Nonfiction Reads: 2021 Part One

Alright team here’s to expanding our horizons right?

Last year was the first time that I really started breaking into non-fiction. I think it was partially a relief for me to be able to ‘read’ something but not have the brain capacity for world building that I find in most fantasies and historical fictions that I read. Looking back I realize that I’ve read nearly nothing but nonfiction so far this year.

However, reviewing the non-fiction books seems off to me. I can’t sit there and tell you about the character and plot, mostly because many of these are memoirs or biographies. To me it’s a different level entirely. So I thought that I’d add all of my recent reads below in case there is anything you might find interesting!

I’ve dug more into the political sphere, looking at Washington from decades ago compared to now has been fascinating. Additionally, I’ve started doing a deep dive into Wyoming history again recently so you’ll see more of that cropping up in the days to come!

As a side note, some of the links to Bookshop or Libro.fm will either provide me or an indie bookshop I support a portion of the affiliate sales if you use them to buy a book I recommend!

Catching Up: 2020

Conversations with RBG: Ruth Bader Ginsberg on Life, Love, Liberty, and Law by Jeffrey Rosen
Goodreads ~ Storygraph ~ Bookshop ~ Libro.fm

Don’t Panic: Douglas Adams and the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Neil Gaiman
Goodreads ~ Storygraph ~ Bookshop ~ Libro.fm

January

A Promised Land by Barack Obama
Goodreads ~ Storygraph ~ Bookshop ~ Libro.fm

Becoming by Michelle Obama
Goodreads ~ Storygraph ~ Bookshop ~ Libro.fm

Thanks, Obama: My Hopey, Changey White House Years by David Litt
Goodreads ~ Storygraph ~ Bookshop ~ Libro.fm

• I highly recommend reading all three of these together! They filled out and complimented each other to give you a fuller picture of what actually was happening and going on. Be warned though, President Obama’s memoirs were only of the first four years, which left me wanting at the end.

The Latte Factor by David Bach
Goodreads ~ Storygraph ~ Bookshop ~ Libro.fm

• This was a very very quick read, it’s how to invest and why investing is worth it in an anecdotal story. It was alright but nothing to brag home about.

February

The Gatekeepers: How the White House Chiefs of Staff Define Every Presidency by Chris Whipple
Goodreads ~ Storygraph ~ Bookshop ~ Libro.fm

• This is still probably one of my favorite books I’ve read this year, if not my favorite. I loved hearing about all of the different Presidents, how they ran things, and what DC politics is (or used to be) truly like. I hope there is an updated version in the future to encompass all of the Trump presidency as well.

March

Dare to Lead by Brené Brown
Goodreads ~ Storygraph ~ Bookshop ~ Libro.fm

• If you like inspirational reads and how to hack your own life I’d fully recommend reading Brené’s stuff as well as watching her Ted talk!

The Man Who Ran Washington: The Life and Times of James A. Baker III by Peter Baker and Susan Glasser
Goodreads ~ Storygraph ~ Bookshop ~ Libro.fm

• If The Gatekeepers was my favorite book of the year, then this is probably my second favorite. It takes on who exactly Jim Baker was, how he was an integral part of so many presidencies, and why he never became president himself. This was so fascinating and compliments The Gatekeepers but I will warn that it is also an incredibly long book!

May

The Hill We Climb: An Inaugural Poem for the Country by Amanda Gorman
Goodreads ~ Storygraph ~ Bookshop ~ Libro.fm

• Did you enjoy Amanda Gorman’s poem at the Inaguration? Want to here it again? Same. So I went out and found it and I will probably come back to it time and time again.

Only Count the Sunny Hours: Madame Isabelle’s Diary by Ray Essman
Goodreads ~ Storygraph

• This one is incredibly close to my heart. It’s a portion of the story of my hometown. The diary of the most notorious Madame from Kemmerer’s red light district, this is part memoir, part folk tale, part historical retelling. Ray who knew Madame Isabelle’s son recounts his own memories alongside the stories from her diary. This was a very very small print run and it’s hard to get ahold of, so I had to borrow a copy and I’m taking extensive notes for a future writing idea of mine.

June

Ester Morris of Old South Pass & Other Poems of the West by Irene Arndt Huettl
Goodreads ~ Storygraph