by Patti Hartigan Overall: August Wilson, one of the most important playwrights of the 20th century, died in 2005, but August Wilson: A Life is the first major biography to examine his life and work. Through interviews conducted with Wilson, some of his inner circle, and extensive research, this book builds a portrait of aContinue reading “August Wilson: A Life”
Category Archives: Non Fiction
Evidence of Things Seen: True Crime in an Era of Reckoning
Edited by Sarah Weinman Overall: This collection of previously published essays and articles provides an overview of what’s on the minds of writers who engage with crime and the criminal justice system in America. As someone who reads the occasional non-fiction book about crime (The Art Thief, We Keep the Dead Close, The Trial ofContinue reading “Evidence of Things Seen: True Crime in an Era of Reckoning”
The Art Thief
by Michael Finkel Overall: I love a good true crime tale, and The Art Thief falls into an interesting niche: the notorious but non-violent crime. Stéphane Breitwieser managed to steal hundreds of paintings, sculptures, and historic and decorative objects across Europe – many of them priceless – over eight years. He never sold any ofContinue reading “The Art Thief”
We Keep the Dead Close
by Becky Cooper Overall: I picked up this book because I attended Harvard and was curious about this cold case. In 1969, Jane Britton, a graduate student in anthropology, was found murdered in her apartment in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Becky Cooper first heard the story as a kind of legend when she was an undergrad; herContinue reading “We Keep the Dead Close”
Africatown: America’s Last Slave Ship and the Community It Created
by Nick Tabor Overall: This excellent, compulsively readable work of non-fiction tells the story of the community in Alabama that grew up following the voyage of the Clothilde, which is believed to be the last ship to transport enslaved people from Africa to the United States. Africatown makes a convincing case for how systemic racism,Continue reading “Africatown: America’s Last Slave Ship and the Community It Created”
Harvard Square: A Love Story
by Catherine J. Turco Overall: Harvard Square: A Love Story examines two central notions. First, it looks at the idea that for decades people had been complaining that the Harvard Square wasn’t what it “used to be.” Every generation bemoans changes in the marketplace that make the beloved world of the Square seem different (usuallyContinue reading “Harvard Square: A Love Story”
The Pirate’s Wife
by Daphne Palmer Geanacopoulos Overall: The Pirate’s Wife is the non-fiction account of the life of Sarah Kidd, whose third husband was the infamous Captain Kidd. Sarah lived a long and interesting life; born in England, she came to the colonies as a teenager and was promptly married off. Through her first husband, she becameContinue reading “The Pirate’s Wife”
Unmask Alice: LSD, Satanic Panic, and the Imposter Behind the World’ Most Notorious Diaries
by Rick Emerson Overall: In Unmask Alice, journalist Rick Emerson delves into a series of diaries published beginning in the early 1970s. These purported to be the words of troubled teenagers, and they received a lot of attention. The most famous of the diaries (and we can quibble about whether these are the “most notorious”Continue reading “Unmask Alice: LSD, Satanic Panic, and the Imposter Behind the World’ Most Notorious Diaries”
The Trial of Lizzie Borden
by Cara Robertson Overall: A meticulously researched deep dive into the murder of Andrew and Abby Borden in 1893, The Trial of Lizzie Borden describes the crime, its aftermath, the “investigation” (if you can call it that) by the police force, the trial, and what followed. If all you know about Lizzie Borden is theContinue reading “The Trial of Lizzie Borden”
All In: An Autobiography
by Billie Jean King Overall: I listened to this as an audiobook, and it was amazing to hear Billie Jean King reading her own words. You could hear her emotion at different points in the narrative, which added so much to the book. All In is a straight-up autobiography by pioneering tennis player and activistContinue reading “All In: An Autobiography”
Liz Helfrich 