Being a fiction girl, I’m a fan of escapism and burying one’s head in someone else’s made-up problems. However, the global pandemic we find ourselves in has somewhat altered my reading habits. For one thing, I am reading bigger, heavier books, having spent years stuffing a light paperback in my handbag on a rush out the door to work. For another, I am reading more non-fiction books than ever before, in an attempt to induce some variety into this groundhog-day existence.
I’m still picky with this genre, preferring factual books that deliver information in a compelling, narrative style rather than dishing out cold hard truths. I thought I’d share some non-fiction books that I have adored recently, for any other fiction lovers looking to make the conversion from stories to stats.
Unthinkable - Helen Thomson
Helen Thomson is a New Scientist writer who specialises in psychology. In ‘Unthinkable’, she reflects on some of the minds she has met over the years, each chapter presenting a different unique individual. For example, she talks to a woman who suffers from a chronic lack of direction, even forgetting where the kitchen is in her own home. There’s also a fascinating interview with a man who sees in colours, and in one chapter Thomson visits a psychiatric ward to meet a man who thinks he’s a tiger. Alongside incredible insights into the brain (after all, much of our early knowledge about the healthy mind came from studying people with psychiatric disorders), Thomson fully empathises with her interviewees and the result is a very touching work of non-fiction.
What would Boudicca do? - Elizabeth Foley and Beth Coates
This book is a fast, comical romp through history’s most legendary ladies, presented in connection to gripes that us modern women still struggle with on a daily basis. There’s a huge amount of information and insight delivered in a punchy ‘go get em’ style, with striking illustrations alongside. It’s impossible not to feel inspired. Favourite chapters of mine included ‘Mae West and Being Body Positive’ and ‘Mary Seacole and Ageing Disgracefully.’ ‘What Would Boudicca Do’ details, alongside obvious heroines like Jane Austen and Elizabeth I, more unknown ones like Soraya Tarzi. What did she have to do with ‘closing the domestic divide?’ Grab a copy to find out.
Why I’m no longer talking to white people about race - Reni Eddo-Lodge
This book became a major talking point in 2020 after the race riots in America. For anyone thinking that racism is just the USA’s problem, Reni Eddo-Lodge has a lot to say otherwise. Eddo-Lodge guides us through different parts of our society to expose the ugly discrimination beneath. Whilst slurs shouted on the street are an obvious form of racism, we’re worryingly less aware of structural discrimination embedded in our educational institutions and feminist movements. Eddo-Lodge writes with clarity and persuasion about immigration, privilege and racial identity.
I plan to keep ‘spicing up’ my bookshelf with more non-fiction, and am always open to recommendations. If lockdown has put a stop to our adventures, perhaps we can still explore pastures new by widening our reading choices.
What would Boudicca do? - Elizabeth Foley and Beth Coates
This book is a fast, comical romp through history’s most legendary ladies, presented in connection to gripes that us modern women still struggle with on a daily basis. There’s a huge amount of information and insight delivered in a punchy ‘go get em’ style, with striking illustrations alongside. It’s impossible not to feel inspired. Favourite chapters of mine included ‘Mae West and Being Body Positive’ and ‘Mary Seacole and Ageing Disgracefully.’ ‘What Would Boudicca Do’ details, alongside obvious heroines like Jane Austen and Elizabeth I, more unknown ones like Soraya Tarzi. What did she have to do with ‘closing the domestic divide?’ Grab a copy to find out.
Why I’m no longer talking to white people about race - Reni Eddo-Lodge
This book became a major talking point in 2020 after the race riots in America. For anyone thinking that racism is just the USA’s problem, Reni Eddo-Lodge has a lot to say otherwise. Eddo-Lodge guides us through different parts of our society to expose the ugly discrimination beneath. Whilst slurs shouted on the street are an obvious form of racism, we’re worryingly less aware of structural discrimination embedded in our educational institutions and feminist movements. Eddo-Lodge writes with clarity and persuasion about immigration, privilege and racial identity.
I plan to keep ‘spicing up’ my bookshelf with more non-fiction, and am always open to recommendations. If lockdown has put a stop to our adventures, perhaps we can still explore pastures new by widening our reading choices.
