Usually, after a few fiction books in a row, I pick up a nonfiction book to have some variety. This year though has been an exclusively fiction for me and I want to change that. I haven’t finished any nonfiction in a long time and have had trouble pushing through more than 20 percent. A month or two ago, I tried reading Deep Work by Cal Newport and while I found it interesting, it couldn’t really keep my attention. It seems like a lot of the time I don’t find a book interersting \*enough\*. For now, I am looking for books up to 300 pages.
Here are some subgenres with specifc titles I have enjoyed in the past:
\- essays (China in Ten Words by Yu Hua; The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green)
\- history (A Short History of the World According to Sheep by Sally Coulthard; The Inconvenient Indian by Thomas King)
\- science (The Water Will Come by Jeff Goodell; The Demon-Haunted World by Carl Sagan)
Other subgenres are also welcome as long as you found the book engaging. I am not really a big biography reader, unless there is an essayistic aspect to it or sometimes if it’s about a historical figure. In terms of true crime, I wouldn’t mind non-violent true crime books. Thanks a lot!
by ladyfuckleroy
5 Comments
Based on your interest in essays, history, and science, I would suggest “[The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks](https://wydgetlabs.com/?red=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fdp%2F1400052181%3F%26psc%3D1%26linkCode%3Dll1%26tag%3Damznwydget-20%26th%3D1%26language%3Den_US)” by Rebecca Skloot. It’s a unique blend of history, science, and biography. It touches on the human aspects as well as the scientific importance of HeLa cells in modern medicine. It’s super engaging and really brings home the human side of science by exploring the life of the woman behind the famous HeLa cells.
If you’re into non-violent true crime, “[Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup](https://wydgetlabs.com/?red=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fdp%2FB078VW3VM7%3F%26psc%3D1%26linkCode%3Dll1%26tag%3Damznwydget-20%26th%3D1%26language%3Den_US)” by John Carreyrou could be right up your alley. It’s about the rise and epic fall of the biotech startup, Theranos. Aside from being a captivating tale of corporate deceit, it gives you an insider’s look at Silicon Valley and corporate America.
Hopefully, one of these might help you break your fiction streak. Happy reading mate!
Seven brief lessons on physics by Rovelli
It’s less than 100 pages long and I personally enjoyed it a lot.
Maybe *Astrophysics for People in a Hurry* by Neil deGrasse Tyson?
The Sun Is a Compass: A 4,000-Mile Journey into the Alaskan Wilds –Caroline Van Hemert
The Big Picture –Sean Carrol
Thinking, Fast and Slow –Danny Kahneman
I Contain Multitudes –Ed Yong
How the World Really Works: The Science Behind How We Got Here and Where We’re Going –Vaclav Smil
Enlightenment Now –Steve Pinker
The Hacking of the American Mind –Robert Lustig
The End of the World is Just the Beginning –Peter Zeihan
Pale Blue Dot –Carl Sagan
Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time –Dava Sobel
The Uninhabitable Earth –David Wallace-Wells
Justice For Animals –Martha Nussbaum
This is Vegan Propaganda –Ed Winters
Psych: The Story of the Human Mind –Paul Bloom
Never Split the Difference –Chris Voss
Science- “Venomous: How Earth’s Deadliest Creatures Mastered Biochemistry” by Christie Wilcox is a favorite in my family. A biologist cousin recommended it, and the non-biologists love it.
It’s just a really interesting over-view of the different types of venoms, how they evolved, and how scientists (and crazy snake people) research them. It doesn’t fall into the popular science trap of exaggerating how important everything is, or claim to solve the mysteries of the world. It’s just a clear, well-written explanation of some cool shit. Wilcox is good at boiling complex processes down to a few understandable paragraphs, she’s clearly a good science educator.