Favorite non-fiction books?

[ufcasey]

I admittedly have not read too many non-fiction books, but I just finished a really good one, Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick. It's about North Korea told through the lives of six different people who have defected to South Korea and was truly eye-opening for me. I honestly had no clue how super strict it is there and how economically backwards they have regressed under the strain of their communistic government. Highly recommended. Anyways, it made me wonder what are some other non-fiction books out there that I am missing out on? So please list your favorites!

My only other favorites are:
Rena's Promise by Rena Gelissen - an absolutely fantastic book about one woman's survival of Auschwitz. It shines a light not only on the brutality of the Nazis, but also on the kindness of others even under terrifying circumstances. I really can't recommend this book enough.

Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson - through the compelling stories of various court cases this lawyer has litigated it exposes how racism, class-ism, and discrimination against the disabled and mentally ill are systematically treated unjustly in death penalty cases in our justice system. This isn't dry at all, it's very much a page turner. I'd compare it to an episode of 48 Hours or any other criminal/journalistic show.

[luckystar2]

I'm not a big non-fiction reader but I love Into Thin Air. It's literally one of the only books I have reread.

[jinkies]

ufcasey
I read a lot of non-fiction-- there are so many good ones out there! Nothing to Envy is on my list, but I haven't gotten to that one yet.

I highly recommend:

Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo (follows people living in slums in India)

Being Mortal by Atul Gawande (addresses how aging and death is handled in our society)

Born to Run by Christopher McDougall (about a secluded tribe of long distance runners in mexico, and ultrarunning in general)

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand (so much better than the movie)

everything Jon Krakauer has written (you can't go wrong, but Into Thin Air is my favorite)

The Spirit Catches you and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman (about cultural differences in medicine, specifically as it related to a girl with epilepsy who was Hmong living in CA)

[susiebw]

I read a lot of non-fiction too.

I 100% agree with everything Jon Krakauer has ever written, and with Unbroken. Under the Banner of Heaven is probably my favorite Krakauer book.

I often recommend Devil in the White City by Erik Larsson to folks who are new to non-fiction. It reads like fiction.

I thought Columbine by Dave Cullen was also excellent, but it's a little disturbing at times, given the subject matter. So be aware of that going in, I guess.

Auto/Biographies are my favorite kind of non-fiction.

[aurora]

If you read Into Thin Air, you should also read Anatoli Boukriev's The Climb. You'll have to decide for yourself what the truth is.

I loved I Am Malala (by the Palestinian girl shot in the head for wanting to go to school)

Other interesting reads from various non fiction lists:

Paramedic to the Prince
The Last Lecture
A walk in the Woods (and most things by Bryson)
Women Don't Ask

[Nonny]

I like the Freakonomics books, and if you find them to be your think there is also the Freakonomics Radio podcast that are a good listen.

Anything written by Malcolm Gladwell (start with Outliers).

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

[travella]

I don't find myself reading them too often but I did enjoy:

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand
Devil in the White City by Erik Larsson
The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch
A House in the Sky by Amanda Lindhout (conflicted about this book, but I think it would be a great book for a book club)

[revjen]

I tend toward historical non-fiction along with true crime and psychology.

Zodiac by Robert Graysmith. I listened to this in the winter. Not a good thing to do when you're driving an hour and a half each way to work. In the dark.

Jane Boleyn: The True Story of the Infamous Lady Rochford by Julia Fox was really good.

A Child Called It by Dave Pelzer was one of the most impactful and horrible books I've ever written. And the fact that it was a true story is even worse.

When Rabbit Howls by Truddi Chase was probably one of the more fascinating books I've ever read. It's a book about Multiple Personality Disorder but it's written from the perspective of the other personalities and not the main one. It's been years since I've read it though.

[luckystar2]

Jun 8, 2016 12:38:33 GMT -5 Nonny said:

I like the Freakonomics books, and if you find them to be your think there is also the Freakonomics Radio podcast that are a good listen.

Anything written by Malcolm Gladwell (start with Outliers).

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Oh how could I forget The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. It's one of my all time favorite books (not just non fiction). I'm a clinical researcher though so it's totally my area of interest. I saw her family speak, which was awesome.

[dorothyinAus]

Jun 8, 2016 12:36:46 GMT -5 aurora said:

If you read Into Thin Air, you should also read Anatoli Boukriev's The Climb. You'll have to decide for yourself what the truth is.

