Non-fiction:
Biographies:
- The Boys in the Boat – Inspirational account of the UW rowing team that eventually went on to win the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Rowing is a punishing sport, and these boys from humble backgrounds possessed incredible mental and physical fortitude to accomplish what they did, when all odds were against them. Brown is an amazing author, and he really brought the story to life.
- Endurance – Memoir from Scott Kelly, the astronaut who spent a year in space aboard the International Space Station. He writes with the clear-eyed and straightforward voice of a scientist, and I thought everything in this book was just fascinating.
Investigative Journalism:
- Evicted – A raw and powerful look at eight families in Milwaukee as they face eviction. This book shows how eviction begets eviction, and the cycle of poverty and eviction makes it impossible for the people caught in that cycle to ever climb out.
- The Radium Girls – When radium is mixed with paint, it had this glow-in-the-dark quality. Back when this was first discovered, hundreds of girls were employed to paint watch dials and instrument panels with this luminescent paint. The girls took no precautions and were instructed by their employers to lick the paint brushes to bring the bristles to a sharp point in order to do their jobs. Soon they started falling sick with gruesome and mysterious symptoms that no doctors could diagnose. Moore doesn’t just tell these awful tales, but also brings the girls to life in her portrayal.
- Killers of the Flower Moon – In the 1920s, countless wealthy Osage Indians started dying in suspicious circumstances. The murders detailed in the book are chilling in their ruthlessness and greed, targeting not just the Osage but also people brought in to investigate their murders.
Neuroscience/Science:
- The Unpersuadable – Why do people believe what they believe, even when faced with overwhelming evidence to the contrary? There are a lot of neuroscience books out there trying to answer this question, but I particularly enjoyed this book because the author builds his case with interesting stories and examples. He shows how the brain builds its model of the world and how that model ultimately deceives us about reality.
- Weapons of Math Destruction – The book provides a detailed look at how algorithms based on big data doesn’t always tell the truth or lead to a more fair world, as they are purported to do. Rather, they contribute to a system that is opaque and hard to challenge, increasing the divide between the privileged and all others. Often, the outcome of the algorithms create a negative feedback loop, directly influencing the outcome they are objectively trying to determine. It’s timely and relevant, especially in our field.
Politics/Rise of Populism:
- Strangers in their Own Land – This book has gone further than any other in helping me understand the motivations and feelings of the conservative white working class. The author presents their viewpoints with empathy and kindness, and tries to work through the paradox of why it seems that they are voting against their own self-interest.
Fiction:
- Homegoing – Stunning saga spanning eight generations, starting with two half-sisters in Ghana, one who lives a life of relative ease in Cape Coast Castle, while the other is imprisoned in the same castle and sold off as a slave. At its heart, this book shows that slavery and colonialism impacts everyone for generations, not just those who are slaves.
- Big Little Lies – There sure are a lot of mysteries in the small beach town that friends Jane, Madeline, and Celeste live in. On the surface everything seems great, but as you go deeper into the story, you realize that a lot of things are not quite what they seem. It’s dark, funny, and intriguing. HBO made a miniseries on this, but definitely better to read the book before you watch the show.
- Magpie Murders – It’s set up as a mystery within a mystery, full of twists and turns, red herrings, and long lists of suspects. It’s brilliant how the book interweaves both a throwback to the golden age of crime and a more modern take on the same genre.
- Dark Matter – The main character is out for a walk and is knocked out by a ruffian. When he comes to, he’s surrounded by strangers who all seem to know him. He finds out the life as he knows it is gone, along with his wife and child. He goes on a pretty crazy ride as he tries to figure out what’s going on and how to get his life back.
I’m always looking for great books, so if you have suggestions, please let me know! And if you want to join me on Goodreads (you can track the books you read, set goals, rate and review books, see what your friends are reading and their reviews), you can add me.
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