Best Nonfiction Reads of the Past Decade

Here is my promised list of favorite nonfiction titles read and published in the last decade. I decided to leave Memoirs off the list. How knows? Maybe I will create a list of my favorite Memoirs of the decade soon. I hyperlinked the titles of those books I reviewed. The books I've selected represent those books which have stayed with me or I've referenced frequently in the past years. I recommend them all highly. Sorted chronologically.

• The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot (2010)---A fascinating look at medical ethics based on the use of Henrietta's cancer cells without family permission. A book club selection. (Audiobook)

• Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption Laura Hillenbrand (2010)---Louis Zamperini was a true American hero, an Olympian, and an all-around character. His story inspires me to be a better person. A book club selection. (Audiobook)

• The Boys in the Boat: Nine American Boys and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics by Daniel James Brown (2013)---Nine boys from the state of Washington compete in the Olympics in Berlin and win against great odds. This is all of their stories and so much more. Another book club selection, a favorite among group members. (Audio and Print)

• Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End by Atul Gawande (2014)---Dr. Gawande reminds us that we are all mortal and with our doctors we need to plan our end-of-life goals. I think of this book often and its advice. I want to finish well. (Audiobook)

• Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption by Bryan Stevenson (2014)---Stevenson is a lawyer dedicated to helping individuals who are trapped in prison without representation, particularly those on death row. A movie is being made of it, so read it first and watch his TED talk. (I also read the YA version of the book but I don't think it is as good. It is too pared down.) (Audio and print)

• Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War by Steve Sheinkin (2015)---The only YA book on the list and it is a good one! It is the Pentagon Papers for a new generation. I went to hear Daniel Ellsberg speak after I read this book and was horrified about what a nuclear war would look like and become. (Print)

• The Wright Brothers by David McCullough (2015)---We all think we know everything there is to know about the Wright Brothers but we are wrong. Orville and Wilbur were way more creative, innovative, inventive, hard-working, and capable than you can imagine. Any book by David McCullough is not-to-be-missed. This one is no exception.  (Audiobook)

• Lab Girl by Hope Jahren (2016)---Part memoir, part biology manual. For that reason I kept it on this list, though it is technically a Memoir. I fell in love with Hope Jahren and with trees. (Audiobook)

• Dreaming the Beatles: The Love Story of One Band and the Whole World by Rob Sheffield (2017)---I really geeked out on this homage to my favorite rock group. Sheffield writes for Rolling Stone Magazine and he knows what he is talking about when it comes to rock music and the Beatles. (Print)

• A Dog in the Cave: The Wolves That Made Us Human by Kay Frydenborg (2017)---The only middle grade book on the list and the only one I evaluated for the Cybils Awards. As a dog lover I was fascinated by it. As a lifelong learner I was gobsmacked by how mush I learned from it. If you don't want to read it, at least read my review. (Then you will want to read it!) (Print)

•  Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann (2017)---This book reads like a murder mystery. David Grann does something most writers don't do, he inserts himself into the story as he reports his findings. A book club selection. (Audiobook)

• The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels by Jon Meacham (2018)---Meacham is a historian and writes with authority about other times in our history when we faced crises, putting our current political climate into context. I felt soothed by his words and message. The title comes from a quote by Abraham Lincoln: “We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory will swell when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.” (Audiobook)

What are some of your favorite nonfiction titles published in the last decade?

-Anne