Friday, December 31, 2010

My Third and Final Best List of 2010: Non Fiction and Memoirs

My Non-Fiction/Memoir "best" list is interesting to me, because despite my love of memoirs, many of the books that made my list are non-fiction titles not memoirs.

Again, in no particular order, this is my 2010 list of the best non-fiction/memoir books I have read:
1. Making Toast by Roger Rosenblatt - a slim memoir, I was able to read this in one sitting. Rosenblatt's daughter Amy dies and he and his wife move in with their son-in-law to help raise their three grandchildren. Sad, yet uplifting and hopeful.

2. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot - While Lacks died young of cervical cancer, her cells provided scientists with some very important information.

3. The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore- Two men, both named Wes Moore, both growing up in Baltimore, both without fathers. One goes on to become a Rhodes scholar, ther other is serving a life prison sentence.

4. Ten Minutes From Home by Beth Greenfield. Greenfield recounts the loss of her best friend and her brother in a car accident just a few minutes from her home, forever changing her life.

5. Stuff: Compulsive Hoarding and the Meaning of Things by Professor Gail Steketee, PhD and Prof. Randy Frost, PhD. This is an inside look at the problem of hoarding, chronicling current cases and those from long ago. A very fascinating look at this disorder.





6. Zoo Story: Life in the Garden of Captives by Thomas French - a non-fiction account of the inner workings of zoo life- from the treatment of animals to employment issues.
7. Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea by Barbara Demick - this was an eye-opener for me as Demick chronicles the struggles of six North Koreans who defected.

8. Outcasts, United by Warren St. John- St. John takes a look at a group of refugees transplanted to a small Georgian town, united by soccer and their coach.

9. What We Have by Amy Boesky- Boesky takes one year in her life, and recounts what has led her and her sisters to have surgery prior to being diagnosed with breast or ovarian cancer because of their family history.

10. Open by Andre Agassi- Rarely do I think that a celebrity memoir is well written. I usually pick memoirs by lesser known people. However, this look at Andre Agassi and his thoughts on life and tennis was interesting and well written.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Tina, I've enjoyed your lists very much. I haven't read any of the ones here, but many are on my TBR pile. Good to hear your pleasure in them.

Wishing you and your sweet family a very Happy New Year! I hope you experience much joy in 2011 and have lots and lots of great reading!! Take care!