Recommendations for… those who want to try non-fiction

Even though I participate in giving Monthly Recommendations, I thought I would start my own where every couple weeks I give recommendations for a specific topic. This month I’m doing books for those who want to try non-fiction. I think non-fiction can be hard to get into, but it’s an important genre to read! All these books were 4-5 star reads for me!

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The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

This is one of my all-time favourite books. It follows Walls’ life growing up in extreme poverty in the US. It’s written very novel-like even though it’s a memoir, which I think makes it easier to read. It was also such an interesting look into her life.

Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen

This is memoir of Kaysen’s time in the psychiatric ward of a hospital. It’s really interesting and I really like all of her insights. Her perceptions of her fellow patients, and the anecdotes she provides are all really great. I think it really normalizes hospitalization, which I think is so important.

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

This is a graphic memoir (like a memoir in the form of a graphic novel) about Satrapi growing up in Iran during the time of the Islamic Revolution. I didn’t know much about this revolution and it was really interesting to read about. I think we have these perceptions of Iran and a lot of those were challenged by this memoir. I really related to Satrapi as well.

Born a Crime by Trevor Noah

This memoir is about Noah growing up in South Africa as a person of mixed race during Apartheid. It’s so interesting. It’s also really funny and I really loved it. I think the audiobook is narrated by Noah, and he has a great narration voice, so I would also recommend the audiobook!

Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo

This is a non-fiction about a slum in Mumbai, India. It follows several different slum-dwellers and their lives. It was so interesting. Reading about their living and working conditions was really interesting. The hierarchy in the slum was interesting as well. I also really liked the insights into the laws in India, and how they can be limiting and exploited. It’s also written in such a novel-like format that I had to check a couple times that it actually was non-fiction. I highly recommend it!

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Those are my recommendations for non-fiction! Any recommendations for me?

Ally xx