In Which I Read Non-Fiction For The First Time And Find Out That It Can Actually Be Really Good

In a Top Ten Tuesday post almost a year ago, I explored topics that make me NOT want to pick up a book. Among them was non-fiction. I freely admitted that non-fiction was a genre that was way outside my comfort zone and one that I assumed I would find tedious. Well, a few commenters convinced me that maybe I ought to give the genre a try and see if anything catches my interest. And lo and behold, I found myself reading/listening to the following non-fiction reads and actually ENJOYING them. Who knew?

Bossypants

by Tina Fey

I listened to the audio of Bossypants as narrated by Tina Fey herself and as you can imagine, it was quite simply HILARIOUS. It was not only the stories as written by Tina Fey, but also the stories narrated in her OWN voice that sealed the deal. In Bossypants, she recounts various tales of her life, from theatre geek to SNL writer to 30 Rock creator. We all know that Tina Fey is one funny lady, but she is also an awesomely talented writer and actress with great comedic timing. And thus a book written and narrated by her is just made of awesome.

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?
by Mindy Kaling

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) was another one that I listened to via audiobook and was narrated by Mindy Kaling herself (and was all the better for it!). Similar in style to Bossypants, Mindy Kaling recounts through a series of essays various events of her life and again, it was really freaking funny. If you are a non-fiction noob like I was, I would definitely recommend starting off with the audio for Tina Fey and Mindy Kaling's books because you are SURE to enjoy them.

Steve Jobs

by Walter Isaacson

I wouldn't consider myself a tech person by any means, nor would I have ever thought a biography could capture my interest, but boy, was this Steve Jobs biography ever fascinating! I am a fairly recent Apple convert and so was not aware of the backstory and history of the company, nor what Steve Jobs was like, so this book was enlightening indeed. This is the biography of the man who revolutionized the computer, the music industry, cell phones, and Pixar. He was quite the jerk-face personality-wise, but you can't argue with the fact that the man was a genius. I could go on and on recounting all the interesting tidbits that I learned in this biography and how this book actually changed the way I think about technology, design, and business, but instead I'll end it here and tell you to read Steve Jobs for yourself. I listened to the audiobook, which made the length considerably less daunting, and I recommend it.

Some Nerve

by Patty Chang Anker

Katie from Doing Dewey generously sent me this one when I mentioned in my comment of her review that I felt like I could probably really relate to the premise. Some Nerve: Lessons Learned While Becoming Brave is Patty Chang Anker's story of her quest to conquer her fears. After thirty-nine years of being afraid to try new things, she decided she wanted to be a better role model to her two young daughters and show them that it's okay to fail. I really love that Some Nerve never came across as a self-help book, which is one avenue of non-fiction that I'm still not keen on. By going outside her comfort zone and facing her fears head on she was finally able to live her life to the fullest.



So there you go, I can now say that not only is non-fiction a genre that I have read, but it's a genre that I can ENJOY - be it humorous or thought-provoking or enlightening. I now pronounce this sojourn outside my comfort zone a resounding success!!

So now I turn it over to you: have you read any non-fiction books that you would recommend to me? I would love to hear of them! As you may have gathered from my picks from above, I'm much more likely to get to your non-fiction recommendation quickly if I can get it in audio as I have many more openings for audiobooks at the moment than I have for physical books, but I'm still keen on any recs that you can give me!