I loved I Am Malala (by the Palestinian girl shot in the head for wanting to go to school)

Other interesting reads from various non fiction lists:

Paramedic to the Prince
The Last Lecture
A walk in the Woods (and most things by Bryson)
Women Don't Ask

I was on a bus with a group of know-it-all Australian uni students reading A Walk in the Woods.  There was a map in the front of the book and they were commenting how from the top of the mountains in Kentucky you can see the Atlantic Ocean.  I was literally laughing out loud.  They would not believe me that you really can't or that Kentucky was NOT a coastal state -- because you know, they're uni students and I'm just a stupid American.  

Personally I find Bryson hit or miss.  I loved In a Sunburned Country (which has apparently be retitled Down Under), Notes from a Small Island, and Neither Here Nor There, but I could not get through The Lost Continent.  I finally gave it away.  I saw him live discussing The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid and One Summer:  America 1927, and he was great, though I think the sand artist stole the show.

[dorothyinAus]

My favorite non-fiction book is probably Nicholas & Alexandra by Robert K. Massie.

For something a bit different, I'd recommend Newton & the Counterfeiter by Thomas Levinson. It was really an interesting bit of history and a view of Newton (yes, THAT, Newton) that you never really hear about.

Robert Fulghum's All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten is one of my go-to books for when I need proof that the world is not all bad.

[charlatti]

Some of my five star nonfiction books:
In the Kingdom of Ice
Columbine
The Panic Virus
The Kennedy Detail
An Embarrassment of Mangoes
Zeitoun

[dorothyinAus]

Jun 9, 2016 7:21:17 GMT -5 charlatti said:

Some of my five star nonfiction books:
In the Kingdom of Ice
Columbine
The Panic Virus
The Kennedy Detail
An Embarrassment of Mangoes
Zeitoun

The real-life Zeitoun was the painting contractor for the business my Dad worked for.  He developed a signature color for the office buildings, which was carried over to the company stationery and cars, work shirts, everything.  Every time I see the book, I laugh at the memory of the person painting the buildings.  

He was also a boxing promoter on the side and when he met people, he would introduce himself and always finish with "I make you famous!"

**Note:  I have not read Zeitoun.  I'm pretty sure I'm suffering PTSD from the storm and I just can't read anything about it.  I have 1 Dead in Attic on my shelf.  DH has read it and says it's great, but I just cannot think about reading anything to do with Katrina.

[suzannesugarbaker]

I don't typically read non-fiction either. I really liked In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and An American Family in Hitler's Berlin by Erik Larson. Definitely reads like fiction.

[sassypants]

It's a random book I got as a giveaway, but The Places In Between by Rory Stewart was fascinating. He's Scottish and decides to walk across Afghanistan in 2002. Here's the description.

In January 2002 Rory Stewart walked across Afghanistan-surviving by his wits, his knowledge of Persian dialects and Muslim customs, and the kindness of strangers. By day he passed through mountains covered in nine feet of snow, hamlets burned and emptied by the Taliban, and communities thriving amid the remains of medieval civilizations. By night he slept on villagers' floors, shared their meals, and listened to their stories of the recent and ancient past. Along the way Stewart met heroes and rogues, tribal elders and teenage soldiers, Taliban commanders and foreign-aid workers. He was also adopted by an unexpected companion-a retired fighting mastiff he named Babur in honor of Afghanistan's first Mughal emperor, in whose footsteps the pair was following.

[christy082]

I don't read a lot of nonfiction but my favorites are The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks and Brain on Fire: My Month of madness. I also found Helter Skeltor disturbing yet fascinating.

[AJL]

Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

Travesty in Haiti: A true account of Christian missions, orphanages, fraud, food aid and drug trafficking by Timothy Schwartz

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

The Devil's Highway: A True Story  by Luis Alberto Urrea

Farm City: The Education of an Urban Farmer by Novella Carpenter

[10nille]

The Boys in the Boat
Unbroken
Brain on Fire
Fireball: The Carole Lombard Story and the Mystery of Flight 3
The Death of Santini

[sparkythelawyer]

Tim Geitner's memoir was a really interesting look into the economic collapse of 2008 - Stress test.

[GilliC]

Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West by Dee Brown
Night by Elie Wiesel
Life and Death in Shanghai by Nien Cheng

Sheesh, that's a whole list devoted to persecution! On a lighter note...

