Staff Reviews: Nonfiction
Check out these book reviews written by the staff of the Marathon County Public Library, featuring reviews of books for all ages! (For reviews of books of all genres, visit our main Staff Reviews webpage.) These book reviews also are published at Goodreads.com; follow us for the latest updates.
"Over The Hills And Far Away: The Life of Beatrix Potter"
Famous for her many ‘little books’ such as Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny, Beatrix Potter’s life has been extensively documented. For those who don’t know where to begin I recommend this short biography. Each chapter smoothly moves through the stages in Potter’s life with frequent direct quotations from her own journals, which she kept meticulously....
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction
"Sad Animal Facts"
For those of you who like animal trivia facts, this book is for you. There are over 150 hand-drawn illustrations with little known facts about your favorite animal. For example, did you know that a koi fish can live 200 years? Or that gorillas can catch human colds or that camels can drink 30 gallons of water in 15 minutes? This book is a quick read...
Audience: Adults, Children, Teens | Genre: Nonfiction
"My Two Elaines: Learning, Coping, and Surviving as an Alzheimer's Caregiver"
“My Two Elaines” is the perfect title for this book. Former Wisconsin Governor, Martin J. Schreiber fell in love with his wife, Elaine, when in high school. They married during college and pledged a lifelong commitment to each other. Together they raised a family and had successful careers. That is, until the “other Elaine” came into the story....
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction, Memoir
"The Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit"
For 27 years, Christpher Knight lived in complete solitude in the woods of Maine, becoming known by locals as the North Pond Hermit. Knight only encountered a handful of wayward hikers in his quarter century in isolation, tucked away in a large camp that he made into his own makeshift home. Year after year, Knight survived on his own, meticulously...
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction, Biography
"Rise of the Rocket Girls: The Women Who Propelled Us, from Missiles to the Moon to Mars"
This book is an account of women who were human computers (and later computer programmers and engineers) at the Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL) in California. Rather than choose one of the occupations most commonly pursued by women of their time (teacher, nurse, or secretary), these women put their math and science skills to work in order to generate equations and...
Audience: Adults, Teens | Genre: Nonfiction
"What's It Like in Space?: Stories from Astronauts Who've Been There"
If you're like me, you've often wondered what it's like for astronauts up in outer space; what it smells like, what it sounds like, and the overall difficulty of adapting to daily life. Now, there's a book that answers a lot of those questions and provides other interesting facts straight from the men and women who have traveled there and back!
The...
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction
"Ugly"
Growing up fairly normal-looking is difficult enough, but when you are, well, ugly, it is almost unimaginable. Born with a tennis ball-shaped tumor in the middle of his face instead of a nose, and with short twisted, mangled legs, Robert Hoge was not the sort of baby mothers rush to take home. As a matter of fact, his mother didn’t. After knowing the facts...
Audience: Children | Genre: Nonfiction
"Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania"
If you are looking for a good non-fiction book and like history, this is for you. This book reads and listens like a novel, which made it easier for me to read/listen to. This was a very interesting read because it was about something that was not taught in school. I personally have heard all there is to hear about the Titanic, but we don't ever hear...
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction
"Ghettoside: A True Story of Murder in America"
This work of narrative journalism explores the complex issues contributing to the homicide rate in Los Angeles, focusing on the black-on-black homicide rate in South Central LA. The book is informed and inspired by Leovy’s experiences reporting on homicide for The Los Angeles Times, during which time she was an embedded reporter in the Seventy-seventh...
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction
"The Princess Diarist"
Nearly everyone knows Carrie Fisher for her portrayal of Princess Leia Organa in the "Star Wars" film series. Being so strongly associated with this iconic character is something Fisher has struggled with virtually from the beginning of her career until she learned to embrace her alter ego later in life. The double-edged sword of a dilemma is the basis...
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction, Memoir, Celebrities
"Why Not Me?"
As someone who was thoroughly entertained by actress Mindy Kaling's first memoir "Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?" I really looked forward to what she had to say in this follow-up. While this book didn’t quite match the humor and substance of its predecessor, it was still enjoyable to read.
Known as the star of TV's "The Mindy Project" and for...
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction, Memoir, Humor, Celebrities
"The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo"
Celebrity memoirs almost always seem to promise to "bare it all" and give the reader an uncensored look at the star's life, but most only half-heartedly keep that promise. Amy Schumer, however, is not one of those stars. In her debut book, Schumer (perhaps best known for her Comedy Central sketch series or her semi-autobiographical comedy film "...
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction, Memoir, Celebrities, Humor
"Steve McQueen: The Actor and His Films"
A complex and enigmatic individual, Steve McQueen became a screen legend playing anti-authoritarian loners. Authors Antoniades and Siegel combine talents to produce this weighty and wonderful account of the life and film career of McQueen. The book is an entertaining tribute to the King of Cool, featuring over 1,000 color and black and white...
