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Recommendations based on Methland: The Death and Life of an American Small Townby Nick Reding
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Columbine
by Dave Cullen
Investigation into the 1999 Columbine High School massacre, exploring the perpetrators and the aftermath.
"The tragedies keep coming. As we reel from the latest horror . . . " So begins a new epilogue, illustrating how Columbine became the template for nearly two decades of "spectacle murders." It is a ... (Goodreads)
Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman
by Jon Krakauer
The inspiring story of a professional athlete and soldier who made the ultimate sacrifice for his country.
The bestselling author of, Into the Wild,, Into Thin Air, and, Under the Banner of Heaven, delivers a stunning, eloquent account of a remarkable young man’s haunting journey. Like the men whose epic ... (Goodreads)
Just Kids
by Patti Smith
Chronicles of two young artists in New York City, finding friendship and inspiration in each other.
In Just Kids , Patti Smith's first book of prose, the legendary American artist offers a never-before-seen glimpse of her remarkable relationship with photographer Robert Mapplethorpe in the epochal ... (Goodreads)
Consider the Lobster and Other Essays
by David Foster Wallace
Collection of essays exploring the human experience in a humorous, thoughtful and often absurd way.
Do lobsters feel pain? Did Franz Kafka have a funny bone? What is John Updike's deal, anyway? And what happens when adult video starlets meet their fans in person? David Foster Wallace answers these ... (Goodreads)
Gang Leader for a Day: A Rogue Sociologist Takes to the Streets
by Sudhir Venkatesh
An exploration of urban poverty and gang life, through the eyes of an unlikely researcher.
The story of the young sociologist who studied a Chicago crack-dealing gang from the inside captured the world's attention when it was first described in, Freakonomics,., Gang Leader for a Day, is ... (Goodreads)
Complications: A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science
by Atul Gawande
Exploration of the human costs and consequences of medical care, highlighting our imperfections and vulnerabilities.
In gripping accounts of true cases, surgeon Atul Gawande explores the power and the limits of medicine, offering an unflinching view from the scalpel's edge. Complications lays bare a science not in ... (Goodreads)
Eating the Dinosaur
by Chuck Klosterman
Collection of essays exploring pop culture, sports, and society through a philosophical lens.
Chuck Klosterman has chronicled rock music, film, and sports for almost fifteen years. He's covered extreme metal, extreme nostalgia, disposable art, disposable heroes, life on the road, life through ... (Goodreads)
Persepolis 2: The Story of a Return
by Marjane Satrapi
A graphic novel memoir of Marjane Satrapi's return to Iran after living in Europe, exploring her struggles with identity and belonging.
Note: The summary of the English editions of the novel is divided into two sections, one for each book. Persepolis 1 begins by introducing Marji, the ten-year-old protagonist. Set in 1980, the novel ... (Wikipedia)
Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity
by Katherine Boo
Explores the lives of the people living in Mumbai's slums and the harsh realities they face.
From Pulitzer Prize-winner Katherine Boo, a landmark work of narrative nonfiction that tells the dramatic and sometimes heartbreaking story of families striving toward a better life in one of the ... (Goodreads)
The Autobiography of Malcolm X
by Malcolm X
A gripping account of one man's transformation from criminal to civil rights leader.
Alternate cover for ISBN 9780345350688 Through a life of passion and struggle, Malcolm X became one of the most influential figures of the 20th Century. In this riveting account, he tells of his ... (Goodreads)
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
by Michelle Alexander
Exploring the roots and reality of systemic racism in the U.S. criminal justice system.
"Jarvious Cotton's great-great-grandfather could not vote as a slave. His great-grandfather was beaten to death by the Klu Klux Klan for attempting to vote. His grandfather was prevented from voting ... (Goodreads)
Beautiful Boy: A Father's Journey Through His Son's Addiction
by David Sheff
An intimate look at a father's struggle to understand and help his son through his addiction.
With a new afterword Now a Major Motion Picture What had happened to my beautiful boy? To our family? What did I do wrong? Those are the wrenching questions that haunted David Sheff’s journey through ... (Goodreads)
The Big Burn: Teddy Roosevelt and the Fire that Saved America
by Timothy Egan
The heroic story of how Teddy Roosevelt and the US Forest Service fought the largest wildfire in US history.
On the afternoon of August 20, 1910, a battering ram of wind moved through the drought-stricken national forests of Washington, Idaho, and Montana, whipping the hundreds of small blazes burning ... (Goodreads)
Naked
by David Sedaris
Collection of humorous essays exploring the absurdities of everyday life.
Welcome to the hilarious, strange, elegiac, outrageous world of David Sedaris. In Naked , Sedaris turns the mania for memoir on its proverbial ear, mining the exceedingly rich terrain of his life, ... (Goodreads)
And the Band Played On: Politics, People, and the AIDS Epidemic
by Randy Shilts
A history of the AIDS epidemic and its impact on the world, politics, and individuals.
