Lose Yourself in the World of Books
John, Caroline, and the New Generation: A Legacy of Triumph and Tragedy In addition to being an Anglophile royalist, I also enjoy keeping up with our own "American Royalty," the Kennedys. While I've learned quite a bit about Joe Jr., JFK, RFK, Kick, Ted, Eunice, Pat, Jean, and Rosemary, I wanted to learn more about… Continue reading The Kennedy Heirs by J. Randy Taraborrelli
The Epic History of America's Most Notorious Pirates As a well known lover of pirates, this book had been on my TBR for quite some time. When Nonfiction Book Club was disappointed by the lack of pirateyness in The Last Pirate of New York, I suggested we read this real pirate book! Synopsis From the… Continue reading Black Flags, Blue Waters by Eric Jay Dolin
And Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements This was one of my selections for Nonfiction Book Club! Continuing on my obsession with radiation and chemistry, it was a most enthralling read. Synopsis From the publisher marketing:From New York Times bestselling author Sam Kean comes… Continue reading The Disappearing Spoon by Sam Kean
Murder, Forensics, and the Birth of American CSI When a member of Nonfiction Book Club put this book forth for voting I admittedly did not want it to get voted through to an actual selection. When it was, I dreaded reading it, but was quite pleasantly surprised. Synopsis From the publisher marketing:Berkeley, California, 1933. In… Continue reading American Sherlock by Kate Winkler Dawson
A Search for a Sister and the Truth of Her Murder Another manuscript read, I finished Catch the Sparrow in May of 2021. I'm still not a big true crime reader, but reading this book, followed by the disappearance of Gabby Petito, I've been thinking more and more about our culture's fascination with missing young… Continue reading Catch the Sparrow by Rachel Rear
A Guide for Occupants After I didn't love The Road to Little Dribbling, I wanted to give Bill Bryson another shot. My mom had enjoyed A Short History of Nearly Everything, so I thought I might try one of his more science minded books instead of another travel one. Synopsis From the publisher marketing:Bill Bryson… Continue reading The Body by Bill Bryson
I'd been looking forward to an Anthony Bourdain travel guide for years, hoping that eventually he would sit still long enough to write it. When he died, I thought we'd never get one and I was quite excited when it was announced that Laurie, his longtime assistant, would edit and assemble one instead. Synopsis From… Continue reading World Travel by Anthony Bourdain
This one is always a tough one - I have so many interests and tend to read pretty widely across them. When I taught social studies we frequently had to create "text sets," a collection of fiction and nonfiction across multiple reading levels that pertained to whatever topic we were covering. So this year, I've… Continue reading Nonfiction November Week 3: Expert Opinion
The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper Another Nonfiction Book Club selection! This one was a highly anticipated read for many of our members. Synopsis From the publisher marketing:Five devastating human stories and a dark and moving portrait of Victorian London—the untold lives of the women killed by Jack the Ripper.… Continue reading The Five by Hallie Rubenhold
I absolutely love doing "If You Like This, Try This" pairings and regularly do about 18 of them every couple months for the bookstore I work at. I, however, tend to read things based on what I've watched as well, so this year I'm going with a nonfiction book / movie or tv series pairing… Continue reading Nonfiction November Week 2: Nonfiction, Meet Fiction
Celebration of Books 