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction, Celebrities
"Churchill Style: The Art of Being Winston Churchill"
Of all the major political figures of the 20th Century, Winston Churchill certainly lived life to the fullest. A master of the English language, prolific author and lover of cigars and fine brandy, Churchill relished the political and intellectual world as few others did. Barry Singer’s book offers an insightful and altogether charming portrait of the...
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction, History
"Cary Grant: A Life in Pictures"
Few actors ever equaled Cary Grant’s elegance, sex appeal and versatility on screen. Yann-Brice Dherbier’s book offers up 170 pages of black and white photographs of Grant at work, at home and at play. It’s an entertaining photographic tribute that reminds us that Grant truly was one-of-a-kind.
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction, Celebrities, Photography
"Lithium Jesus"
Charles Monroe-Kane is a Peabody Award winning producer at National Public Radio. Before earning that title he spent what seems like a lifetime acquiring the labels of youth preacher, faith healer, traveler, smuggler, environmental activist, record producer, circus manager, and more.
During his childhood Monroe-Kane began hearing voices in his head....
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction, Memoir, Biography, Mental Health, Travel
"Born a Crime"
Before Trevor Noah was an internationally known comedian and host of The Daily Show he lived a modest life in South Africa with his mother. The two made a remarkable “team,” as he calls them, constantly trying to get ahead at the center of a world attempting to keep them behind.
Trevor Noah’s father is white, Swiss, and German. His mother is black and...
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction, Memoir, Humor
"The Many Faces of Josephine Baker: Dancer, Singer, Activist, Spy"
Most people recognize Josephine Baker as that dancer in the banana skirt. But Josephine Baker was a far more complex character than can be summarized in one sentence. Starting life in the poorest slums of East St. Louis, Baker went on to gain international fame dancing and singing on stage and eventually on screen. An extravagant dresser...
Audience: Teens | Genre: Biography, Nonfiction
"The Airport Book"
Join a young boy, his toddler sister, and their parents as they journey through a busy airport. From leaving the house to experiencing turbulence, and from boarding the plane to the baggage claim, the siblings take you through the entire process of going to the airport and flying on a plane. There is even a fun subplot about the sister's toy monkey and his...
Audience: Children | Genre: Nonfiction
"The Help Yourself Cookbook for Kids: 60 Easy Plant-Based Recipes Kids Can Make to Stay Healthy and Save the Earth"
Are you a parent or family member looking for healthy, fun meals for your youngest family members? This fun, new cookbook is a great resource for anyone looking for healthy recipes that will tempt even the pickiest eaters. Not only are all recipes vegan, so they are allergy friendly and environmentally conscious, but the author did a great job of...
Audience: Children | Genre: Nonfiction, Cookbook
"Chloe's Kitchen: 125 Easy, Delicious Recipes for Making the Food You Love the Vegan Way"
As always, Chloe Coscarelli's cookbooks are packed full of recipes for vegans and contain all the information you need to make over a hundred delicious meals. Not only will you find appetizers, soups, main meals, and pasta dishes, but Chloe has put together a tantalizing dessert section in this cookbook. I've got chocolate crème brulee, sea salt toffee bars...
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction, Cookbook
"Vegan Bowl Attack!: More than 100 One-Dish Meals Packed with Plant-Based Power"
Looking for nourishing, vegan meals that smoothly fit into one dish? This is a fun new cookbook with tantalizing photographs of vegan meals. Favorites like shepard's pie and cinnamon rolls are not only given a vegan do-over, but the author's creativeness can be seen in each of the recipes. I found this a great new resource for vegans and clean eaters alike...
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction, Cookbook
"Home is Burning"
Dan Marshall had it made at 25. After being brought up in a privileged (some may say spoiled) home, he had a great job in Los Angeles, a devoted long-term girlfriend and no bigger problem than deciding where to vacation next. Then, while lounging in Palm Springs, that life instantly vanishes when Marshall gets a call from his parents telling him that his...
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction, Memoir
"The Song Poet"
This is the true story of a courageous family who put family and love first. In some ways it is the continuing story of the author, Kao Kalia Yang’s family told in her first book, “The Late Homecomer”, only the focus of this book is her father, Bee Yang, who was orphaned as a young child, something that affected him his whole life. Bee Yang is a Song Poet,...
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction
"Grunt"
In this book, science author Mary Roach investigates the challenges the military tries to address in order to protect combat troops and provide the tools they need. She brings her trademark sense of humor, curiosity, and empathy to a wide range of topics that you never thought to be interested in. Frankly, some of them you may not rather think about, as...
Audience: Adults | Genre: Nonfiction
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