Nonfiction November discussion

Happy Nonfiction November everyone!

What are your plans for week one? What book are you starting with and how many do you hope to finish this week?

I'm staring off with two books, both called Rust! Rust: A Memoir of Steel and Grit and Rust: The Longest War - both of which I'm reading for the industry prompt. I'm also listening to Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants on audio because I've been needing to read it for a long time and Robin Wall Kimmerer has the most calming voice. I really needed that stress relief, so it's a treat to myself (the treatment challenge, maybe? haha).

Happy Nonfiction November!

I am reading Hiking to Siberia by Lawrence Millman for the "collection" prompt. This is a collection of short travel writing essays as the author makes his way through different parts of Siberia and other cold/inhospitable climates. Very entertaining and informative so far!

I am also reading Smoke Gets in Your Eyes by Caitlin Doughty for the "industry" prompt. Again, entertaining and informative (in a morbid way).

Hi, I listen to audiobooks, I started this book yesterday and finished it today. Murder Your Darlings: And Other Gentle Writing Advice from Aristotle to Zinsser and I was excited by it. I guess it's in the STYLE category. I think the next one is: Beginners: The Joy and Transformative Power of Lifelong Learning BTW, I loved Braiding Sweetgrass!

Hi

I’ve started three so far, Empire of Pain, The Collector of Leftover Souls and The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks.

I started with two as well:
1. Red Rosa: A graphic biography of Rosa Luxemburg - for a book told in a different STYLE
2. A Fine Mess: A global quest for a simpler, fairer and more efficient tax system - a book about the tax COLLECTION code and reform

Hi. I started with Between Two Kingdoms: A Memoir of a Life Interrupted by Suleika Jaouad for treatment. My next read is either Franchise: The Golden Arches in Black America by Marcia Chatelain or Mothertrucker: Finding Joy on the Loneliest Road in America by Amy Butcher for Industry.

Alan Bennet - Telling Tales. I am finding it a tad dry I must admit, am going to read another COLLECTION afterwards. Either by Buckowski or Jon Ronson, I am yet to decide.

Started The End of Everything by Katie Mack today. So far I'm really enjoying it. The subject is fascinating and she talks about the science in an easy conversational tone.

Don't know how many books I'll get to. Just kinda mood reading and going with the flow.

I am reading This Will Only Hurt a Little by actress Busy Philipps, which is about the Treatment of a woman in the entertainment Industry. (I needed something amusing and this is fulfilling that need nicely)
I am also reading The Snake Charmer: A Life and Death in Pursuit of Knowledge by Jamie James, which is the biography of a herpetologist who (it's on the cover, so no spoiler) gets bitten by the venomous many-banded krait...and the Treatment he receives in an effort to keep him alive.

Currently working on finishing Pity for the Guy: A Biography of Guy Fawkes and
Death by Fame, a biography on Empress Elisabeth I of Austria.

I am reading Greene on Capri by Shirley Hazzard
I am also taking part in the The Histories by Herodotus halfway through Book 1.

I started with my 'style' prompt: How to Read Nonfiction Like a Professor: Critical Thinking in the Age of Bias, Contested Truth, and Disinformation . This one I came across by accident. Those Like a Professor books have always intrigued me and I figured since nonfiction was in my wheelhouse (prior to this book challenge) so I figured why not.

It took me 2 days to read and I really enjoyed it.

For my 'collection' I've also started When the Light of the World Was Subdued, Our Songs Came Through: A Norton Anthology of Native Nations Poetry which is a collection of Indigenous poetry. This one I will be reading throughout the month so I'm counting it already as I have read several from it. It's over 400 pages I think.

I'm also doing IndigAThon and one of the topics is poetry so it works for both challenges.

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Up next will be another 'style' book, The Fire Never Goes Out: A Memoir in Pictures . I chose this for style because it's a memoir but in graphic novel form.

Since that will be a quick read I will also be doing my read for 'treatment', High School Tegan & Sara . This one is a memoir about the sister music artists Tegan and Sara. I consider it as a treatment prompt choice because it's their growing-up story which is deals with how they were treated.

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I have 4 books for each prompt and while I may not get to all of them I look forward to the attempt.

By the end of this week I'll have hopefully read 4 books (I am counting the poetry collection even though I'll be working it through the month). I rarely read this many in a week so already it's been fun!

I read one book already, in just one day as it was a short one haha! Encyclopaedia of the Lost Soul

And I might start Schuddebuikend je bed in today. Not sure if I want to dip in and out of that one or that I read multiple essays in 1 sitting.

I guess my first read for November fits the industry prompt since it examines the agriculture industry in Australia; Why you should give a *&$# about Farming by Gabrielle Chan https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5... it examines things like farming and climate change, land conservation and food security, so far a pretty eye-opening read.

