Inspiration: politics

This could be a really heavy topic, but it doesn't have to be!

You can choose nonfiction or fiction, local or international, history, current affairs or even speculative dystopian fantasy.

Pick a smaller topic than POLITICS: Choose economics, or narrow it down to a biography. Drill down to a current social topic.

• Love Hamilton? Try Ron Chernow's biography that inspired it
• Robert Penn Warren won a Pulitzer for this novel of an ambitious governor
• Lincoln's Team of Rivals was a smash hit for Doris Kearns Goodwin
• I was fascinated by How the States Got their Shapes by Mark Stein
• Robert Harris wrote the Cicero series about ancient Roman power struggles
• I mean, if the Hunger Games isn't political I don't know what is
• Radio Free Vermont made me laugh, and reminded me of some neighbors
• YA has lots of politics, because high school is full of evaluating moral values - try The Chocolate War or Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock

Can you recommend something?

Let's Go (So We Can Get Back): A Memoir of Recording with Wilco, Etc. by Jeff Tweedy

In an honest, funny look at his life, indy musician Jeff Tweedy opens up about his family, his career, and how his brain works. It's fascinating!

It's no secret I love a good music bio, and what separates the good from bad is honesty and introspection. Tweedy owns it here, with a self-deprecating humor that certainly entertains. He's thoughtful about his creative process without being precious about it, and he reminisces about former friendships, band breakups and makeups, and even how his marriage works.

Confession: I will read this book again, on audiobook, because Tweedy narrates it himself! (I couldn't wait, so I read it on paper first.)

Inspiration: narrative nonfiction

This week in "what was Trish thinking" we're talking about narrative nonfiction books. For those who aren't usually a fan of nonfiction, this can be a way to find entry, because they read more like the novels you're used to.

And again, it's a technique used a lot in children's books: hook them with a good story, then educate 'em with the facts!

A couple of my favorites, that I personally recommend:

• Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt - murder and eccentricity in Savannah, Georgia.
• The Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean - rare flowers and obsession.

You can do double-duty with our list of prompts, because many memoirs are written this way:

• Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson - a poetic memoir written for kids, about growing up in America in the 1960s-1970s.
• Wild by Cheryl Strayed - hiking and soul-searching, for the drastically unprepared.
• Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight by Alexandra Fuller - a white child growing up in tumultuous Africa.

A few other non-memoir:

• We Are A People In This World: The Lakota Sioux and the Massacre at Wounded Knee by Conger Beasley - based on oral histories of survivors.
• Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers by Deborah Heiligman - the bond between brothers.

Here's an amazing list of 50 from BookRiot. 

And a review of 37 for kids.

Do you have a favorite? Tell us about it!

Everything Happens for a Reason: And Other Lies I've Loved by Kate Bowler

When a professor of religion gets cancer, there's some introspection. You may enjoy that, or not.

But the main reason to read this, anyway, are two appendices at the back: "Absolutely Never Say This to People Experiencing Terrible Times: A Short List" and "Give This a Go, See How It Works: A Short List."

Waiting for the Punch: Words to Live By from the WTF Podcast by Marc Maron & Brendan McDonald

Sometimes all it takes to get through something is to know you're not alone. To know that somebody else has been there, and they lived. They made it through, and so can you. That's what this book is about.

I'm not a podcast listener, but I know a lot of my friends are. This book is culled from conversations on WTF with Marc Maron. Maron is a comedian and he interviews lots of other comedians, along with other pop culture celebrities like actors, writers, producers, musicians, and even a former president of the United States. And they open up about the most sensitive topics.

One look at the labels with which I tagged this post would lead you to believe it's a depressing book: childhood trauma, addiction, suicide. But it's actually a helpful, hopeful book with true stories and personal insights.

It would be a great book to dip into and out of, but I even found it hard to put down sometimes: I want to know more about what goes on in people's heads and how they've overcome their inner and outer demons.

You may just find the kernel of strength you didn't even know you were searching for.

A Glorious Freedom: Older Women Leading Extraordinary Lives by Lisa Congdon

I've already recommended this book to a TON of people, so you might as well just go out and get ahold of a copy now.

This book is chock full of short biographies, brief essays, interviews, quotes, and illustrated portraits. The women featured have all done amazing things, and none of them "made it" until they were well into adulthood (No child prodigy here! Some of them didn't even get started until they were 70+ years old). You'll know a bit about some of them, but you won't have heard of every woman featured (I spent a lot of time Googling while I was reading), and there's something in every story to fascinate.

And the takeaway is this: we regularly live to be 90+ in modern society, so what are you going to do with the 30+ years after "retirement"? Why are you waiting to start doing the things you really desire?

Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis by J.D. Vance

Growing up mostly at his grandmother's house, J.D. Vance had a life similar to many others around him. It was only upon leaving (and in having the desire to leave) that he found out just how different his life in a poor Appalachian family was different from the rest of the United States.

