.

Chris

[elliput]

I am partial to Medieval and Renaissance history, so here are some of my picks:

A World Lit Only By Fire by William Manchester (a study of the Medieval mind and the Renaissance)http://tinyurl.com/dccsk

Any of Alison Weir's works about the history of the British Monarchy.
http://tinyurl.com/9zzeq

The Uppity Women series by Vicki Leon (you can probably find these in the bargain sections of B&N or Borders, they are fun to read) http://tinyurl.com/8zo6t

A book that has been sitting on my shelf for a while which I have been meaning to read is Shakespeare, The Invention of the Human by Harold Bloom. http://tinyurl.com/8e5py