a tribute to great non-fiction books across multiple genres
I went through a whirlwind of books recently and one of them was the very fun Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything by Joshua Foer. The book received a lot of positive attention when it came out, so it was on my must-read list for awhile. Unfortunately, it also received a […]
About seven or eight years ago, I crossed On the Warrior’s Path: Philosophy, Fighting, and Martial Arts Mythology by Daniele Bolelli in a bookstore and was surprised to recognise the author’s name as one of my professors from college. Considering how fond I had been of him and his [completely different topic than the book] […]
The Great Influenza by John M. Barry is a fascinating look at the influenza pandemic that rocked the world in 1918. This terrifying virus killed between 3-6% of the world’s population between June 1918 and December 1920, and infected almost 30%. It is a history book, but it is heavy in the science. It is […]
Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex by Mary Roach is typical of her other books: it’s full of fun, interesting science, and is a little bit of crazy and a lot of hilarity. Having already traveled to the morgue and outer space with Roach, I was more than enthusiastic to follow her into […]
Of the dozens of books I’ve read this year, The Disappearing Spoon: And Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements by Sam Kean is my easily my favourite. It was very fun to read, accessible, and written with a refreshing cleverness that was […]
The following are some impressive books on colonial and post-colonial Africa that I want to give a nod to. Eventually, I may reread the books so I can write the full reviews they deserve but in the meantime I will give them a few words here. I recommend these phenomenal books with caution and a […]
I’m going to break my standard format here and talk about two books in the same entry: Surely You’re Joking, Mr. Feynman! and What Do You Care What Other People Think? They are both collections of autobiographical stories and accounts from famed physicist Richard Feynman’s life. I’m combining discussion of these because they are both […]