I usually read one nonfiction and one fiction book at a time, so I’m hoping for recommendations for both.
I just finished *Killers of the Flower Moon* by David Grann and loved it (well… enjoyed his writing style and was moved greatly by the events of the book, though they were terrible)—kind of looking for something similar on the nonfiction front. Investigative, possibly anthropological and/or sociological in scope, etc. I’ve already read Jon Krakauer’s catalog. Currently working on *Evicted* by Matthew Desmond, but craving something a little less depressing, I guess.
For fiction, I’m less sure of what I want: good story with a mystery element, perhaps; a little moody/atmospheric, evoking stormy nights; and interesting relationships between fleshed-out characters.
Any ideas? TIA :~)
by looniemoonies
3 Comments
Nonfiction: American Prison by Shane Bauer, In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, Bad Blood by John Carreyrou, anything by Carol Leonnig
Fiction: Down Comes the Night by Allison Saft, Night of the Living Rez by Morgan Talty, Five Survive by Holly Jackson, Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
I don’t have any nonfiction recommendations for you.
However, for fiction, you might enjoy The Night Ship by Jess Kidd. It fictionalizes a well-documented historical tragedy (a dark but interesting one) and the novel’s perspective shifts between a child victim of the tragedy and an orphaned boy living on the island where the tragedy took place in 1987. A touch of the supernatural is woven through both stories, as the children partially make sense of what is happening around them through ghost stories and fairy tales, and the author creates a sense of connection between them across the centuries. It runs a tad dark, but is not without hope and healing, and it certainly has its share of interesting characters. I tend to switch between reading and audiobook- the audiobook was very well done. I thoroughly enjoyed the story, and wound up doing some reading on the event afterwards. Kidd has more info up on her website about the research process and historical aspects of the novel– all very interesting.
*Inspector Oldfield and the Black Hand Society: America’s Original Gangsters and the U.S. Postal Detective Who Brought Them to Justice* by Victoria Bruce and William Oldfield
*Priceless: How I Went Undercover to Rescue the World’s Stolen Treasures* by John Shiffman, first person memoir of retired FBI Agent Robert King Wittman
*Public Enemies: America’s Greatest Crime Wave and the Birth of the FBI, 1933-34* by Bryan Burrough
*The Forger’s Spell: A True Story of Vermeer, Nazis, and the Greatest Art Hoax of the Twentieth Century* by Edward Dolnick
*The Last Gunfight: The Real Story of the Shootout at the O.K. Corral and How It Changed the American West* by Jeff Guinn
*Tough Jews: Fathers, Sons, and Gangster Dreams* by Rich Cohen
*Caravaggio: A Life Sacred and Profane* by Andrew Graham-Dixon
Art historians have used police and court records to piece together Caravaggio’s character. His art is raw and dramatic, his life became chaotic and violent.