Greetings, nonfiction fans! It is a truly bananas week of new releases, everything from memoirs about long-distances horse races to an investigation into domestic violence to a look at what’s new in the world of paleontology. So let’s end the preamble and jump in!
Sponsored by Crossing on Time by David Macaulay
David Macaulay, co-creator of the international bestseller The Way Things Work, brings his signature curiosity and detailing to the story of the steamship in this meticulously researched and stunningly illustrated book. Prior to the 1800s, ships crossing the Atlantic Ocean relied on the wind in their sails to make their journeys. But invention of steam power ushered in a new era of transportation that would change ocean travel forever: the steamship. Framed around the author’s own experience steaming across the Atlantic, Crossing on Time is a tour de force of the art of explanation and a touching and surprising childhood story.
Dear Scarlet by Teresa Wong – A graphic memoir about a woman’s struggle with postpartum depression, written as a letter to her daughter.
The Castle on Sunset by Shawn Levy – A definitive history of the Chateau Marmont, Hollywood’s “most iconic, storied, and scandalous hotel.”
No Walls and the Recurring Dream by Ani Defranco – A memoir by a singer-songwriter, activist, and feminist.
Rough Magic by Lara Prior-Palmer – An 18-year-old impulsively signs up for the world’s longest and most difficult horse race… then inexplicably wins.
Furious Hours by Casey Cep – The story behind Harper Lee’s only piece of nonfiction, an account of the murder trial of a vigilante in Alabama.
Ghosts of Gold Mountain by Gordon H. Chang – “A history of the Chinese workers who built the Transcontinental Railroad.”
A Craftsman’s Legacy by Eric Gorges and Jon Sternfeld – A celebration of craftsmen, looking at the values of makers and what they can teach the rest of us.
At Home with Muhammad Ali by Hana Ali – A family memoir a legendary boxing champion told through the eyes of his daughter and aided by personal recording and family journals.
Dinosaurs Rediscovered by Michael J. Benton – A look at how our understanding of dinosaurs is being transformed by new fossil finds and new technology.
New Daughters of Africa by Margaret Busby – Twenty-five years after the original Daughters of Africa anthology, this follow up collection explores sisterhood, generational links, and the obstacles faced by female writers of color with essays by 200 women writers.
Riding the Elephant by Craig Ferguson – A memoir in essays by a comedian and former late night television host on fatherhood, Scotland, and beating the odds.
The Killer Across the Table by John Douglas and Mark Olshaker – A book by the criminal profiler who was the inspiration for Mindhunter that dives into four disturbing and complex cases.
No Visible Bruises by Rachel Louise Snyder – An investigation into the scope of domestic violence in the United States and how it connects to other major social issues.
The Man They Wanted Me to Be by Jared Yates Sexton – A memoir about the current state of masculinity, including “the personal and societal dangers of the patriarchy.”
The Unspeakable Mind by Shaili Jain – A cartography of PTSD that shines a light on an epidemic that affects more than six million Americans.
Upheaval by Jared Diamond – “A new theory of how and why some nations recover from trauma and others don’t.”
The Guarded Gate by Daniel Okrent – A look at “how the rise of eugenics helped America close the immigration door to ‘inferiors’ in the 1920s.”
The Goodbye Diaries by Marisa Bardach Ramel and Sally Bardach – A mother and daughter share two sides of the story after a terminal cancer diagnosis.
Whew! That is so many books! You can find me on Twitter @kimthedork, on email at kim@riotnewmedia.com, and co-hosting the For Real podcasthere at Book Riot. Happy reading! – Kim