Almost French was the pick for the non-fiction book discussion in February. So let me sum up the evening for you: If you loved Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert there is a slight, and I mean slight chance you may like Almost French. Lots of comparisons here: finding yourself, finding love, finding and eating … Continue reading
Category Archives: Nonfiction Book Club
How We Got to Now by Steven Johnson
“How We Got to Now” by Steven Johnson chronicles the making of the modern world through innovations in 6 different aspects of everyday life: Glass, Cold, Sound, Clean, Time and Light. These are seemingly simple innovations, but, as Johnson demonstrates, they’ve had enormous impacts on the way we live our lives today. Can you imagine … Continue reading
The Crossroads of Should and Must by Elle Luna
What drives your passion? What would you do if all limitations were removed from your life? Would you follow your dreams? Are you following your dreams? These are the questions Elle Luna encourages her readers to consider in the book “The Crossroads of Should and Must.” We all have dreams we’d like to pursue, and … Continue reading
An Invisible Thread by Laura Schroff
It all begins with a chance encounter on a busy street corner in New York City. A busy sales executive brushes past an 11-year old boy asking for change on the street corner and continues on with her day. But then something convinces her to stop. She turns around and offers to have lunch with … Continue reading
Brunelleschi’s Dome by Ross King
If you are planning to read this book, here is what you need to be or need to have done: An architect (this wins hands-down!) An art historian (you could probably have been an art history major, but you would need to have memorized lots of dates. And I mean lots!) A physicist (with a … Continue reading
Lab Girl by Hope Jahren
Lab Girl is the most recent Non-Fiction Book Discussion pick, and participants for the most part said they enjoyed the book. It is the memoir of Hope Jahren, a geobiologist and teacher. Divided into three sections, it chronicles her hopes and dreams, as well as her setbacks. The first section discusses her early years growing … Continue reading
The Soul of an Octopus by Sy Montgomery
“The Soul of an Octopus” surprised me. If I’m honest, I’m not even entirely sure of what brought me to pick this book up in the first place, but in the end, I’m glad I did. “The Soul of an Octopus” follows author Sy Montgomery’s interactions with octopuses both in captivity and in the wild. … Continue reading
Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow
The non-fiction book discussion participants were very interested in reading this. The group was given two and a half months to do so, but only two actually finished it. So first, let’s get the negativity out of the way. Here are those comments: “WAY, WAY, WAY too long.” OK, that is true. “WAY, WAY, WAY … Continue reading
The Greater Journey: Americans in Paris by David McCullough
This quarter’s non-fiction book club selection, The Greater Journey: Americans in Paris, is a whopping 558 page travelogue/history of Paris between the 1830s through the early 1900s. In these pages, McCullough tells the tale of the Americans that were brave enough, fortunate enough, or foolish enough to make the difficult trek from America to France. … Continue reading
The Disappearing Spoon by Sam Kean
Who would ever imagine that a book about the Periodic Table of the Elements could be so enjoyed by anyone other than chemists or physicists? Well, Sam Kean did and the outcome was the VERY interesting Disappearing Spoon. And the attendees of the Non-Fiction Book Discussion could not agree more. First, any ideas where the … Continue reading
