# Non-fiction recommendations please **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** books-writing-myths\ **Created:** [January 30, 2024, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869 "2024-01-30T17:02:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![mjmartin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3d9bf3/32.png) [@mjmartin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mjmartin)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/1 "2024-01-30T17:02:24Z")
Anyone have any good non-fiction recommendations? I’m open to pretty much anything, but biographies are of particular interest. (I see this topic has been done a few times, but the last thread I see is over a decade old, so I thought I would open a new one). ---
**Author:** ![SuntanLotion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suntanlotion/32/16165_2.png) [@SuntanLotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuntanLotion)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/2 "2024-01-30T17:05:09Z")
Same here. I don’t read fiction. ---
**Author:** ![MandaJo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@MandaJo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MandaJo)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/3 "2024-01-30T17:15:24Z")
The Emerald Mile. Ancient and modern history and geology of the Grand Canyon, all structured around some fascinating contemporary individuals and the culture of river guides, plus some insanity. ---
**Author:** ![mjmartin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3d9bf3/32.png) [@mjmartin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mjmartin)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/4 "2024-01-30T17:16:18Z")
> [@SuntanLotion](#): > > Same here. I loved a book I just finished, “The Hungry Season” by Lisa Hamilton. It’s a biography of a woman that survived the civil war in Laos, and then immigrated to the US, surviving by growing rice in the traditional Hmong fashion in California. It was a very different topic than the sort I usually read, but was good from the first page. > **[The Hungry Season: A Journey of War, Love, and Survival](https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/75593496)** > > In the tradition of Katherine Boo and Tracy Kidder, a d… ---
**Author:** ![mjmartin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3d9bf3/32.png) [@mjmartin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mjmartin)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/5 "2024-01-30T17:17:48Z")
This looks great, thank you. Just the type of recommendation I am looking for. I appreciate it. ---
**Author:** ![tofor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tofor/32/13727_2.png) [@tofor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tofor)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/6 "2024-01-30T17:37:11Z")
“The Taking of K-129” by Josh Dean, about how the US attempted to steal a Soviet submarine from the bottom of the ocean. About the technology, the people involved, and the process of keeping it all secret. Also a sea story. ---
**Author:** ![Lancia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lancia/32/17174_2.png) [@Lancia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lancia)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/7 "2024-01-30T17:54:35Z")
[A very unique biography](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7170627-the-emperor-of-all-maladies). Scary as hell, but very readable for a layperson. [Two recreational divers chance upon a well preserved](https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/9530) – and completely unknown and undocumented – WWII U-boat wreck laying off the coast of New Jersey. The book chronicles their attempts to identify the boat and figure out why it sank and why there was no record of it. An amateur sailor on a solo trans-Atlantic crossing [suffers a catastrophic loss of his boat](https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/121410) and is forced to survive in a life raft the size of a bathtub with no water or food for 2 1/2 months. A physician who specializes in expeditions to and into extreme inhospitable environments [shares a number of experiences and challenges treating sickness and injury](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/359434.Surviving_the_Extremes) in places such as Mt. Everest, the Amazon jungle, and similar wild areas where modern medical care is non-existent. [A classic about the western U.S.'s quickly vanishing water](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56140.Cadillac_Desert) and the impending catastrophe that scarcity will cause. When my son was going through a phase where he wanted to be a lawyer because “that’s how you get rich” I told him that specializing in water rights litigation between political entities in the Western U.S would soon be a very lucrative career. This book taught me that. [A book that explores](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13735677-the-color-of-christ) how western Christians press-ganged a dark-haired, brown-skinned Palestinian who preached peace and acceptance into a mascot for white power, persecutions, war, and unflinching xenophobia while portraying him as a blue-eyed, blonde haired northern European who spoke English. [The Social World of the California Gold Rush](https://history.wisc.edu/publications/roaring-camp-the-social-world-of-the-california-gold-rush/). Title says it all. Not about the mines or the miners per se but rather the mining towns and camps and the social and economic fabric that the gold rush created and subsequently made the American colonization of California possible. By and by I’ll think of some more. