Friday 31 May 2013

Armchair BEA: Non-Fiction


In the days before I was a blogger, I read more non-fiction than fiction.  My ratio must have been about 70% non-fiction to 30% fiction and I thought nothing of losing myself in a big, dense, history book for weeks at a time.  When I started blogging, I became exposed to lots and lots of fiction reviews and gradually my reading habits changed; I'm lucky if I get to 20% non-fiction now.  But I still enjoy non-fiction books, especially from the following categories:

History:

  

  1.  Marie Antoinette by Antonia Fraser - Anything by Antonia Fraser is worth reading.  She writes excellent biographies of historical figures that are packed with research but still read like a narrative.  Marie Antoinette is my favourite of hers, and was the inspiration for the film.
  2. Lords of the Horizon by Jason Goodwin - I just love the Ottomans, and this is by far the best book on them I have read.  It's beautifully written and full of quirky little facts about the different Sultans.
  3. The State of Africa by Martin Meredith - African history after independence can be quite confusing, but this is an excellent overview of what happened in most of the major countries after the European powers left.  It's one I've read through once, but still keep dipping in and out of.

Biography / Memoirs:

  

  1. Shake Hands with the Devil by Romeo Dallaire - Dallaire was the UN commander in Rwanda at the time of the genocide.  Shake Hands with the Devil chronicles his attempts to raise awareness and stop the horror.  It's not easy reading, but it's a book that will stay with you.
  2. Tiger, Tiger by Margaux Fragoso - Again, this isn't easy reading.  Fragoso was groomed as a young girl and was the victim of a pedophile for many years.  Given the sensitive and sensational topic, Tiger, Tiger is honestly and bluntly written.
  3. My Life by Bill Clinton - I love political memoirs, and this is my favourite. I liked Obama's Dreams from the Father too, but Clinton's is a fuller account of his life plus his political experiences.

Travel:

  

  1. In Arabian Nights by Tahir Shah - A romantic, dreamy look at life in Morocco, based on the story-telling tradition of the country.  Will make you want to visit immediately!
  2. The Shadow of the Sun by Ryszard Kapuscinski - Kapuscinski is a Polish journalist and this book is about his experiences reporting from Africa.  The politics is interwoven with his awe and wonder at the many things he sees.
  3. Empires of the Indus by Alice Albinia - Albinia travels up the Indus river, from it's mouth in Pakistan  to the source in Tibet.  This one is packed full of interesting information.
Are you a non-fiction reader?  After writing this post, I definitely feel like I want to increase the amount of non-fiction I read.


28 comments:

  1. I would love to be a non-fiction reader, but sadly, I tend to fall asleep when I read non-fiction books. Which is REALLY lame, I know, and is really unhelpful when I'm trying to study, but there it is.
    I really want to read more, especially about Elizabeth I and Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn and all those other fascinating historical figures! I did read a book on The Duchess of Devonshire, which was really interesting!

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    1. Antonia Fraser has a book about the six wives of Henry VIII, it's really engaging. You might not fall asleep? :P

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  2. I want to read everything you just listed. I'm fairly sure I've seen a few of them in the library... I might have to go and check that out - because I don't go to the library almost every day or anything, I definitely need another trip!

    I love non-fiction. I have piles of it on my TBR shelves, but for some reason I never seem to get to it. Or I'll read tons of the same sort of things (at the moment, food and book related memoirs) and ignore the rest. At Home by Bill Bryson has been staring at me for over a year despite the fact that I love him and have read everything else he ever wrote. Weird.

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    1. I am addicted to the library, it's a serious problem! The librarians all smile at me when I go in now and direct me to my holds :)

      I do that with books I'm excited to read - I think the pressure on them is too much!

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  3. Oh, also, happy half term! :-) Hope you're having a lovely relaxing week!

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  4. Oh my gossshhh I love your picks. I've never heard of that Empires of the Indus book but my World History teacher ears perked up and that cover is gorgeous. I absolutely ADORE Marie Antoinette, it's one of my favorites.

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    1. Marie Antoinette is such a great book, I was torn whether to pick that one or Fraser's book about Mary Queen of Scots, which is also fab :)

      Have fun with Empires of the Indus!

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  5. This is a great post! I'm adding Lords of the Horizon, In Arabian Nights and Empires of the Indus to my TBR list.

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  6. I'm really glad you mentioned Antonia Fraser. I'm keen to read more non-fiction (especially biographies), and if it flows like a novel, I'm even more likely to love it!

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    1. Hope they live up to expectation for you, Andi! Here bio of Mary Queen of Scots is excellent too :)

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    2. Awesome! Can't wait. Off to do some Goodreads list-adding.

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  7. I hardly read any nonfiction at all, though pre-blogging I used to like memoirs. In Arabian Nights sounds good though... I've wanted to visit Morocco for years!

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    1. I like memoirs but I find them a bit hit and miss - any recommendations?

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  8. Yay for nonfiction! It's the best! :) You've listed a bunch of books that I haven't read and will definitely be checking into. I also really enjoyed Clinton's book. It was an eye-opener to say the least.

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    1. That it was, I love reading behind the scenes accounts of big political decisions. Tony Blair's autobiography was good too, but not as honest!

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  9. I love reading about Marie Antoinette. I need to look into that biography! Thank you for sharing. You have a wonderful assortment.

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    1. She's fascinating, isn't she? Especially the difference between who she was and her image.

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  10. Thank you for recommending a book on post-colonial Africa - when you said "African history after independence can be quite confusing" I had to say "YES!" I pick up bits here and there but it all gets muddled together in my head. So yeah, I'm ordering a copy of that one!

    I've had Shake Hands With the Devil for quite a few years now but I still haven't read it. I find it hard to make time for non-fiction, much more so than any other kind of book, but when I do get around to reading it I always feel so glad I did. Sometimes they make me feel like I just did a whole other uni degree, they really wake my brain up!

    I shared some of the ones I've read, today, and some of the many others still unread.

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    1. I'm glad I'm not the only one to find it confusing! Although sadly, lots of countries have the same story, just with a different military dictator.

      Waking our brains up is always a good thing, I'm sure I was smarter when I was at uni than I am now!

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  11. I have arabian nights on my Classics Club list to read, In Arabian Nights sounds like one I'd enjoy. I think I read more nonfiction now that I'm a book blogger than I did before. Really enjoying it, much to my own surprise!

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    1. It would make a good companion book, Tanya. Arabian Nights is brilliant, you're in for a treat :)

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  12. I'm a huge fan of non-fiction and that Africa title looks tantalizing.

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  13. I'm very excited about your history recommendations! My favorite history read lately were Six Wives and The Black Count :)

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  14. My experience is the opposite of yours. Before blogging I read almost exclusively fiction, unless I was researching something in particular. But since I started blogging, more and more nonfiction is catching my eye. I still read primarily fiction, but my percentage of nonfiction has certainly increased. Lords of the Horizons sounds like something I should read.

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  15. The Marie Anttionete book sounds great. I'll have to remember to check out Fraser's books in the future.

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  16. This year I am making a conscious effort to read more non-fiction. Since reading The Man Who Broke into Auschwitz I realised what I was missing out on in terms of memoir/historical non-fiction. Mostly I read arty/historical/bookish non-fiction but those travel books look awfully tempting...

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  17. Oh wow! Late comment but I want to read almost everything! I'm interested in the memoirs but I might have to save them for braver times! Thanks for this post, definitely adding to my TBR list! Especially the first three!

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