I’m off to a slower start than I hoped as life has interfered. Nevertheless, my plan is to read Why Fish Don’t Exist: A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life by Lulu Miller for the COLLECTION prompt and Merchant Kings: When Companies Ruled the World, 1600–1900 by Stephen R. Brown for the INDUSTRY prompt this week. I’m also taking part in the WWII ReadAlong with David Murphy, so I’m reading Part I of The Rise of Germany 1939-1941 this week as well.

Or hoping to do. I’ve added so many books to this Nonfiction November TBR that I now have at least three books for each prompt so I’m going to prioritize reading over dealing with these silly things the rest of my life keeps throwing in my path. I so much rather be reading

I had hoped to have my nonfiction stack organized but October has been crazy. So, i have started They would never hurt a fly by Slavenka Drakulic. I am hoping to read it for the prompt 'treatment' - specifically how the hague operates and how war criminals are treated.

Im not sure what il pick up for the other prompts, is there any way i can include Stanley Tucci's memoir for STYLE?

I'm just reading one at a time, starting with What Fresh Hell Is This?: Perimenopause, Menopause, Other Indignities, and You by Heather Corinna. It kind of goes with the treatment prompt.

I started off with one of my picks for TREATMENT. I am listening to Unwell Women by Elinor Cleghorn.

Just finished my pick for style - Split Tooth by Tanya Tagaq! Not 100% nonfiction, but an amazing book and I can't wait to make a video trying to untangle some of the thoughts it brought up in me.

I am listening to the audiobook of Crying in H Mart for the treatment prompt.

I finished The Madman's Library by Edward Brooke-Hitching, which I absolutely adored. Continuing with The Radium Girls by Kate Moore.

I have finished . It is a true crime novel about the murder of Maurizio Gucci on March 27, 1995. I wanted to read this book before seeing the movie later this month. I am not sure which prompt this book would fit under(Industry or Style), I guess the Style prompt since Gucci is famous in the fashion industry. This book also talks about how the Gucci family started their company and the family history. Very interesting book, I gave this five stars.

Our Mutual Friend

Hello all!

I've finished though I did start it in October I think it counts? Overall really well researched and I think fans of true crime would like it more than I did (though I did like it enough to give it 4 stars).

Next I'll be reading

Started Strapless: John Singer Sargent and the Fall of Madame X and am really enjoying it. I love the time period and am enjoying the writing style.

I am starting with a graphic novel called The Other Side of the Wall by Simon Schwartz. I think it will fit the Industry prompt.

I'm on the third book on my list. The last one was Beginners: The Joy and Transformative Power of Lifelong Learning I left a short review. The next book is Meaningful: The Story of Ideas That Fly - I think this book is in the category "Industry"

I have finished 2 very short books thus far (totalling 213 pages):
- Telling Tales by Alan Bennett which sadly I gave 2 stars.
- Frank by Jon Ronson which is an absolute delight of a book about an eccentric musician who wore a big paper mache fake head!

I am now going to start tackling the prompts with more substantial books. For Collection I am going to read:
- Notes of a Dirty Old Man by Charles Bukowski which is a collection of articles that look at the grittier sitde of life. ,

I'll be starting off with 3 more. I'm the type of reader that likes to read more than one book at a time (I do finish all of them). So I figured why not do the same here.

[Style:]

Poet Warrior: A Memoir

-Written in both poetry and prose

[Treatment:]

High School Tegan & Sara

-How singers/song writers Tegan & Sara were treated growing up

As We Have Always Done: Indigenous Freedom through Radical Resistance

-Indigenous Radical Resistence

Whoops the Buckowski collection I am reading is “semi autobiographical”. There is a baseball player with wings that helps “the blues” win the league... this is not non fiction

I have just started The Dublin Railway Murder by Thomas Morris

I finished Meaningful: The Story of Ideas That Fly A short lovely book on marketing. I just started Rocket Men: The Daring Odyssey of Apollo 8 and the Astronauts Who Made Man's First Journey to the Moon I think this is either Industry or Style - Not sure. but I'm loving it so far.

A non-fiction book I'm reading this month is the biographical Dostoevsky: The Stir of Liberation, 1860-1865, but since I'm setting it aside every now and then to read the novels/novellas being discussed, I'm sure I won't finish it till December.

Aloha. I'm in the middle of Gulag: A History by Anne Applebaum. It's harrowing but an important part of Russian history that has been concealed or ignored.

Dressmakers of Auschwitz by Lucy Adlington. The prompt is treatment. How Jewish POW were treated while in concentration camps. Very well researched book

Hi friends, thanks for sharing! For the first week, I listened to and reviewed the latest from Jane Goodall. My review is posted in full under my profile and also featured on the Audiobook Reviews in Five Minutes podcast: https://podcast.jannastam.com/episode...