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/8 "2024-01-30T18:06:58Z")
Into Thin Air - Jon Krakauer, about the disastrous attempt to climb Everest that he was a part of. Touching the Void - Joe Simpson, about two men on a climb in the Andes that goes sideways Yes, I do love books about survival and exploration. Luckily, there are a lot of them out there, although I’ve read a good portion of them. ---
**Author:** ![tofor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tofor/32/13727_2.png) [@tofor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tofor)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/9 "2024-01-30T18:16:33Z")
Roman Mars is doing a year-long podcast series (within 99% Invisible) on The Power Broker by Robert Caro. You can read along and hear the discussion 100 pages at a time: > **[Breaking Down The Power Broker with Conan O'Brien - 99% Invisible](https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/breaking-down-the-power-broker/)** > > In 1974, two very significant things happened, if you are a fan of 99% invisible. Number one is that 99pi host Roman Mars was born. And number two, The Power Broker by Robert Caro was published. Roman learned about the power broker when he first... ---
**Author:** ![Llama\_Llogophile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@Llama\_Llogophile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Llama_Llogophile)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/10 "2024-01-30T18:20:02Z")
> **[The Making of the Atomic Bomb](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Making_of_the_Atomic_Bomb)** > > The Making of the Atomic Bomb is a history book written by the American journalist and historian Richard Rhodes, first published by Simon & Schuster in 1987. The book won multiple awards, including Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction. The narrative covers people and events from early 20th century discoveries leading to the science of nuclear fission, through the Manhattan Project and the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. > Before writing The Making of the Atomic Bomb, Richard Rhodes ... > **[The Wright Brothers (book)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wright_Brothers_(book))** > > The Wright Brothers is a 2015 non-fiction book written by the popular historian David McCullough and published by Simon & Schuster. It is a history of the American inventors and aviation pioneers Orville and Wilbur Wright. The book was on The New York Times Non-Fiction Best Sellers list for seven weeks in 2015. > McCullough first became interested in writing a book on the Wright brothers while researching for his book The Greater Journey, which explored the history of various notable Americans ... > **[A Man on the Moon](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Man_on_the_Moon)** > > A Man on the Moon: The Voyages of the Apollo Astronauts is a 1994 book by Andrew Chaikin. It describes the 1968-1972 voyages of the Apollo program astronauts in detail, from Apollo 8 to 17. > This book formed the basis of the 1998 television miniseries From the Earth to the Moon. It was released in paperback in 2007 by Penguin Books, ISBN 978-0-14-311235-8. > > This article about a book on outer space or spaceflight is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. ---
**Author:** ![Lancia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lancia/32/17174_2.png) [@Lancia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lancia)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/11 "2024-01-30T18:25:51Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > I do love books about survival and exploration If you haven’t read Kamler’s book noted above, do yourself a favor and give it a go. It highlights a great, and somewhat unique, perspective into survival in harsh environments. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/12 "2024-01-30T18:33:02Z")
I’ll give it a look. Thanks! The book that got me started in this genre was **The White Nile** , by Alan Moorehead, which has the stories of the multiple British expeditions trying to find the river’s headwaters. A fascinating read about some of the toughest men to ever pick up a rucksack. He also wrote a sequel called **The Blue Nile.** ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/13 "2024-01-30T19:10:04Z")
