Where is your nonfiction section please.
Last year, I read nephrologist Dr. Jason Fung's The Obesity Code, which was eye-opening for me. It made me realize that something I sometimes did naturally or inadvertently -- skipping meals or snacks -- was actually a benefiting weight loss. It clicked for me, because in the periods I'd inadvertently fasted -- either from being... Continue Reading →
Reading New Yorker staff writer Rachel Aviv's debut, Strangers to Ourselves: Unsettled Minds and the Stories That Make Us (September 13, 2022, Farrar, Straus and Giroux), I realized I had an unintentional trend this year of reading about selfhood in some form. It started with the first book I read in the year, Will Storr's... Continue Reading →
As much as I love reading pop science, for some reason I find these books the hardest to write and discuss. Is it because I'm afraid of summarizing them poorly or inaccurately? I have no idea. Minis it is! In Virus: Vaccinations, the CDC, and the Hijacking of America's Response to the Pandemic, journalist Nina... Continue Reading →
A Molecule Away from Madness: Tales of the Hijacked Brain, by Sara Manning Peskin, published February 8, 2022 by W.W. Norton. Used or new @SecondSale.com The new book A Molecule Away From Madness: Tales of the Hijacked Brain by Dr. Sara Manning Peskin explores the hairline between normal functioning and utter disaster in the brain.... Continue Reading →
Super late but better late than never when it comes to looking ahead to the year's new nonfiction, right? Right! Here's what's caught my eye in new and recent nonfiction releases: Longshot: The Inside Story of the Race for a COVID-19 Vaccine, by David Heath (January 18) - "Investigative journalist David Heath takes readers inside... Continue Reading →
It's the most wonderful time of the year: Christmas stresses are over and it's time for year-end favorites lists! I love dividing up my year's favorite books by new releases and backlist selections because it means I can include more books. Also, since my blogging has deteriorated into a truly awful state, I realized that... Continue Reading →
Because my blogging has reached new productivity lows, I'm trying to at least gather some thoughts on the past year's reading. Trying! As I mentioned, I continued to read most heavily this year in the area of pop science and psychology. It's time to accept that I'll never get around to full reviews for these.... Continue Reading →
Hello and welcome: Happy first day of Nonfiction November! I'm your host this week for the kickoff, and I could not be more thrilled. Here's our topic: Week 1: (November 1-5) – Your Year in Nonfiction with Rennie at What’s Nonfiction: Take a look back at your year of nonfiction and reflect on the following questions... Continue Reading →
I'm still slowly trying to get back into the writing-about-books swing of things! Did I mention we moved New York apartments the month before moving German apartments? Yeah, I'm still fucking exhausted. And I've been reading a lot more slowly but still reading, and although I have no brainpower for full reviews, here are some... Continue Reading →
With the year half over, let's see what new and wondrous upcoming nonfiction we have to look forward to in the coming months! Here's what I'm excited for: The Icepick Surgeon : Murder, Fraud, Sabotage, Piracy, and Other Dastardly Deeds Perpetrated in the Name of Science, by Sam Kean (July 13) - Beginning "with Cleopatra’s... Continue Reading →
Super Sick: Making Peace with Chronic Illness, by Allison Alexander These problems may be manageable for a short time. But when they keep happening, when there's no bright horizon of "getting better" to look forward to, I feel like I'm a cup continually poured out and never refilled. Being sick for a long time or... Continue Reading →
Uncaring: How the Culture of Medicine Kills Doctors and Patients, by Robert Pearl My desire [... ] isn't to castigate the culture, belabor its shortcomings, or embarrass individual doctors. Instead, my hope is to improve healthcare delivery in our nation, evolve physician culture, and restore the joys that have been stripped from the profession. Robert... Continue Reading →
What's Nonfiction? 