The great, cold weather escape can be a suspenseful mystery thriller or a hot off the press fiction book that allows you to hibernate during the cold, dark days of winter.  But we are not quite there yet.  It is still fall, and Nonfiction November is the time to learn a little something and hear the truth.  It is time to get real!  These are the nonfiction books on my night table.

Nonfiction November Picks

Long Live the Tribe of Fatherless Girls is a memoir by T Kira Madden, the niece of shoe designer Steve Madden.  Coming of age in Florida, she conveys her experiences and struggles with race, sexuality and privilege.  This is a courageous debut of personal pain, trauma and beauty.  My friend, Susie Orman Schnall, author of The Subway Girls highly recommended it.

A Woman of No Importance by Sonia Purnell tells the heroic story of Virginia Hall, a Special Operations Executive from Baltimore who created a spy network in France during World War ll.  This is a riveting, little known story of courage that deserves to be read!  I saw Sonia Purnell speak at the Fairfield University Bookstore and my interest was peaked.

Finding Chika by Mitch Albom, author of Tuesdays With Morrie, is a memoir about the Haitian orphan the author and his wife fell in love with and took to America for medical intervention.  Chika touched their hearts, redefined family and changed them forever.  Mitch Albom appeared on CBS this morning and his beautiful story brought tears to my eyes.

The Body; A Guide For Occupants by Bill Bryson, author of A Short History of Everything, explains the wonders of the human body, both physically and neurologically, with his trademark sense of humor.  I loved Bill Bryson’s A Walk in the Woods; I am a big fan.

Troubled Water; What’s Wrong With What We Drink, by Seth Siegel, brings to light the tragedy of unsafe water.  The author highlights stories of contamination with chemicals linked to cancer, heart disease and more, and calls out heroes who have stood by change.  In Siegel’s earlier book, Let There Be Water, I learned so much about how Israel developed cutting edge technology.  With more than half the country being desert, they solved major water issues and now have an abundance of water.

For a few of my nonfiction favorites from the recent past, CLICK HERE.

What will you read this Nonfiction November?