Happiest of Friday, nonfiction lovers! With the arrival of this newsletter in your inbox, I am officially one week away from a much-needed vacation. I’m not really going anywhere, just taking a week to catch up on life and spend time up at the lake with my family.
I’ve already got an unreasonably high stack of books piled up, which isn’t being helped by the trend of “best books of the year (so far)” lists that have been out this month. This week I’ve got some thoughts on two of them – Amazon and Barnes and Noble – along with some other nonfiction news to round things out. Let’s dive in!
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Amazon released their top books of the year (so far) list that includes a top 20 picks, then favorites in memoirs, food books, history, and more. There are a good number of nonfiction books in their top 20, which is always a delight. Titles in the top 20 include:
- Once More We Saw Stars by Jayson Greene
- Underland by Robert Macfarlane
- The Unwinding of the Miracle by Julie Yip-WIlliams
- Save Me the Plums by Ruth Reichl
- Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb
- Formation by Ryan Leigh Dostie
- Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe
I’ve officially read… none of those! But I have two sitting on my shelves just waiting to be finished, so clearly I should get on those.
Barnes and Noble also put together their top list so far, with 15 totally different nonfiction picks than the Amazon list! It truly is an epic year for new books. This list feels a little more eclectic to me, and leans heavier on more serious, historical nonfiction titles like Midnight in Chernobyl by Adam Higginbotham, The Pioneers by David McCullough, and A Woman of No Importance by Sonia Purnell.
The street in front of NASA headquarters is getting a new name! Inspired by the stories of African American women like Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson, the street will now be named Hidden Figures Way. I am entirely and totally delighted by this. If you haven’t read it, Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly is excellent too.
The woman assaulted by Brock Turner is writing a memoir. Emily Doe, as the woman has been known during court proceedings, will release a memoir in September 2019. According to her publisher, the memoir “will reclaim the story of [Doe’s] sexual assault, expose the arduous nature of the legal system, and emerge as a bold, unifying voice.”
Finally, some follow up related to Naomi Wolf’s new book Outrages. As you may recall, a British journalist pointed out one of the major arguments of her book was based on an incorrect understanding of a historical legal term. Wolf acknowledged two errors and agreed to work on corrections, which was initially enough for her US publisher to move ahead with publication. Not anymore! Late last week, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt said the book will be delayed, adding, “new questions have arisen that require more time to explore.” The book is still out in the UK, with corrections to be made in future editions.
And that’s all I’ve got. You can find me on Twitter @kimthedork, on email at kim@riotnewmedia.com, and co-hosting the For Real podcast here at Book Riot. I hope your weekend is full of great reads! – Kim