6 ms·
Rediscovering nonfiction a few years ago was really cool, but unfortunately I think I’m out of books. I’ve noticed nowadays that most non-fiction books are basi
by gallerdude 8y ago
Rediscovering nonfiction a few years ago was really cool, but unfortunately I think I’m out of books. I’ve noticed nowadays that most non-fiction books are basically “pop non-fiction,” is high basically entail a giant collection of studies and anecdotal stories all around a central theme, in easy to read language. There’s nothing wrong with this, just they don’t do a lot of synthesis of their own.
The problem is, the only books that do any actual synthesis of their own tend to be very long and very hard to read.
There are a few books that meet a sweet spot that are easy to read and are deep on content, (12 Rules for Life, Sapiens), but they’re hard to find.
- faceplanted 8y agoI wouldn't call 12 Rules particularly "deep" in content, it's mostly anecdotal stories, bible quotes, and Christian Conservatism.
- gallerdude 8y agoNot sure I agree. Peterson is definitely controversial, and his political side is worth ignoring. But foundationally, the book is about the foundations of living a meaningful life and self improvement. And not that shallow sort of self improvement, it’s the real hero’s journey stuff.
- MadSudaca 8y agoWhile sometimes the bible quotes went too far for my taste, I wouldn't say it's not deep. One thing it did for me is help me see religion in a new light. Religion is a constant in most (all?) human societies, this book helped me understand why.
- rgrieselhuber 8y agoThat's assuming a very loose definition of Christian Conservatism.
- chubot 8y agoI agree with your characterization of "pop" and "giant collections of studies" -- there are a lot of books like that turn out to not be very good. I honestly felt that way about Dan Ariely's books, which are heavily recommended. I found it hard to get through them. For writers with a pleasing style and are deep on content, I would recommend Michael Pollan's books and Jared Diamond's books. Those are two of the authors that I've read 4+ books from. They are really synthesizing information and not just describing a list of studies. I've also read 4+ books from Jon Krakauer and Anthony Bourdain. Although they're not about "synthesis", I think books that are "narrative" are better than a lot of the pop non-fiction books you're talking about. It's concrete and lets you draw the conclusions, rather than trying to force some canned conclusions upon you.
- sotojuan 8y agoRead history, art, music, etc. books - books on topics you're interested in? I read tons of nonfiction and I never have this problem.
- whyonearth 8y agoI'm having trouble relating to parent's comment too. Are they only shopping at airport bookstores?
- pure_ambition 8y agoTrue. I love Cal Newport but he’s a great example of this. Best thing is that if you read a lot of books you get a quick easy feel for whether a book will be in the first or second grouping. Just by reading the description or look through a few pages. Table of contents is usually the best way to tell.
- douglaswlance 8y agoThere's more than a thousand years worth of books for you to read. The more recent a book, the worse you should expect its content to be. Get outside of the bubble of immediacy and read the classics.
- lihaciudaniel 8y agoCan you elaborate on some names (expect Franklin's autobiography and Marcus Aurelius meditations)
- douglaswlance 8y agoDepends what your interests are.
- lkrych 8y agoI'm going to plug a few great non-fiction books that are easy(ish) to read and deep on content. I'm sure there are a lot more out there. Thinking, Fast and Slow - Daniel Kahneman Coming Into the Country - John McPhee The Unwinding - George Packer Anything by James C Scott (Thinking Like a State, The Art of Not Being Governed) The Righteous Mind - John Haidt The Selfish Gene - Richard Dawkins (Regardless of how you feel about his current public persona, this book published in 1976 is an absolute classic)
- unmole 8y ago> Thinking, Fast and Slow - Daniel Kahneman Doesn't "giant collection of studies and anecdotal stories all around a central theme, in easy to read language" perfectly describe it? I know I am very much in the minority but I absolotely hated Thinking, Fast and Slow.
- gota 8y agoWhat is your take on "single topic" investigative journalism books? Like "The immortal life of Henrietta Lacks"[0] or Bob Woodward's "All the president's men" I'd love to recommend "Abusado", by brazilian journalist Caco Barcellos, but unfortunately it does not seem to be available in English [0](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Immortal_Life_of_Henrietta_Lacks https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Immortal_Life_of_Henriet...)