My Year in Nonfiction #NonfictionNovember

This week’s Nonfiction November linkup is hosted by Heather at Based on a True Story or maybe Liz at Adventures in reading, running and working from home.

Like most years, the vast majority of the nonfiction books that I read in 2024 were read for my book club that specializes in books about race in America and has branched out to include other elements of diversity.

Here are the books that we read in 2024, with links to the ones that I reviewed:

The Three Mothers by Anna Malaika Tubbs
Jane Crow: The Life of Pauli Murray by Rosalind Rosenberg
Being White Today: A Roadmap for a Positive Antiracist Life by Shelly Tochluk and Christine Saxman
“All the Real Indians Died Off”: And 20 Other Myths About Native Americans by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz and Dina Gilio-Whitaker
Unmasking Autism: Discovering the New Faces of Neurodiversity by Devon Price
Being Heumann: An Unrepentant Memoir of a Disability Rights Activist by Judith Heumann and Kristen Joiner
How the Word is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America by Clint Smith
Solito by Javier Zamora

This was an excellent year of reading for my book club. The books I didn’t review are the ones where I’m still absorbing the experience and haven’t sorted through it enough to figure out what I want to say. Also, it’s pretty clear that I go through phases of reviewing book club books and not doing that.

Until I compiled this list, I didn’t fully realize my other big category of nonfiction in 2024 — audiobooks of memoirs by male celebrities read by the author. Beats me how I got onto that kick, but these were lovely voices to have in my head while walking, driving, and doing household chores this year:

Not My Father’s Son and Baggage by Alan Cumming
Making It So by Patrick Stewart
Neil Patrick Harris: Choose Your Own Autobiography by Neil Patrick Harris

I’m looking forward to seeing what everyone else read in 2024!

Comments

My Year in Nonfiction #NonfictionNovember — 17 Comments

Heather on October 28, 2024 at 5:27 am said:

The link up is live now at https://www.spiritblog.net/nonfiction-november-2/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=nonfiction-november-2

Loved seeing what you read this year

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Lisa notes on October 28, 2024 at 7:52 am said:

How wonderful that you have a book club focusing on race and diversity. I participate in a book club centered around gun violence prevention, and so we often read books on race and diversity as well (including “All the Real Indians Died Off”). I’m adding “Being Heumann” to my list now from your list! And I would love to have Patrick Stewart’s lovely voice in my head too. 🙂

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Olivia on October 28, 2024 at 8:07 am said:

I will be adding Being White Today to my TBR pile. I loved Making It So!

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Frances on October 28, 2024 at 9:07 am said:

The Patrict Stuart book has been on my book-dar for sometime. I just haven’t quite got there yet. Thanks you for sharing your reading with us.

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Deb Nance at Readerbuzz on October 28, 2024 at 11:19 am said:

I thought How the Word is Passed and Solito were both excellent books. I am adding the Patrick Stuart book to my TBR.

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JaneGS on October 28, 2024 at 11:30 am said:

How the Word is Passed sounds super interesting and is on a topic I’ve been reading a lot about lately.

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Alana on October 28, 2024 at 3:44 pm said:

I had been reading On Call, A Doctor’s Journey in Public Service, by Anthony Fauci, but other books called and I only got about halfway through. Another nonfiction book I read this year was The Cost of Free Land: Jews, Lakota, and an American Inheritance by Rebecca Clarren. The book was so well researched and, being of Eastern Europe Jewish ancestry, I had a personal connection of sorts with it. I had thought about picking up All the Real Indians Died Off. We’ll have to see what I have time for.

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Jinjer on October 28, 2024 at 6:01 pm said:

How the Word is Passed was so good.

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Mary @ Notes in the Margin on October 28, 2024 at 6:53 pm said:

I found Cummings’s Not My Father’s Son very moving. I look forward to reading the rest of your posts for Nonfiction November.

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Emma @ Words And Peace on October 28, 2024 at 7:45 pm said:

Some great topics here!
here is mine: https://wordsandpeace.com/2024/10/28/nonfiction-november-my-year-2024-in-nonfiction/

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Lisbeth @The Content Reader on October 29, 2024 at 4:35 am said:

How great that you read nonfiction in your book club (unless it is a nonfiction bookclub). We seldom do in my bookclub. A number of diverse topics as well. I think Patrick Stewarts memoirs would be interesting. I am not a big listener, but he has such a wonderful voice so could be an extra bonus.

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JoAnn @ Gulfside Musing on October 29, 2024 at 12:19 pm said:

I always look forward to your book club book reviews, the selections are impressive! How the Word is Passed was one of my favorites a couple years ago and Solito is waiting on my kindle. I read several memoirs this year, too, and tend to enjoy them even more when they’re narrated by the author.

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Linda Schueler on October 30, 2024 at 8:40 am said:

“All the Real Indians Died Off” is going on my TBR list, as well as the Patrick Stewart memoir. Thanks for sharing your list.

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Liz Dexter on October 30, 2024 at 1:39 pm said:

This one’s Heather’s: I’m hosting Week 3: Pairings. I love the list from your book group and how cool is that. My best friend and I have a mini-book-group of just us two and have read a good number of social justice books together since the start of lockdown, and I’m always on the lookout for more although, as I’ve mentioned elsewhere, I’m still concentrating on UK stuff as that’s where I’m based. I hope you enjoy Nonfiction November!

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Angela @ Literary Wanderer on October 31, 2024 at 9:46 am said:

I love celebrity memoirs read by the author!

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Susan on November 3, 2024 at 1:03 pm said:

Your books for your book club are all pretty impressive. Will you continue the same theme next year of books about race & diversity? I still want to read Ilyon Woo’s book Master Slave Husband Wife. I still haven’t made time for it. Enjoy the nonfiction challenge.

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Molly on November 3, 2024 at 2:22 pm said:

I started adding your books one by one and finally just decided it would be faster to save the whole page. Happy NonFiction November!

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