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Recommendations based on Don't Think of an Elephant! Know Your Values and Frame the Debate: The Essential Guide for Progressivesby George Lakoff
* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans
A People's History of the United States
by Howard Zinn
An examination of American history from a perspective of marginalized people.
In the book, Zinn presented a different side of history from the more traditional "fundamental nationalist glorification of country". Zinn portrays a side of American history that can largely be seen ... (Goodreads)
Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies
by Jared Diamond
Tracing the origins of human civilizations through the lens of geography, technology, and biology.
"Diamond has written a book of remarkable scope ... one of the most important and readable works on the human past published in recent years." Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and a national bestseller: ... (Goodreads)
Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance
by Barack Obama
An exploration of the Obama family history, tracing the threads of identity and race.
In this lyrical, unsentimental, and compelling memoir, the son of a black African father and a white American mother searches for a workable meaning to his life as a black American. It begins in New ... (Goodreads)
What's the Matter with Kansas? How Conservatives Won the Heart of America
by Thomas Frank
Investigates why working-class Americans vote against their economic interests and support conservative politicians.
With a New Afterword by the Author,The New York Times, bestseller, praised as "hilariously funny . . . the only way to understand why so many Americans have decided to vote against their own economic ... (Goodreads)
The Death and Life of Great American Cities
by Jane Jacobs
Exposes the flaws of urban planning, advocating for a more organic approach.
A direct and fundamentally optimistic indictment of the short-sightedness and intellectual arrogance that has characterized much of urban planning in this century, The Death and Life of Great ... (Goodreads)
The Blind Watchmaker: Why the Evidence of Evolution Reveals a Universe Without Design
by Richard Dawkins
A detailed exploration of the evidence for evolution, and its implications for our understanding of the world.
***30th Anniversary Edition*** Cover note: Each copy of the anniversary edition of, The Blind Watchmaker, features a unique biomorph. No two covers are exactly alike. Acclaimed as the most ... (Goodreads)
The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary
by Simon Winchester
True story of a murderer's contribution to the creation of the Oxford English Dictionary.
The book tells the story of the making of the, Oxford English Dictionary, (OED) and one of its most prolific early contributors, William Chester Minor , a retired United States Army surgeon . Minor ... (Wikipedia)
Random Family: Love, Drugs, Trouble, and Coming of Age in the Bronx
by Adrian Nicole LeBlanc
A non-fiction account of two young women and their families living in poverty in the Bronx, navigating love, drugs, and survival.
In her extraordinary bestseller, Adrian Nicole LeBlanc immerses readers in the intricacies of the ghetto, revealing the true sagas lurking behind the headlines of gangsta glamour, gold-drenched drug ... (Goodreads)
Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
by Doris Kearns Goodwin
A comprehensive study of the presidency of Abraham Lincoln, and the unique cabinet he assembled.
Winner of the Lincoln Prize Acclaimed historian Doris Kearns Goodwin illuminates Lincoln's political genius in this highly original work, as the one-term congressman and prairie lawyer rises from ... (Goodreads)
Mistakes Were Made
by Carol Tavris
Examining the psychological process of self-justification, and the implications of our behavior.
Why do people dodge responsibility when things fall apart? Why the parade of public figures unable to own up when they screw up? Why the endless marital quarrels over who is right? Why can we see ... (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)
Attached: The New Science of Adult Attachment and How It Can Help You Find—and Keep—Love
by Amir Levine
A guide to understanding how adult attachment works, and how it can lead to healthy relationships.
"A groundbreaking book that redefines what it means to be in a relationship." —John Gray, PhD., bestselling author of, Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus, We already rely on science to tell us ... (Barnes & Noble)
We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed with Our Families
by Philip Gourevitch
True story of the 1994 Rwandan genocide and its aftermath, told through the eyes of survivors.
In April of 1994, the government of Rwanda called on everyone in the Hutu majority to kill everyone in the Tutsi minority. Over the next three months, 800,000 Tutsis were murdered in the most ... (Goodreads)
Alive: The Story of the Andes Survivors
by Piers Paul Read
Story of a group of Uruguayan rugby players who survive a plane crash in the Andes and must fight to stay alive.
On October 12, 1972, a plane carrying a team of young rugby players crashed into the remote, snow-peaked Andes. Out of the forty-five original passengers and crew, only sixteen made it off the ... (Goodreads)
A Brief History of Time
by Stephen Hawking
Exploring the depths of time and space and the emergence of the universe.
In the ten years since its publication in 1988, Stephen Hawking's classic work has become a landmark volume in scientific writing, with more than nine million copies in forty languages sold ... (Goodreads)
Dry
by Augusten Burroughs
A memoir of alcoholism, mental illness, and the search for redemption.
