suggested reading: other nonfiction

 

 

Jesus Land by Julia Scheeres

Recommended by Phili Brooks

 

It's one of the most compelling, page-turning memoirs to come along in years. With the author's adopted black brothers, David and Jerome, she tried to survive in a rural Indiana community where messages of salvation and racism seemed to carry equal weight. The children are then sent to a reform school in the Dominican Republic where Julia and David wrestle with faith in an abusive environment.

 

 

The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan

Recommended by Ken Wilson

 

In the ancient days of hunter-gatherers, a wrong food choice could be one's last, as a poison mushroom or toxic root could kill the most discriminating omnivore. Today we face comparable dangers in the midst of plenitude. Pollan describes how parallel food chains (industrialized food, "organic" food, and home-gathered food) reflect our ecology of eating. A fascinating look behind the labels.

 

 

Bowling Alone by Robert D. Putnam

Recommended by Rich Nathan

 

Since its peak in the mid-1960s, involvement in civic and community organizations in the United States has been on the decline. From bridge clubs to charity leagues to the NAACP, organizations across the country are seeing their numbers slowly dwindle as their members age. Harvard professor Robert D. Putnam explores the changing role of community in the life of Americans.

 

 

101 Things You Didn't Know About Einstein: Sex, Science, and the Secrets of the Universe by Cynthia Phillips & Shana Priwir

Recommended by Mike Brooks

 

Sure, you've heard of Einstein's theory of relativity, but there's a lot more to be learned about this eccentric genius. Did you know he worked to develop hearing aids? Or that a student actually spotted a mistake in one of his papers? And you'll never guess what happened to Einstein's brain after he died.

 

 

Them: Adventures With Extremists by Jon Ronson

Recommended by Donnell Wyche

 

A wide variety of extremist groups — Islamic fundamentalists, neo-Nazis — share the oddly similar belief that a tiny shadowy elite rule the world from a secret room. In Them, journalist Jon Ronson has joined the extremists to track down the fabled secret room.

 

 

 

 

God and the Gun: The Church and Irish Terrorism by Martin Dillon

Recommended by Emily Swan

 

Writer and political commentator Dillon examines the role of religion in the violent political conflict in Northern Ireland through interviews with terrorists like Kenny McClinton and the late Billy Wright, as well as respected holy men like Father Pat Buckley.

 

 

 

Loud and Clear by Anna Quindlen

Recommended by Emily Swan

 

Quindlen, a veteran reporter, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for commentary, and bestselling author, couldn't have picked a more apt title for her latest collection of columns from Newsweek and the New York Times. Whether or not readers agree with her opinions on everything from youth culture to gun control, these razor-sharp musings will open avenues of debate and discussion long after the book is closed.

 

 

Good to Great by Jim Collins

Recommended by Ken Wilson

 

Based on an extensive five-year study conducted by Collins and a research team he affectionately refers to as "the Chimps," NY Times bestseller Good to Great defines and analyzes the practices that allowed 11 companies to make the rare transition from solid to outstanding performance.

 

 

 

 

The World Is Flat by Thomas L. Friedman

 

This book is NY Times journalist Thomas L. Friedman’s account of the great changes taking place in our time, as lightning-swift advances in technology and communications put people all over the globe in touch as never before-creating an explosion of wealth in India and China, and challenging the rest of us to run even faster just to stay in place.

 

 

 

 

Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer

Recommended by Emily Swan

 

Weaving the story of the Lafferty brothers and their fanatical brethren with a clear-eyed look at Mormonism's violent past, Krakauer examines the underbelly of the most successful homegrown faith in the U.S., and finds a distinctly American brand of religious extremism.

 

 

 

 

Life at the Extremes: The Science of Survival by Frances M. Ashcroft

Recommended by Emily Swan

 

The challenge of scaling the highest mountain, exploring the deepest ocean, crossing the hottest desert, or swimming in near-freezing water is irresistible to many people. Life at the Extremes is an engrossing exploration of what happens to our bodies in these seemingly uninhabitable environments.

 

 

 

The Mother Tongue: English and How It Got That Way by Bill Bryson

Recommended by Emily Swan

 

The Mother Tongue is an engaging jaunt through the quirks and byways of the world's most important--and baffling--of languages. Readers will learn why island, freight, and colonel are spelled in such unphonetic ways; why four has a u in it but forty does not; why Noah Webster was a liar, a cheat, and a plagiarist; and other fascinating facts about our mother tongue.

 

 

Black Like Me by John Howard Griffin

Recommended by Donnell Wyche

 

In the Deep South of the 1950s, journalist John Howard Griffin decided to cross the color line. Using medication that darkened his skin to deep brown, he exchanged his privileged life as a Southern white man for the disenfranchised world of an unemployed black man.

 

 

 

 

I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts On Being a Woman by Nora Ephron

 

With her disarming, intimate, completely accessible voice, and dry sense of humor, Nora Ephron shares with us her ups and downs in I Feel Bad About My Neck, a candid, hilarious look at women who are getting older and dealing with the tribulations of maintenance, menopause, empty nests, and life itself.