2024 NonFiction Challenge

[Carol]

Buddy Read: Doppelganger

If you're interested in joining a buddy read of Naomi Klein's Doppelganger: A Trip into the Mirror World, visit this thread and join in. https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

We informally aligned on starting it July 22, but Monica's got her copy and is leading the way. I anticipate a great thread, and this is one I likely wouldn't otherwise have prioritized if not for the opportunity to discuss here.

[Mj]

For the 2024 Annual Non-Fiction Women challenge I set 6 books as my goal (1 book every 2nd month.) To date I have read 7 books.

You can check them out on the Read Women's challenge widget if you're interested and I've listed them below for those unfamiliar with the widgets.

Barracoon: The Story of the Last "Black Cargo" by Zora Neale Hurston 3 stars
Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches by Audre Lorde 4 stars
A Writer's House in Wales by Jan Morris 4 stars
The Erratics by Vicki Laveau-Harvie 4 stars
I Am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced by Nujood Ali 5 stars
Truth Telling: Seven Conversations about Indigenous Life in Canada by Michelle Good 5 stars
Becoming a Matriarch: A Memoir by Helen Knott 5 stars

All are worth reading but I did rate some higher than others.

[Carol]

Mj wrote: "For the 2024 Annual Non-Fiction Women challenge I set 6 books as my goal (1 book every 2nd month.) To date I have read 7 books.

You can check them out on the Read Women's challenge widget if you'r..."

Truth Telling sounds interesting, Mj. What a great mix of reads you've tackled. What did you think of The Erratics? I'm not familiar with it and the title intrigues.

[Jen]

Oh good catch, Carol. Yea, The Erratics sounds like a trip. I’m curious now too.

[Mj]

Carol wrote:

"Truth Telling sounds interesting, Mj. What a great mix of reads you've tackled."

Carol, Thanks for your positive comment and interest in Truth Telling: Seven Conversations about Indigenous Life in Canada by Michelle Good. It is a small book with an intro and 6 distinct sections (all forming a part of the big picture) about the treatment and colonization of Indigenous people. It is primarily about Canada / North America but with much of the same her/history that has happened globally whenever powerful nations colonize other nations or regions solely for their own benefit and without regard for the people already living there.

I'd recommend it to readers who know a little or a lot about the history and treatment of Indigenous people wherever they live as takeover and colonialism anywhere seems to have a common pattern.

The author is Canadian and has lived through all that she writes about. She is a trained and educated lawyer and writer, as well as, a long-time community and organizational activist. Her first book, a fiction, called Five Little Indians was written when she was 60+, won national awards and acclaim.

Her writing in this non-fiction is terrific and the research extensive. It is the most packed-full-of-information non-fictions that I've read in a long while. It is also one of the easiest to read. It's amazing how much info can be communicated and absorbed without confusing or bogging down the reader when an author organizes and writes it so well.

Another point worth noting is that this book is written in a very non-emotional manner, which I think will help many more readers learn about Indigenous Colonialism. I suspect that many readers don't attempt to read or abandon books that are too negatively descriptive because it causes a visceral response that the reader doesn't want to feel or absorb (understandably so.)

This almost academic writing style is a good thing for the content and provides an opportunity for readers to explore more of the topic of Indigenous colonialism. It reads like someone defending a position in a thesis, debate or court case - without feelings. It's with just the facts and explanation but is definitely not boring.

As you can tell, I an really positive about this book and want everyone to read it. :)

[Mj]

Carol wrote: "\..."What did you think of The Erratics? I'm not the familiar with it and the title intrigues."

Jen wrote Oh good catch, Carol. Yea, The Erratics sounds like a trip. I’m curious now too,

[Mj]

Carol wrote:
"What did you think of The Erratics? I'm not the familiar with it and the title "

Jen wrote:
"Oh good catch, Carol. Yea, The Erratics sounds like a trip. I’m curious now too."

Based on research, I chose The Erratics for Bingo Square
N1 in the 2024 1st Half Bingo. In 2019 it won the Stella Prize - a beloved and well-respected annual literary prize awarded to the most excellent, original and outstanding book written by an Australian woman or non-binary writer (definition from Stella’s website). It turns out the author was also born in Canada, was employed in France and later settled in Australia.

I was particularly intrigued by the subject matter – mental health, aging parents, isolation, cruelty, two daughters alienated thousands of miles away from their parents returning home to Canada after 20 years to help with their parents’ with medical issue. They appeared to be a dysfunctional family and the topics of interpersonal relationships and dynamics, aging, elder care are of interest to me.

From Reviews:

Kirkus Revews – “This riveting book explores family relationships with a darkly humorous ferocity that is both remarkable and elegant. A poignant, unsparing, often poetic memoir.”

Alex McClintock Globe and Mail – “Piercing, honest and oddly hilarious.”

I was a bit concerned about the cruelty subject matter and the mention of dark humour as I am not a big fan of darkness or evil but I thought the humour aspect might make it more palatable for me and I thought the subject matter was important.

