What are some good non-fiction books?

Question

I read a lot of fiction but I want to try something new.

Answer 1

Someone mentioned "Angela's Ashes" by Frank McCourt... that person has definitely recommended the best non-fiction book in the world, because that is my all-time favorite book.

Other good ones would be "Red Dog" by Louis de Bernieres, about an Australian stray dog that found its master, John, and was everybody's best friend in West Australia, and you have to read the rest of it. Such a simple, less than 2-hour read, but so compelling and powerful.

"The Confession" by former NJ governor James McGreevey, about his struggles being in the closet before he came out as a gay American to the world in 2004. If you enjoy reading political memoirs, you'll like this one because it's just so sincerely written and beautifully worded.

"Running with Scissors" by Augusten Burroughs is a hilarious memoir of the author's tumultuous childhood in an upside down, chaotic family. You'll absolutely love the mom (whom by the way was portrayed by Annette Bening in the movie version, and which gained her a 2007 Golden Globe award nomination for best actress).

Answer 2

Any of the books by Torrie Hayden are good if you want to read about a teacher who works with Special Ed students.

Another book I've just recently read is Everything They Had by Al Santori. He is a Vietnam Vet and he met with several others and wrote down different things about their experiences. There was even one officer who was listening to the radio at some official telling the world that the US was not involved in the conflict in Vietnam. He then turned and looked out the window and laughed because while the lies were being told to the public, the enlisted men were preparing to be shipped out. The book is fiiled with true stories of the things the American enlisted and drafted had to go through in training (what little they had), and in the jungles of vietnam. If you're younger than 40, this should be an enlightenment to you, because it made me realize just how bad things were for everyone.

Answer 3

There are LOTS of great non-fiction books out there! You can try "An Unquiet Mind" by Kay Redfield Jamison who battles and comes through serious bouts of mental illness, or any of Stephen Hawking's books about the universe. I found "Apollo 13" by Jim Lovell & Jeffrey Kluger to be a great historical read on the space program and what can go wrong during a flight mission (and learned a great deal about how they used to operate in space) or there's an interesting book called, "The Minds of Billy Milligan" by Daniel Keyes about a man who raped women under another personality (he has Multiple Personality Disorder). I love reading non-fiction sometimes because it gives me a great opportunity to learn something interesting while I'm reading for entertainment or relaxation too.

Answer 4

I do not like fiction because anybody can make stuff up. I always picture the writer sitting there making the stuff up and it drives me nuts. I want you to go out and get a paperback copy of The Devil in White City. It is a great book and is the story about the worlds fair in Chicago in 1894. It is also a story about a serial killer. I read it two years ago and will probably read it again. I guarantee that you will like it. It is totally accurate with about 30 pages of bibliographies and quotes from old newspapers and magazines. Email me and let me know when you read it.

Answer 5

Exodus by Leon Uris
Ecstasy and Me by Hedy Lamar
Profiles of Courage by John Fitzgerald Kennedy
World as Will and Representation by Arthur Schopenhauer
Travels with Charlie by John Steinbeck
biography of Charlie Chaplin
Howard Hughes
and try the story about Lenny Bruce

Answer 6

I love "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote. It is a non-fiction book written like a story, and it is really good.

I recently read a book called "2 Lives" by Vikram Seth, which details his aunt and uncle's relationship. His uncle was Indian but studied in Germany just before Hitler came to power, and his aunt was a Jew who was forunate enough to leave Germany at the beginning of Hitler's reign, but she left her entire family behind. The 2 knew each other in Germany, but didn't marry until much later. It tells the story of WW2 from a unique perspecive, and I really liked it!

P.S. Whoever said Angela's Ashes is 150% right... definitely one of the best books ever written.

Answer 7

Fargo Rock City- Chuck Klosterman

Answer 8

I HAVE to respond to one of the posters (anybody can make stuff up)... I write both fiction AND non-fiction (history), and let me tell you MAKING STUFF UP is usually MUCH harder (unless you make up crap at random and don't care if anyone ever wants to read it).
Also, some of this stuff being listed is historical fiction, not fully non-fiction, so keep that in mind (Exodus by Leon Uris, for example).

Answer 9

Gifted Hands
by Ben Carson

Answer 10

The Biography of Helen Keller is excellent. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote tells the storyl of two murderers.