You may not know it, but you've met Augusten Burroughs. You've seen him on the street, in bars, on the subway, at restaurants: a twenty-something guy, nice suit, works in advertising. Regular. ... (Goodreads)
The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right
by Atul Gawande
A guide to better decision-making, exploring the power of checklists in various fields.
The, New York Times, bestselling author of, Better, and, Complications, reveals the surprising power of the ordinary checklist We live in a world of great and increasing complexity, where even the ... (Goodreads)
The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood
by James Gleick
A comprehensive history of the development of information technology, from ancient times to the digital age.
James Gleick, the author of the best sellers Chaos and Genius , now brings us a work just as astonishing and masterly: a revelatory chronicle and meditation that shows how information has become the ... (Goodreads)
Sex at Dawn: The Prehistoric Origins of Modern Sexuality
by Christopher Ryan
An exploration of the evolutionary and cultural origins of human sexuality.
Since Darwin's day, we've been told that sexual monogamy comes naturally to our species. Mainstream science–as well as religious and cultural institutions--has maintained that men and women evolved ... (Goodreads)
Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative
by Austin Kleon
A guide to unlocking creativity by embracing influence, stealing ideas, and making something new.
You don’t need to be a genius, you just need to be yourself. That’s the message from Austin Kleon, a young writer and artist who knows that creativity is everywhere, creativity is for everyone. A ... (Goodreads)
The Miracle of Mindfulness: An Introduction to the Practice of Meditation
by Thich Nhat Hanh
A practical guide to meditation and mindfulness, exploring their power to bring peace and joy.
In this beautiful and lucid guide, Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh offers gentle anecdotes and practical exercise as a means of learning the skills of mindfulness–being awake and fully aware. From washing ... (Goodreads)
Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die
by Chip Heath
Exploring why certain ideas are remembered and others are forgotten, focusing on practical ways to make ideas ‘stick’.
NEW YORK TIMES, BESTSELLER - The instant classic about why some ideas thrive, why others die, and how to improve your idea's chances–essential reading in the "fake news" era. Mark Twain once ... (Goodreads)
The Bhagavad Gita
by Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa
Epic poem exploring the nature of duty, faith, and morality.
The Bhagavad Gita is an intensely spiritual work that forms the cornerstone of the Hindu faith, and is also one of the masterpieces of Sanskrit poetry. It describes how, at the beginning of a mighty ... (Barnes & Noble)
Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art
by Scott McCloud
Exploration of the visual language of comics and its role in storytelling.
Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics is a seminal examination of comics art: its rich history, surprising technical components, and major cultural significance. Explore the secret world between the ... (Goodreads)
Open
by Andre Agassi
Autobiographical account of a tennis star's career, struggles, and personal growth.
From Andre Agassi, one of the most beloved athletes in history and one of the most gifted men ever to step onto a tennis court, a beautiful, haunting autobiography. Agassi’s incredibly rigorous ... (Goodreads)
Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth
by Reza Aslan
An examination of Jesus' life, death and legacy within the context of 1st century Judea.
From the internationally bestselling author of No god but God comes a fascinating, provocative, and meticulously researched biography that challenges long-held assumptions about the man we know as ... (Goodreads)
Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison
by Michel Foucault
Examines the emergence of the modern prison system and its effects on society.
Librarian note: an alternate cover for this edition can be found, here,. Barely two hundred and fifty years ago a man condemned of attempting to assassinate the King of France was drawn and quartered ... (Goodreads)
The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures
by Anne Fadiman
Exploring the cultural divide between the Hmong people and the medical establishment.
Lia Lee was born in 1982 to a family of recent Hmong immigrants, and soon developed symptoms of epilepsy. By 1988 she was living at home but was brain dead after a tragic cycle of misunderstanding, ... (Goodreads)
In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto
by Michael Pollan
Argument for a return to traditional diets and away from processed, industrialized food.
Michael Pollan's last book, The Omnivore's Dilemma , launched a national conversation about the American way of eating; now In Defense of Food shows us how to change it, one meal at a time. Pollan ... (Goodreads)
The Pale-Faced Lie
by David Crow
A memoir of a boy growing up in a violent and abusive family, struggling to survive and find his own identity.
WINNER OF THE SPUR AWARD FOR BEST WESTERN FIRST NONFICTION BOOK • FINALIST FOR THE SPUR AWARD FOR BEST WESTERN CONTEMPORARY NONFICTION • IPPY SILVER AWARD FOR BEST MEMOIR •,, NEXT GENERATION INDIE ... (Barnes & Noble)