_Surely You’re Joking, Mr.Feynman_, by the inimitable genius Richard Feynman, the nuclear physicist and enfant terrible. About himself. _Albion’s Seed_ by David Fischer. A social historian’s thought-provoking opus on how the differing essential ideals of the four earliest sets of American colonists – Puritan, Quaker, Cavalier, and Borderer, all from different classes within Britain – set the patterns of tension in American culture which are only too obvious today. _Longitude_ Dava Sobel. How one inventor cracked the challenge of how to determine it, essential to navigation at sea. ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/14 "2024-01-30T19:43:26Z")
As usual, many of my favorites have already been mentioned: Into the Wild, Into Thin Air, Shadow Divers A few more: A Long Way Home be Saroo Brierly - About the journey of an Indian boy (and man) to find his family. Was made into the movie “Lion”. Falling Upwards by Richard Holmes - A history of hot air ballooning from the early scientists and daredevils through their use in battle. A small excerpt was made into the movie “The Aeronauts”. Jungle of Stone by William Carlsen - About the discovery by Europeans of the ancient Mayan civilization. The Last Man on the Mountain by Jennifer Jordan - About an early failed expedition to climb K2. Buried in the Sky by Peter Zuchman and Amanda Padoan - About Sherpa climbers killed on K2, but goes into the whole history of Sherpas and their relationship to mountain climbers. Young Men and Fire by Norm McLean - A classic about smoke jumpers killed fighting a wildfire ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/15 "2024-01-30T21:28:14Z")
Two books by Simon Singh: “The Code Book”, a history of cryptography and cryptanalysis: > **[The Code Book: The Science of Secrecy from Ancient Egypt to Quantum...](https://www.amazon.com/Code-Book-Science-Secrecy-Cryptography/dp/0385495323)** > > The Code Book: The Science of Secrecy from Ancient Egypt to Quantum Cryptography \[Singh, Simon\] on Amazon.com. \*FREE\* shipping on qualifying offers. The Code Book: The Science of Secrecy from Ancient Egypt to Quantum Cryptography “The Big Bang”, a history of cosmology: [https://a.co/d/axZP8lr](https://a.co/d/axZP8lr) Both excellent. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/16 "2024-01-30T21:33:50Z")
“Journey Through Genius” by William Dunham. For math lovers. Discusses 12 classic theorems of mathematics, how they were proved and their historical context. > **[Amazon.com: Journey through Genius: The Great Theorems of Mathematics:...](https://www.amazon.com/Journey-through-Genius-Theorems-Mathematics/dp/014014739X)** > > Amazon.com: Journey through Genius: The Great Theorems of Mathematics: 9780140147391: Dunham, William: Books ---
**Author:** ![Eric1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3bc359/32.png) [@Eric1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eric1)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/17 "2024-01-30T23:19:39Z")
I’m going to read that book. I’ve always wanted to know how theorums are developed, as a tool for memorizing them and for making pnemonic devices about them. ---
**Author:** ![Eric1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3bc359/32.png) [@Eric1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eric1)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/18 "2024-01-30T23:26:15Z")
I bet I’ll learn how to spell theorem correctly. (Slap to forehead) ---
**Author:** ![SuntanLotion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suntanlotion/32/16165_2.png) [@SuntanLotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuntanLotion)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/19 "2024-01-30T23:37:28Z")
Theorums are what you drink while reading. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2024, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869/20 "2024-01-31T12:02:06Z")
Another math connoisseur, Matt Parker, is a really fun read. He recounts how he petitioned the UK government to replace geometrically incorrect renditions of soccer balls on signs advertising sporting events. He’s also built rudimentary computers entirely out of thousands of dominos on basketball courts. A genuine ubernerd good for blowing your mind and making you chuckle while doing it. > **[Matt Parker](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matt_Parker)** > > Matthew Thomas Parker (born 22 December 1980): 20:45  is an Australian recreational mathematician, author, comedian, YouTube personality and science communicator based in the United Kingdom. His book Humble Pi was the first maths book in the UK to be a Sunday Times No. 1 bestseller. Parker was the Public Engagement in Mathematics Fellow at Queen Mary University of London. He is a former maths teacher and has helped popularise maths via his tours and videos. > Matt Parker was born in Perth, Aust... [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-fiction-recommendations-please/996869.md?page=2)