What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions by Randall Munroe
In a Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson (FYI - Down Under is the UK title)
Let's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson, The Bloggess

[BlackCanary]

America's Women: 400 Years of Dolls, Drudges, Helpmates, and Heroines by Gail Collins
Columbine by Dave Cullen 
Please Stop Laughing at Me... One Woman's Inspirational Story by Jodee Blanco
If Chins Could Kill: Confessions of a B Movie Actor by Bruce Campbell
Odd Girl Out: The Hidden Culture of Aggression in Girls by Rachel Simmons

[dorothyinAus]

Jun 12, 2016 17:57:55 GMT -5 GilliC said:

In a Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson (FYI - Down Under is the UK title)

When I saw him in Melbourne, several people noticed the title change on the editions being sold in Australia.  The stacks of books being sold for the signing afterward had the Down Under title.

Because the original title came from a very popular, iconic poem about Australia, it was a bone of contention with most of the audience.  Apparently the publishers decided Down Under was a better title, even for copies being sold in the "Sunburnt Country."  People were highly insulted, and rightly so.

[mrspez07]

Columbine
Devil on the White City
Undress Me In the Temple of Heaven
The Oxford Project
The Unlikely Deciple
Elizabeth the Queen by Sally Bedell Smith (this is huge but well written)
Garbage Land: on the secret trail of trash
MWF seeking BFF
Walkable City by Jeff Speck (this aligns with my profession, so may grab some people more than others)
Garlic and Sapphires by Ruth Reichl
Some Girls: My Life in a Harem
The Necklace by Cheryl Jarvis

[charlatti]

Jun 13, 2016 18:26:11 GMT -5 dorothyinAus said:

Jun 12, 2016 17:57:55 GMT -5 GilliC said:

In a Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson (FYI - Down Under is the UK title)

When I saw him in Melbourne, several people noticed the title change on the editions being sold in Australia.  The stacks of books being sold for the signing afterward had the Down Under title.

Because the original title came from a very popular, iconic poem about Australia, it was a bone of contention with most of the audience.  Apparently the publishers decided Down Under was a better title, even for copies being sold in the "Sunburnt Country."  People were highly insulted, and rightly so.

They were insulted by the title change or by the reference to the poem? 

[dorothyinAus]

Jun 13, 2016 20:47:39 GMT -5 charlatti said:

Jun 13, 2016 18:26:11 GMT -5 dorothyinAus said:

When I saw him in Melbourne, several people noticed the title change on the editions being sold in Australia.  The stacks of books being sold for the signing afterward had the Down Under title.

Because the original title came from a very popular, iconic poem about Australia, it was a bone of contention with most of the audience.  Apparently the publishers decided Down Under was a better title, even for copies being sold in the "Sunburnt Country."  People were highly insulted, and rightly so.

They were insulted by the title change or by the reference to the poem? 

Sorry, it was the title change that was the problem.  Though even the original title changed the line from the poem.  it is actually "I love a sunburnt country."

Australia makes the past tense of many words by adding a -t rather then -ed as in the US.  It's been interesting learning the differences in English -- the ones they never really tell you about.

[georgeglass]

Hellhound on His Trail: The Electrifying Account of the Largest Manhunt in American History - about MLK assassination. So much I did not know and written in a way that it's an absolute page turner.


The American Plague - about yellow fever. Also reads like a fiction book (in the pace and story - not that it's not true)

[secretlyevil]

Tender Bar by...uh, I'm drawing a blank. It's a memoir, some don't consider this non-fiction.

Devil in the White City is amazing.

ETA: The Tender Bar by J.R Moehringer

[secretlyevil]

Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks has been on my to-read list forever.

[charlatti]

Jun 20, 2016 19:52:57 GMT -5 secretlyevil said:

Tender Bar by...uh, I'm drawing a blank. It's a memoir, some don't consider this non-fiction.

I've never heard that before. On what grounds, do you know? I'm guessing because they assume details from memory can't be perfectly accurate?

[secretlyevil]

Jun 21, 2016 7:27:53 GMT -5 charlatti said:

Jun 20, 2016 19:52:57 GMT -5 secretlyevil said:

Tender Bar by...uh, I'm drawing a blank. It's a memoir, some don't consider this non-fiction.

I've never heard that before. On what grounds, do you know? I'm guessing because they assume details from memory can't be perfectly accurate?

There was a book several years ago (now I can't remember the title) that spawned a huge controversy. I believe it was an Oprah book club selection, if I am remembering correctly. Anyway, it was promoted as an auto-biography, non-fiction aka a true story. Turns out the author's memory was...a little faulty. Anyway, the defense was it was actually a "memoir" and literary license is allowed.

ETA: A Million Little Pieces by James Christopher Frey