I’ve been wanting to read more non-fiction lately. I have a specific interest on the legal system, POC and immigration issues as I’m a first generation American and my dad was born in Mexico, women’s issues, queer issues, disability issue as I’m also a full time wheelchair user. and honestly any minority / social issues or cultural studies tends to interest me! I do also love learning about aspects of history and micro history. Genuinely whatever you can recommend I will take a look at!
I mainly just don’t want to feel like I’m reading a dull text book. If it matters I’m an English major and will most likely n focus in creative writing and publishing for my BA, and maybe potentially go into paralegal work. Still deciding on if I want to double major or minor but I’m considering advocacy, disability studies, and Spanish!
by chronicallychilling
19 Comments
[No Good Men Among the Living by Anand Gopal](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17454723-no-good-men-among-the-living) is a favorite.
Also [Monster: The Autobiography of an L.A. Gang Member](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44188.Monster#CommunityReviews)
and finally [Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6260997-half-the-sky)
The Prologue of Ohrid!
This is a daily devotional with the lives of various Eastern Orthodox saints throughout history, hymns, homilies and more! It’s a great non-fiction read you can find for cheap on Amazon Kindle!
Since you’re interested in the legal system, try American Kingpin. It’s excellent.
Red Notice by Bill Browder is another good one that deals in part with the American Legal system.
Know my Name by Chanel Miller
A Fever in the Heartland – Timothy Egan (about the rise of the KKK in the 20s) – enjoyed this one a lot – obviously relevant re your POC criteria but also gets into how they had a ton of influence over police and the legal system.
*Not a nation of immigrants* by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz
*What is antiracism and why it means anticapitalism* by Arun Kundnani
TRUST ME I KNOW WHAT I’M DOING
Anatomy of Injustice by Raymond Bonner (legal/death penalty case)
Valley So Low by Jared Sullivan (environmental legal thriller)
Evicted by Matthew Desmond (housing/poverty)
Everyone Who Is Gone Is Here by Jonathan Blitzer (immigration)
A civil action by Jonathan harr
Endurance
Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi
Born a crime by Trevor Noah
Just Mercy. The movie was awful but the book is amazing
Unbroken – Laura Hillenbrand
*Sitting Pretty*
*Being Heumann*
*The Warmth of Other Suns*
The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin
Oooh, so this I guess technically counts but it’s not your typical nonfiction. In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado is a memoir of the author’s relationship with her abusive ex-girlfriend. But it’s not just a straightforward memoir; Machado tells the story in bits and pieces using different literary tropes/genres to examine her relationship through many different angles. For example, one chapter is told as a ghost story, another is told as a literal screenplay for a fictional episode of Law & Order SVU. It’s wildly creative and fun to read but it also is about domestic violence within a lesbian relationship, a dynamic that is rarely talked about but definitely exists. I think you would enjoy this!
Another great nonfiction book that’s more straightforward but still super interesting is No Visible Bruises: What We Don’t Know about Domestic Violence Can Kill Us by Rachel Louise Snyder. Fascinating look at domestic violence, dispelling many common myths and misunderstandings, from the perspectives of survivors, family members of victims who were killed by their abusers, abusers themselves, law enforcement, and advocates. You’ll learn a lot, and it’s written extremely well.
*A Disability History of the United States* is a great book and, though it can be used as a textbook, is suitable for a general audience and full of interesting stories.
Longitude
Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
Say Nothing – Patrick Radden Keefe