Before this year, the last nonfiction book I intentionally read was all the way back in 2020: Trick Mirror, Jia Tolentino’s essay collection that felt like required reading for a certain kind of bookish individual. (I still think about “Always Be Optimizing”, that collection’s essay on female beauty and the thirst for self-improvement, on a regular basis.) In 2023, I did read and adored Slow Days, Fast Company by Eve Babitz but had no idea that it was a memoir when I picked it up. As much as I read, nonfiction was never quite a factor in my reading life.
I think this was partially due to the fact that, even as a child, I was never a big nonfiction reader. I’d go on occasional sprees when I got obsessed with something, like my figure skating or Egyptian history phases, but I never found myself gravitating towards nonfiction. Part of it was probably also that, as a history and theater major in college, I did so much academic reading and burnt myself out on nonfiction.
But one of my reading goals this year was to read more nonfiction than I did last year, which was admittedly a low bar to clear. Two months into the year, I settled into the goal of reading one nonfiction book a month, which felt like it could stretch my reading boundaries just enough while still being a manageable reading goal. So far, I’ve read eight nonfiction titles and am currently halfway through a ninth and it’s been such a pleasant surprise?
I (perhaps unfairly) thought of nonfiction as the domain of dads. Presidential biographies, doorstopper-sized tomes about World War II, accounts of natural disasters…until I realized how much was out there about topics I was already interested in. Picking up titles about things I’d always been fascinated by, like Old Hollywood or the history of the debutante, was such a natural way to integrate nonfiction into my reading life. It sounds blindingly obvious but sometimes I need a blindingly obvious nudge or two. I think today’s reading culture can sometimes lead to the pressure to read what everyone else is reading, whether that’s the latest Emily Henry or a buzzy self-help book. And if that’s what brings you joy, that’s fabulous! But if you want to hunt down a biography about a semi-obscure mid-century British writer, go forth! (And let me know when you find it, please.)
I’ve also found it helpful to space out different types of nonfiction, going from a biography one month to a work of cultural criticism the next to a memoir the month after that. Although it’s far from an under the radar recommendation, I’ve found some great nonfiction reads from Anne Helen Petersen’s newsletter and the thoughtful interviews she conducts, like Katie Gee Salisbury’s fascinating biography of Anna May Wong that came out earlier this year. I’ve discovered that I tend to prefer memoirs by novelists, like Maggie O’Farrell’s magnificent I Am, I Am, I Am. That I like my cultural histories with a side of keen-eyed analysis. That my inner history nerd is still alive and well. My reading life has had ups and downs this year but my nonfiction project has undeniably made it richer and I have a feeling I’ll be continuing it in the years to come.
Three nonfiction favorites from this year:
Monsters: A Fan’s Dilemma by Claire Dedererer, easily one of my top ten reads of the year. This look at what we do with the art of monstrous men is an incredibly smart blend of cultural criticism and memoir that makes the reader think more deeply at every turn.
A Rome of One’s Own: The Forgotten Women of the Roman Empire by Emma Southon, a deeply researched but still accessible history of Rome told through its overlooked women. I especially enjoyed Southon’s exploration of how Roman history has traditionally been constructed and the ways that approach elided the female experience.
Everything I Need I Get From You by Kaitlyn Tiffany, an examination of fandom and the ways that it's shaped modern Internet culture through the lens of the author's own One Direction fandom. I was a Tumblr girl in college and although I was never a Directioner, I felt very seen by this one. (In a good way!)
Let me know your favorite recent nonfiction reads in the comments!
Currently reading: A Sweet Sting of Salt by Rose Sutherland, a queer take on “The Selkie Wife” folktale. I’m also slowly making my way through The Will to Change: Men, Masculintiy, and Love by bell hooks, taking time in between chapters to process.
Recommendations, miscellany, and little bits of joy:
In the department of “movies I really should have seen already but never got around to”, I finally watched Working Girl and it was an absolute delight. Melanie Griffith is absurdly charming, 80’s Harrison Ford is impossibly charismatic, and the whole thing is perfectly shot and paced.
Corduroy season! I got these pants from Pact last year and can’t wait to pull them out of the back of my closet.
Garlicky grains with sausage and asparagus, from Caroline Chambers’ new cookbook. I love how many suggestions for swapping out ingredients, tips, and variations she provides and already have a list of more recipes to try.
I struggle so much to read nonfiction unless it’s audio. This is giving me the nudge to stop wasting time!!