This is certainly the kind of book that makes you think, and it's a great one to discuss (whether you agree or not) - we chose this for the library's book discussion group. There were plenty of copies available because this book was previously a "Go Big Read" title, where the University of Wisconsin gets everybody reading and talking about the same book. 

While there's a lot of sociology here, it's at heart a memoir and a family history. You know from the first page how J.D. has done, but you also spend the book's length cheering for his successes and perseverance.

It's a quick read, and more than once I paused to ponder things like the effects of childhood trauma on adult behavior, and the role of religion (aside from belief) in a community. I recommend it, at least as exposure to a different life.

Essential History of American Art by Suzanne Bailey

Rarely could I say I've read an art book - they're the kind of thing you dip in and out of, skimming a lot and reading just the interesting bits. This one, however, was different.

It doesn't try to be definitive or all-inclusive (although it covers a fair bit of territory). Also, artists are included if they were born elsewhere but worked in the US, or were born here and worked mostly elsewhere. There's a wiggly, loose definition of "American" art.

And, strangely, the artwork used to illuminate an artist is almost always NOT their best-known piece. I did a lot of Google image searching while I read to view other work and get a better career overview.

But what fascinating text! Brief bio and description of style and influences, with many artists shown with more than one piece of art.

Heating & Cooling: 52 Micro-Memoirs by Beth Ann Fennelly

Short, in all senses: tiny stories - some just a sentence or two, none longer than a couple pages - compiled into a 100-page collection.

This series of vignettes is a look at a life. Fennelly writes about her husband and kids, about her father-in-law, about her own childhood and about her observations of life around her. Many are funny. Some are a little sad. All are relatable.

The Secret Art of Being a Grown-up: Tips, Tricks, and Perks No One Thought to Tell You by Bridget Watson Payne

The title is almost longer than the book, but it's a fun, graphically interesting, perky little reminder about the important things.

Wear what you want. Get outside sometimes. Ask for help when you need it. Perfectionism helps no one ... you know these things, but it's always nice to have a refresher. This would be a good gift book. Or a good addition to your personal library for those occasional "brush-ups" on the things that need reminding.

We Are All Shipwrecks by Kelly Grey Carlisle

While reading, I had to continually remind myself this book is a memoir - it reads like fiction, a novel of growing up in a strange environment.

Even as a child, Kelly knew the stories that swirled around her may or may not be true: Her mother died when Kelly was an infant. Her faux-aristocratic grandfather is a showman. She was forbidden to talk about some parts of their lives (the boat they live on, the porn store they own). The book is full of what you'd politely call "characters," like the other marina regulars and Kelly's extended family members.

We get the story simultaneously from two different Kellys: the child living it and not understanding it all, and the adult looking back through the lens of experience. She's hungry for love. She's hungry for information. She's dying to get out of there and build a different life.

I enjoyed the book (I even dreamed about it one night). I thought it was a great look at a strange childhood - an unusual perspective on life and family.

Trickster: Native American tales by Matt Dembicki

What an interesting project! It's a pairing of Native American storytellers with cartoonists to present a host of trickster stories in graphic form

Rabbits, raccoons, mink, wolves and more - the trickster takes many forms. Sometimes the goal is pure entertainment, and often it's also a morality story. I've always loved these stories that explain nature (how an alligator got its skin, why a buzzard stinks) or give insight into how people perceive animals and the world around them.

I loved the diversity of the stories presented here, and I love that each tale looks different, too; some are more realistic, others more stylized and "cartoonish" in form. Overall, this is a fantastic introduction to the trickster genre in general and the Native American stories specifically.

You Don't Have to Say You Love Me by Sherman Alexie

In a heart-wrenching memoir, Sherman Alexie explores his complicated relationship with his mother and his grief after her death. The book's narrative is expressed through a combination of essays, poetry, honor songs, and more.

There's a tradeoff, depending on your reading format: the physical book has pictures, and you get the visual formatting in the poetry. In the audiobook you miss out on those - but you get ALL the emotion as the author reads this work himself.

And I do mean ALL the emotion - there's a river of tears from Alexie in the audiobook, and I can only imagine how many they edited out. It's sometimes overwhelming, in the true, honest way he expresses the story of his life and of his family. It's so, so good, but it took me a while to get through this audiobook - it's not the kind of thing you want to listen to every day.

Gulp: Adventures On the Alimentary Canal by Mary Roach

A humorous, informative book about the science and false beliefs about the internal system that runs from your mouth through your stomach and out your butt.

Roach has become famous for her snarky, hilarious approach to often icky nonfiction subjects. This one's got a lot of ick in it - spit, farts, poop, digestion, and more - but she makes it worth the time by dispelling falsehoods, researching history, and interviewing scientists on the cutting edge.

I picked this for book discussion and we circulated a LOT of copies, so I'll be interested to see if anybody shows up to talk about it. For me, the chapter on Elvis made the whole book worthwhile.