The memoir was hard to put down, almost a page turner. The reading really flowed easily and the writing was exquisite - sometime almost poetic. I was pleased with the complexity of the written word and the descriptions of interpersonal relationships and yet everything was easily readable. I quite enjoyed the humour sprinkled throughout. This was an excellent debut book – a non-fiction memoir awarded The 2019 Stellar Prize as well as The 2018 Austrian Finch Memoir Prize.

[Misty]

Thanks for the recommendation MJ - it is on my ever-growing TBR.

A couple more that I've read that I really enjoyed:
Catching the Light by Joy Harjo (Memoir)
The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion (Memoir)

[Jen]

Exciting personal update- tomorrow I take off for a big hike in the Alps! Conjure your good vibes and wishes for me cuz honestly I'm also a bit scared cuz I never did such a big multi-day/real-mountains hike. Gonna be strenuous... here's hoping the joints (and rest of the body, and mind...) don't get toooo cranky haha...

Anyway, all this to say- I think it's because of Carol I learned of The Living Mountain by Nan Shepherd and I'm bringing this slim, on-theme book with me :) Really looking forward to this one.

[Carol]

Jen wrote: "Exciting personal update- tomorrow I take off for a big hike in the Alps! Conjure your good vibes and wishes for me cuz honestly I'm also a bit scared cuz I never did such a big multi-day/real-moun..."

Wow! How exciting (I’d be incredibly intimidated, in equal parts). I hope you have a fab time and make great memories, and that you like the book, too 😂💕

[Misty]

Jen wrote: "Exciting personal update- tomorrow I take off for a big hike in the Alps! Conjure your good vibes and wishes for me cuz honestly I'm also a bit scared cuz I never did such a big multi-day/real-moun..."

Wow! Have fun! That sounds amazing.

[Jen]

Earlier this year I read The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson. I know this is a widely loved book so I thought I'd mention here that Blues Legacies and Black Feminism: Gertrude "Ma" Rainey, Bessie Smith, and Billie Holiday by Angela Y. Davis is really reminding me of it at times, especially the chapter about travel (common theme in blues music). Davis brings up the migration too in this section but comes at it from a different angle. Davis' works, like the Wilkerson, seem rigorously researched and well-written and this one overlaps in era and theme, so I think it's a great companion piece to the Wilkerson. The Davis book is our current nonfiction group read but if you're not participating, I don't expect you're following the discussion, so I wanted to mention this connection here in case it might interest anyone or inspire reading either of these excellent books...

Hope everyone's having a nice holiday/end-of-year time that's as smooth and stress-free as is manageable :)

[Misty]

Jen wrote: "Hope everyone's having a nice holiday/end-of-year time that's as smooth and stress-free as is manageable :)"

Right back atcha! :)

I'm glad you commented because I sort of forgot about this thread, and I have some good ones to add! :)

In the second half of the year I read:
On Juneteenth by Annette Gordon-Reed - I'm pretty sure that someone here recommended it. It was really informative, and I recommend it.

Rainbow History Class: Your Guide Through Queer and Trans History by Hannah McIlhenney - this is a fantastic bunch of history. I have an issue with one chapter, but the rest of the book is so interesting.

In the Margins: On the Pleasures of Reading and Writing by Elena Ferrante - this is a collection of several essays, and most of them are very good.

Saving My Assassin: A Memoir by Virginia Prodan - I have very mixed feelings about this book. On one hand, she gives an emotional first-hand account of what it was like living in Romania during a facist regime. On the other hand, she supports a fascist here in the US. (Yes - I know I'm dipping into personal politics, so take this as MY opinion on the book - not trying to start an argument.) She talks a lot about her beliefs, and while I support her right to her beliefs, she also comes across as someone who wants tolerance but is also intolerant herself, if that makes sense? Anyway - mixed feelings, but the historical aspect of living in a fascist regime was interesting.

The Spy Wore Red by Aline, Countess of Romanones - What a fascinating story! She was a spy for the US in Spain towards the end of WWII. I swear, if she had been a man, this story would have been made into a movie. I really enjoyed it. Most of it read like a novel.

[Jen]

Misty wrote: "Jen wrote: "Hope everyone's having a nice holiday/end-of-year time that's as smooth and stress-free as is manageable :)"

Right back atcha! :)

I'm glad you commented because I sort of forgot abou..."

:)

Does Ferrante write about Elsa Morante in this collection?

[Monica]

Jen wrote: "Earlier this year I read The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson. I know this is a widely loved book so I thought I..."

Thanks Jen!! The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration is a favorite of mine! I wanted to read Blues Legacies and Black Feminism: Gertrude "Ma" Rainey, Bessie Smith, and Billie Holiday with this group but could not get into the mindset required (I don't have access to an audiobook so this must be read). December is usually saved for upbeat books or books that I just plain want to read. On the strength of your recommendation, I've going to give it a shot in February!

[Jen]

Cool, Monica! I’ll be curious to hear your thoughts on it.
I like your approach to December reading 👍😊

[Misty]

Jen wrote: "Does Ferrante write about Elsa Morante in this collection?"

Yes she does talk about her.

[Monica]

For those who still do kindle US:

by Ketanji Brown Jackson $2.99