In the world of nonfiction publishing, the well-known adage holds true: the truth is stranger than fiction. Nonfiction allows a lot of freedom for writers to pursue what interests them, from historical figures to economic issues and more. Journalists, biographers, and essayists have the talent of taking these true stories and shaping them into something vivid. A good nonfiction writer has to convey a sense of place just as well as a fiction writer, while also ensuring everything is accurate and fact-checked. And, they want you to use those descriptions to put you in someone’s head—far from a simple trove of factors, new narrative nonfiction wants you to feel what happened as deeply as possible.
Alongside beloved bestseller London Calling by Patrick Radden Keefe and Lena Dunham’s headline-grabbing memoir Famesick this past year, there are a ton of nonfiction reads to keep nonfiction momentum going.
Biography
This Dark Night: Emily Bronte, A Life by Deborah Lutz
The Brontës are having a bit of a moment again with adaptations and a semi-biographical film about Emily herself, and this book does its best to explain the elusive genius. Since the Brontës were not recognized as genius writers until much later, the historical record of their lives is incomplete. However, Lutz uses the poems, journals, and ephemera Emily left behind in her 30 years to piece together her internal life. Emily wrote about grief and commented regularly on nature and the rising industrialism in faraway cities.
Historical Accounts
Here Where We Live is Our Country: the Story of the Jewish Bund by Molly Crabapple
Illustrator Molly Crabapple introduced tons of other readers and me to a little-discussed group: the Jewish Labor Bund. Bundists were a loose group of progressive Jewish people in Eastern Europe who had the binding moral ethic of embracing diasporic communities and anti-Zionism. With drawings of the Bundists, Crabapple reconstructs the beliefs and aspirations of the Bundists and provides a fantastic story of artists, writers, and revolutionaries who wanted to change the world.
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The W: A History of the WNBA: How the WNBA Survived, Evolved, and Changed Professional Sports by Tamryn Spull
No matter how good the WNBA teams play, there remains a sexist bent to the coverage of their work. They’ve recently won fair contracts and salaries sustainable for their career, and this book is a reminder of how hard they fought to play the game they love. WNBA teams have often been leaders in athlete activism, both due to necessity and because of their beliefs. This book coincides with the 30-year anniversary of the league, and releases on September 22nd, so it can be the first read of the fall.
Essays
On Morrison by Namwali Serpell
As one of the most important literary figures of recent history, Toni Morrison’s prolific body of work is a joy to dive into. Serpell teaches classes about Morrison, and brings the joy of close-reading a Morrison novel with an expert to her book. She also includes her other form experiments, like drama and poetry, to give more insight into Morrison’s own preoccupations and the questions she wrestled with as a writer. This is a great journey for both Morrison fans and beginners.
On Witness and Repair by Jesmyn Ward
In this essay collection, Jesmyn Ward lends her beautiful prose to telling true stories about her life. She immerses readers in her reading life and helps us understand her influences and how she ingested them to create her own style. She also writes beautifully about processing grief, confronting racism, and what she loves.
World-Spanning Reportage
Waste Wars: The Wild Afterlife of Your Trash by Alexander Clapp
Like any good nonfiction book, Clapp’s globetrotting investigation into trash gives me an excellent view into a topic I don’t think about very often. Trash is a major public health issue, but it’s more than that—there’s a border-crossing trade of trash that widens gaps between rich and poor countries. The book accomplishes its goal: trash is not out of sight or out of mind. For the good of the future, we have to confront trash as part of the climate crisis.
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