If We Only Had ... Some Nonfiction Reads
Yes, and Toto, too #51
Lions and tigers and non-fiction, oh my!
Look, can I be real a second? Some weeks, I just have a few books I want to share, for crying out loud, but can’t quite discern how they’re connected other than by being great books that others (you, you’re the others) might like. However, we cannot sit and wait for that clever but elusive thematic Muse to strike, intrepid reading pals! We must always find a way to band a motley crew of books together and for us, this week, it’s the great and powerful Oz. O, the whimsy of it all!
The beauty of non-fiction is that it encompasses such a wide range of reading experiences and tastes, and so do this week’s suggestions. So like Dorothy and her disparate but merry band of friends, let us follow the yellow brick road of reading to talk about a few non-fiction books that I enjoyed and I hope you will as well.
Warning, it’s possible I will wring every last available Wizard of Oz pun out of this week’s newsletter. I’m sorry, though evidently not that sorry. Onto the books!
If I Only Had a Brain
… and bones, and skin, and a digestive system; for any owners of those, you’ll be well off reading The Body. Bill Bryson is a terrific writer, and this book, which delves into everything about the human physical body, takes what could feel like an interminable “Intro to Anatomy” class and renders every single fact, detail and anecdote as a vital, memorable, entertaining, and fascinating story. There’s not a wasted line or word in this whole book about our bodily homes (there’s no place like it.) Though - please - if you’re a hypochondriac, perhaps proceed with caution, at least through the last few chapters!
If I Only Had A Heart
About a young woman losing her mother and finding her identity separate from her family, Crying in H Mart is a spectacular if tear-wrenching memoir. It’s a raw and vibrant reflection on grief and memory and mothers and daughters and love and growing up Korean-American and all the things that might lead to someone crying in an H Mart. And whomst among us has not overflowed with tears, grief and longing in inopportune locations? It seems almost unfair that an artist gifted in other areas (in this case, music) should also be such a powerful, compelling writer* but here we are, welcome to life. I really loved this.
*See also: Chanel Miller’s Know My Name
The Wizard said, “Hearts will never be practical until they can be made unbreakable.” And the Tin Man said, “But I still want one.”
If I Only Had the Nerve
Somehow I missed Red Notice when it first came out, so if you’re like me, you get to now enjoy this “reads like a thriller” true story of an American businessman doing business in Russia and the death of his lawyer, Sergei Magnitsky, which prompted Browder to lead a campaign against Russia’s human rights violations. While there’s an unrepentantly “capitalist cowboy” undercurrent that struck me as a little outdated, there’s no denying the courage and sangfroid of Browder and Magnitsky. I also learned a lot about the Magnitsky Act and Putin, the man behind the curtain. It’s a galloping, frightening, moving and riveting read.
As always, every link above goes to Bookshop.org, which is doing God’s work in supporting independent bookshops. Please buy from these small business book-lovers! And if you happen to be looking for holiday gift suggestions, you can see, buy and ship all my past suggestions right from here.
And you can also browse the archive for more books I’ve loved, from fiction to memoir to YA to fantasy to sports to mysteries. It’s all there!