Tag: nature

americana, biography, current events, history, investigative journalism, narrative nonfiction, Russia, travel, true crime, world war II

12 Upcoming Nonfiction Titles in 2019, Part the Last

While investigating what new nonfiction 2019 has in store, I found way too many exciting titles. I could spread these out over the year, but why wait? So here’s the final installment of nonfiction I’m looking forward to in the coming year. What sounds good to you here? D-Day Girls: The Spies Who Armed the Resistance, Sabotaged the Nazis, and Helped Win World War II by Sarah … Continue reading 12 Upcoming Nonfiction Titles in 2019, Part the Last

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Best of, essays, France, history, investigative journalism, memoir, Middle East, narrative nonfiction, new york city, Russia, travel, true crime

Pre-2018 Favorites

I noticed this year that several of my pre-2018 picks were published in 2017, so they’re not actually that far from being new releases. I’m a little disappointed that it turned out that way, but I guess 2017 was just a great year for nonfiction! Here are the books that were my favorites among what I read published before 2018: My top backlist favorite this … Continue reading Pre-2018 Favorites

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current events, history, investigative journalism, memoir, Middle East, narrative nonfiction, politics, Russia, travel, true crime

12 New Nonfiction Titles to Look Forward to in 2019

I’m still working on compiling my favorites of 2018 booklist, but it’s hard to focus on the past when 2019 has so much exciting new nonfiction on the way! Let’s experience some Vorfreude (that wonderful German word describing the excitement of thinking about happiness to come) looking at some of 2019’s upcoming releases in nonfiction. In Putin’s Footsteps: Searching for the Soul of an Empire Across … Continue reading 12 New Nonfiction Titles to Look Forward to in 2019

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book review, science

Nonfiction Classic: A “Young Writer’s Book” on the Natural World

Book review: Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, by Annie Dillard (Amazon / Book Depository) I used to have a cat, an old fighting tom, who would jump through the open window by my bed in the middle of the night and land on my chest … And some mornings I’d wake in daylight to find my body covered with paw prints in blood; I looked as … Continue reading Nonfiction Classic: A “Young Writer’s Book” on the Natural World

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biography, book review, history, narrative nonfiction

Roosevelt in the Rainforest

Book review: The River of Doubt, by Candice Millard (Amazon / Book Depository) Candice Millard, former National Geographic writer, describes the journey Theodore Roosevelt undertook traveling the then unmapped Amazonian River of Doubt, an adventurous exploration that nearly ended up costing him his life. A few others did lose their lives under varying circumstances during the arduous and ill-planned journey. But history was made, as … Continue reading Roosevelt in the Rainforest

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2018, book review, memoir, travel

Culinary Visits with Literary Mentors

Book review: The Traveling Feast, by Rick Bass (Amazon / Book Depository) I decided to take a break from writing and go on an extended pilgrimage. I set out traveling the country (and in one case Europe) to visit writers who were mostly a generation older than I am, the ones who helped me become a writer trained outside a university. Sometimes they helped me … Continue reading Culinary Visits with Literary Mentors

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book review, investigative journalism, narrative nonfiction, science, travel

The Obsessive, Expensive World of Arowana Collecting

Book review: The Dragon Behind the Glass, by Emily Voigt (Amazon / Book Depository) Once upon a time I had wanted to find out why a pet fish was so irresistible that people smuggled it into the United States, risking their very liberty. Three and a half years and fifteen countries later, I was now in Brazil (possibly illegally) pursuing the fish myself. At some … Continue reading The Obsessive, Expensive World of Arowana Collecting

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2018, americana, book review, history, memoir, narrative nonfiction, travel

Then and Now, Across America’s Last Frontier

Book review: Tip of the Iceberg, by Mark Adams (Amazon / Book Depository) Travel writer Mark Adams recounts his experiences traveling in Alaska, that “last great American frontier”, following the trail of an exploratory expedition run by railroad tycoon Edward Harriman in 1899. That expedition was mapping the state’s coastline, and included famed naturalist and conservationist writer John Muir (a self-described “author and student of … Continue reading Then and Now, Across America’s Last Frontier

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americana, biography, book review, history, science

America’s Plant and Agricultural Immigrants

Book review: The Food Explorer, by Daniel Stone (Amazon / Book Depository) One of the humbling parts of being an American is the regular reminder that no matter how swollen America’s pride or power, nothing has been American for very long. A few years ago, it occurred to me that the same way immigrants came to our soil, so did our food. I was at … Continue reading America’s Plant and Agricultural Immigrants

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americana, book review, narrative nonfiction, science

Tales from Yellowstone: Triumphs and Struggles of Wolf Reintroduction

Book review: American Wolf, by Nate Blakeslee (Amazon / Book Depository) Maybe you’ve seen this video that made the social media rounds awhile back, about the effects wolf reintroduction has had on Yellowstone National Park:   It’s a beautiful, almost heartwarming story of humans helping nature to right itself (after humans messed it up in the first place): a feared and misunderstood predator reintroduced to a park … Continue reading Tales from Yellowstone: Triumphs and Struggles of Wolf Reintroduction

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2017, book review, history, narrative nonfiction, Russia

Red Weather Reports: Art and Memories from Siberia

Book review: Stalin’s Meteorologist, by Olivier Rolin (Amazon / Book Depository) I have not glossed over Alexey Feodosievich’s faults, when I was aware of them. I have not sought to turn him into an exemplary hero. He was neither a scientific genius nor a great poet, he was in many ways an ordinary man, but he was innocent. In 2012, French author Olivier Rolin discovered … Continue reading Red Weather Reports: Art and Memories from Siberia

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2017, americana, book review, essays, memoir, travel

Sweet, Funny, Smart Takes On Life’s Wilderness

Book review: Vacationland, by John Hodgman (Amazon / Book Depository) “Nobody knows,” I said, meaning at least one person does not know, and that person is me. I didn’t know anything about John Hodgman (comedian, author, Daily Show and This American Life contributor, podcaster) at all before I picked up his most recent book, a collection of essayish memoirs, Vacationland. I came to it without any preconceptions about him or … Continue reading Sweet, Funny, Smart Takes On Life’s Wilderness

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