I'll be posting my next review in podcast and text form in a couple of days. Although you can see what I'm currently reading under my profile, I won't mention those just yet in case I quit those before finishing (I am ruthless about tossing titles that don't grab my attention within the first hour of listening or reading). Also, while I rate everything I finish, I will only review 4 or 5 star titles because I'd prefer focusing my energy on the very best recommendations. Occasionally I will review a 1 or two star title to exorcise the demons of mediocrity, too.

I'm aiming to read one nonfiction book AND one writing book a week this month, due to doing both NFN and NaNoWriMo this year the same as last year!

After one week (almost), I have finished one book: Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea. It was fascinating! I guess it can fit the "Collection" challenge, since Demick collected the testimonies of various people who escaped North Korea. I have also started Venice: Pure City. This one fits the "Style" prompt since Venice is a city with style. The pace is much slower, and I think I will enjoy reading it at a slow pace too, reading a few pages every day over a couple weeks rather than gobbling it all in one weekend.

For book #4 I am reading High School Tegan & Sara . This is going in my prompt for 'Treatment' as it is about how twin musical artists, Tegan & Sara, were treated and what they went through in high school.

I first heard of Tegan & Sara back on Grey's Anatomy back in 2005 (was it really that long ago?!)

While I've listened to their latest album, 'Hey I'm Just Like You' from 2019, amazing like all of the others, by the way, the song that has stuck out the most is 'Make You Mine' from my favorite Christmas movie, "Happiest Season."

Well, for treatment I finished reading Pity for the Guy A Biography of Guy Fawkes. It is not my favorite book on Guy Fawkes and the Gunpowder Plot of 1605. The writing and pacing dragged for most of the book. It did however have some interesting chapters at the end about some of the ongoing legacy of Guy Fawkes.

Well, I decided not to finish Death by Fame. I've been trying to read this book for a week and am still stuck on chapter 1. The prose just doesn't make sense to me. I can't understand what the author is saying because he has such a weird and haphazard writing style.

i started off with The Doctors Blackwell: How Two Pioneering Sisters Brought Medicine to Women and Women to Medicine for the Treatment prompt

I'm also listening to Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress - doesn't really fit a prompt but its interesting

and American Overdose: The Opioid Tragedy in Three Acts for industry - because the Opiod epidemic was very much a function of the drug industry

reading this for industry
also reading for treatment : Get What's yours for Medicare

Collection: finished reading The only plane in the sky bookcover: The Only Plane in the Sky: An Oral History of 9/11

I just finished Why Fish Don’t Exist by Lulu Miller (Collections) and starting How to Catch a Mole by Marc Hamer.

The Miller book took me on an interesting journey. It successfully shows the complexity and bizarreness of obsessive interest in the natural world combined with human foibles and damaging denial of the truth.

I finished Rocket Men: The Daring Odyssey of Apollo 8 and the Astronauts Who Made Man's First Journey to the Moon yesterday. I received a notification that I got my pre-order of Will So this interrupted my plans because I HAD to listen to it right away. This is in the category of Style Since I'll probably blow away my 10 book goal for this month, I'll make it #11 on the list. This guy has me rolling on the floor laughing, and yet bringing tears to my eyes in other parts. Great book so far, I'm already about 6 hours into it.

I’m starting off with Educated by Tara Westover

I finished They would never hurt a fly, which i felt is prescient of the political climate in my country at the moment. Definitely asks some tough questions - i look forward to reading S.
I started gulag and im wondering why im picking such dark books :|

Educated is a very good book Alyssa. Enjoy!

I am going to use this space to figure out where I am at because I didn't really have a structured plan for this years NfN so need to squeeze my reading into the prompts.

The first book I read was Telling Tales by Alan Bennett which was a Collection of anecdotes about the author's early life growing up in the North of England during and after WW2.

The second book I read was Frank: The True Story that Inspired the Movie by Jon Ronson which was a short but interesting book about when the author played keyboards for a singer who's Style was to wear an oversized fake papier-mâché head.

Then I read another Jon Ronson book So You've Been Publicly Shamed which is a vital - but somewhat apocalyptic - read about the Treatment of people online.

I am currently reading a book which isn't technically non fiction but I will be done with that in a couple of days I expect.

Then I will be reading Escobar: The Inside Story Of Pablo Escobar, The World's Most Powerful Criminal written by Pablo Escobar's brother about the cocaine Industry in Columbia.

After that I will have covered all of the prompts although still plan on reading non fiction for the rest of the month. It is my cousin's birthday in December and I want to give her my copy of Scenes from the Heart by Greta Thunberg's mother Malena Ernman which is all about the Treatment of the planet and Greta's mental health problems. So I need to read that (don't judge me for giving second hand books as Birthday presents lol). I also have POPism: The Warhol Sixties here which I could read for the Style category. Also there is plenty of Jon Ronson left to read... exciting.

Treatment:
I finished two . . .
Being Lolita: A Memoir and
Memoir Drive: A Daughters Memoir