Maybe this is an unpopular opinion but nonfiction books don’t get enough love sometimes. When I was younger I was definitely in the “nonfiction books are boring” camp—as I entered Junior High and High School I began to open my eyes to memoirs, which soon became a favorite genre of mine, but it wasn’t until about halfway through high school that I began to truly appreciate educational and political nonfiction. Next wednesday will be for memoirs but this week I wanted to recommend some awesome informational nonfiction.

(In no particular order)

• And The Band Played On by Randy Shilts: This book is a devastating journey through the AIDS epidemic. I couldn’t possibly cover my feelings on this book in just one paragraph; it is both an extremely thorough examination of the AIDS epidemic and also a very close interpersonal look at those who were involved. This book is the definition of nonfiction that reads like fiction. It examines the role which the government played, the role of the people, and the role of the media. This book dives deep into the personal lives of people who lived through the AIDS epidemic and you will go through the entire range of emotions while reading.
• Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors by Carl Sagan & Ann Druyan: This book has something for everyone: psychology, biology, history, humor, and a good narrative. This book follows the journey of evolution with a special focus on humanity; it seeks to provide an explanation for what, why, how, and who we are. This book draws from so many different sources —humans, animals, myth, society— in an effort to come full circle at humanity’s current destination. Sagan & Druyan offer an extensive overview of many topics in an engaging manner; the book is informative without being overly dense and therefore makes a great read for anyone interested in evolutionary psychology and biology, as well as the history of humanity.
• The Gay Revolution by Lillian Faderman: This one is for my fellow fans of civil rights history. This book is an extremely thorough examination of the LGBT rights movement. This book is quite long but it’s digestible and extremely well-written, the people in the book read much like characters, in different time periods and places but all going on the same journey. This book is mainly centered on America and provides valuable context to the state of queer rights today. This book evokes feelings of hope, anger, joy, and curiosity; it covers a good deal of intersectionality and works as a very good starting point or overview for researching this particular section of history.
• Fermat’s Enigma by Simon Singh: Listen, I know some may pick up a book centered around math and put it right back down but please, consider giving this book a chance. This book centers around the final theorem of Pierre de Fermat and the over 300 year journey to solve it. You see, when Andrew Wiles was only 10 years old, he read about Fermat’s final theorem. Young Andrew set out to solve the unsolvable and went on to dedicate the next 40 years of his life to solving Fermat’s final theorem. This book does not require any prerequisite knowledge of mathematics to enjoy —although a love for math might mean you take more value from this book. This book focuses on the history of mathematics and is a truly fantastic read for those who enjoy mathematics, history, or even just a well-told story.

Because I’ve been trying to avoid re-recommending books that I’ve reviewed before, and because I’m trying to keep these lists limited to 4 books per week, I will restrain myself from adding the many other nonfiction books I love so dearly to this list; I would, however, like to include Factfulness by Hans Rosling and Why I’m No-longer Talking (to White People) About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge as honorable mentions, I’ve reviewed both before but I just had an itch to mention them both at some point as they are both very engaging and worthwhile books. In any case, if you’re usually a fiction reader, consider checking out some nonfiction books soon and stay tuned for next week when I recommend some of my favorite memoirs!