Incidentally, I listened to the audiobook, read by Emily Woo Zeller, which was awesome. She helped convey the tongue-in-cheek way the book is written and the glee with which Roach often imparts her research.

Dear Ijeawele, or A Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Addressed as a letter to a friend seeking advice, Adichie gives a brief, powerful primer on feminism in a changing world.

While it's addressed to a new mother on raising her daughter, the lessons are equally important for anyone. We all impact the next generation, and the first steps to change must be our own.

It's an amazing, succinct piece with a lot to ponder. It's probably worth repeated reading and is truly the kind of book you should buy to revisit annually.

Unmentionable: the Victorian Lady's Guide to Sex, Marriage, and Manners by Therese Oneill

In this snarky, casual book, the modern reader receives a no-holds-barred look at what hygiene, fashion, and society were REALLY like for women in the 19th century.

BBC melodramas, romance novels, and the balm of time have worked a true magic: the past has become so sanitized and glossy that we pine for the days of chivalry - completely forgetting that there was poop everywhere, the ownership and operation of your vagina was a medical mystery, and a stricter-than-strict social code of mores meant you were hardly allowed to speak.

This is a funny book that puts you right into the action. The author is speaking directly to YOU the reader, and even responds to your questions and complaints as she imagines you'd be having them. Not in any way scholarly, but certainly educational!

Talking to Girls About Duran Duran: One Young Man's Quest for True Love and a Cooler Haircut by Rob Sheffield

With each chapter titled by a song, music critic Rob Sheffield uses this memoir to tells stories about his sisters, their influence on his listening (and fashion), and his ongoing affection for 1980s pop music.

His summer as an ice cream truck driver (titled not with Van Halen's "Ice Cream Man" but with Prince's "Purple Rain"), his almost-seduction by a former teacher, his love of cassingles, a season in the discos of Spain, his high school wrestling career - these are all stories told with nostalgia through their links to songs of the 1980s.

You don't have to love the music to understand the book, but it helps (it also helps that I'm roughly the same age as the author with a similar familiarity to John Hughes movies and MTV) But Sheffield is a guy who writes about music and its effect on our emotions in a really accessible way (see also Love is a Mixtape). This is really a series of stories about growing up and figuring things out.

He's a brave man to admit some of his more bubblegum proclivities, to sing the praises of recreational karaoke, and to analyze what it is about Duran Duran that makes them so irresistible (along with their baffling career longevity). Also, it's adorable the way he dotes on his sisters.

Shrill: Notes From a Loud Woman by Lindy West

It's hard to imagine anyone intentionally becomes an internet writer once you know what Lindy West has been through with trolls, online stalking and spamming, and more. And yet they do because like Lindy proves, there may be a bright future ahead if we can steer this thing in the right direction.

I found this book at an ideal time - I'm more and more aware that we each have a voice, and Lindy's using hers by taking up the feminist flag for acceptance and compassion concerning body image, rape, and reproductive rights. I listened to the audiobook read by the author, so this memoir was much like a conversation with a friend: listening to her stories, sharing in her joys and griefs, anger at her misfortunes.

This book is truly excellent. Lindy's got a way with words and she's got a great sense of humor, but the book's also frequently heartbreaking. She's developed quite an armor without losing her humanity.

Old Records Never Die: One Man's Quest for His Vinyl and His Past by Eric Spitznagel

Sure, it's crazy. But Eric Spitznagel decided he didn't just want to recreate his long-gone vinyl music collection - he wanted the EXACT records back. The one with his first girlfriend's phone number on the cover, and the one sporting his brother's threatening note about not borrowing it. The ones will all the familiar, unique pops, skips and scratches.

It's really nuts. But also a little understandable - it's a modern midlife crisis, right?

Spitznagel is funny and that's what makes this doomed quest bearable. He's got a real way with words, and there were times I laughed out loud at his descriptions. And yet there were other times I was physically uncomfortable with his mania - I got embarrassed for him when he was too blinded to realize how dumb he was acting.

There's some language in this book (you were warned), but it's the way guys this age really talk when they're telling you their best stories. It's really a good book, and the audiobook narration by Ramiz Monsef was spot-on.

Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike by Phil Knight

I think the hallmark of a good nonfiction book is that you get completely engrossed in something you previously had little to no interest in. Therefore you'll understand when I say this is a fantastic book about shoes, track athletes and international business relations.

Phil Knight comes off as the kind of guy you want to have a drink with, but probably don't want to marry or have as a boss. He was a driven entrepreneur who played fast and loose with a lot of money (and not all his own) in the early days, and he almost lost it all multiple times.

But he believed in what he was doing, and he built an amazing "family" of dedicated professionals who believed in the product, too. He talks about Nike's partnership with college and professional athletes without this turning into a name-dropping celebrity memoir, which it easily could have been.

It's probably a great guide for what-not-to-do in business; it's also a stunning example of success despite breaking all the rules. In all, I thoroughly enjoyed the book in every way. I laughed out loud at times, and I bit my fingers along with their strife (even though I knew it would come out).