By the time Rock Hudson's death in 1985 alerted all America to the danger of the AIDS epidemic, the disease had spread across the nation, killing thousands of people and emerging as the greatest ... (Goodreads)
Command and Control: Nuclear Weapons, the Damascus Accident, and the Illusion of Safety
by Eric Schlosser
An exploration of nuclear weapon safety and the risk of catastrophic accidents.
A myth-shattering exposé of America’s nuclear weapons Famed investigative journalist Eric Schlosser digs deep to uncover secrets about the management of America’s nuclear arsenal. A groundbreaking ... (Goodreads)
The Great Railway Bazaar
by Paul Theroux
A travelogue of a four-month journey by train from London to Tokyo, exploring the cultures and people encountered along the way.
First published in 1975, Paul Theroux's strange, unique, and hugely entertaining railway odyssey has become a modern classic of travel literature. Here Theroux recounts his early adventures on an ... (Goodreads)
Masters of Doom: How Two Guys Created an Empire and Transformed Pop Culture
by David Kushner
The story of John Carmack and John Romero, creators of the video game Doom, and their impact on the gaming industry.
Masters of Doom is the amazing true story of the Lennon and McCartney of video games: John Carmack and John Romero. Together, they ruled big business. They transformed popular culture. And they ... (Goodreads)
Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African Childhood
by Alexandra Fuller
An autobiographical account of a white family in Rhodesia, struggling to survive in a war-torn land.
Alexandra Fuller's book tells the story of her family of white Zimbabwean tenant farmers in the years before and after Independence. These are not the wealthy landowners demonised by the present ... (Wikipedia)
Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void
by Mary Roach
Exploring the science, technology and culture of human space travel.
The best-selling author of Stiff and Bonk explores the irresistibly strange universe of space travel and life without gravity. From the Space Shuttle training toilet to a crash test of NASA’s new ... (Goodreads)
Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood
by Marjane Satrapi
Autobiographical account of a young girl's experience of the Iranian Revolution.
Note: The summary of the English editions of the novel is divided into two sections, one for each book. Persepolis 1 begins by introducing Marji, the ten-year-old protagonist. Set in 1980, the novel ... (Wikipedia)
Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes from the American Indie Underground, 1981-1991
by Michael Azerrad
History of the American indie rock scene, showcasing influential bands and their legacy.
This is the never-before-told story of the musical revolution that happened right under the nose of the Reagan Eighties–when a small but sprawling network of bands, labels, fanzines, radio stations, ... (Goodreads)
The Places in Between
by Rory Stewart
A pilgrimage across Afghanistan, uncovering the country's forgotten history.
Stewart arrives in Afghanistan in January 2002, beginning his journey in Herat and proceeding on foot to Kabul . He is initially accompanied by two armed guards, Qasim and Abdul Haq, at the ... (Wikipedia)
The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined
by Steven Pinker
Investigation into the causes of violence and the reasons why it has decreased in modern society.
Believe it or not, today we may be living in the most peaceful moment in our species' existence. In his gripping and controversial new work, New York Times bestselling author Steven Pinker shows that ... (Goodreads)
An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations
by Adam Smith
An exploration of the economic principles underlying the development of nations.
Adam Smith's masterpiece, first published in 1776, is the foundation of modern economic thought and remains the single most important account of the rise of, and the principles behind, modern ... (Goodreads)
Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard
by Chip Heath
Exploring ways to make change easier in life and work, using practical strategies.
Why is it so hard to make lasting changes in our companies, in our communities, and in our own lives? The primary obstacle is a conflict that's built into our brains, say Chip and Dan Heath, authors ... (Goodreads)
Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West
by Blaine Harden
True story of a man who escaped from a North Korean prison camp and his journey to freedom.
A, New York Times, bestseller, the shocking story of one of the few people born in a North Korean political prison to have escaped and survived. North Korea is isolated and hungry, bankrupt and ... (Goodreads)
Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain
by Oliver Sacks
Exploration of the power of music and its effects on the human brain.
With the same trademark compassion and erudition he brought to The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, Oliver Sacks explores the place music occupies in the brain and how it affects the human ... (Goodreads)
Zeitoun
by Dave Eggers
A man's struggle to survive and reunite with his family amidst the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
Abdulrahman Zeitoun grew up in Syria. After a few years of apprenticeship in the Syrian port city of Jableh , Zeitoun spent twenty years working at sea as a muscleman, engineer and fisherman. During ... (Wikipedia)
Life
by Keith Richards
A personal journey of a legendary rockstar, reflecting on the highs and lows of his life.
With the Rolling Stones, Keith Richards created the riffs, the lyrics and the songs that roused the world, and over four decades he lived the original rock and roll life. Now, at last, the man ... (Goodreads)
