Nonfiction - Blog Posts
BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS!
HELLO! I WOULD LIKE BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS!! any book really but im mainly looking for something revolving around nature/science/math!! something like that!! fiction for nature is okay but i would like nonfiction for the math and science books :3 (example for fic. nature is like "hatchet") THANKS!!! other genres/books i like are psychology, fantasy, sci-fi, mangas (just not romance), philosophy, and history!!! IF ANYONE COMMENTS I WOULD GREATLY APPRECIATE IT OK THANK YOU
Gad, this is so true in everyday life, too, isn't it?
Tips on how to fight the "if I overly explain, everything will be hunky doory" instinct?
Being genuine, as someone who does struggle with it from time to time. <- Like this!
No matter how good you explain, you are not immune to
person reading fast skipping words or sentences
person reading casually who is not interested in unpacking your statement to any degree of depth
person who decided what you meant three words in and is not internalizing anything beyond that point
person focusing on a part of the statement you literally never considered important and making that the sole focus of their analysis
person primed by an external conflict who is scanning your statement for dogwhistles that indicate whether you're on Their Side or the Enemy Side
When it comes to explaining, there's a baseline level of Good Enough you can strive for, to the point where someone who's paying attention, trying to understand your nuances, and not actively setting out to misinterpret you will most likely get most of what you're talking about. Beyond that, it doesn't matter how many words you use if they aren't being read or interpreted. All you can control is what you say. You cannot control how you're perceived or interpreted.
Hello everyone
I am Belal from Gaza, I am displaced in the southern Gaza Strip. 🍉
Because of the war on Gaza, our house was destroyed, I lost my job and money, and I cannot find a suitable job because of the war.🥹😔 Now I live with my wife and daughter in a small tent and I cannot meet their needs. 💔🥺
Please support me and help me keep my daughter and wife alive so we can live safely and peacefully.🙏💔
"In these difficult circumstances, I hope to receive your support through the GoFundMe donation campaign. Every contribution, no matter how small, helps me and my family get through this difficult stage and cover our basic needs until we settle in a safe place. Your support means a lot to us and represents a ray of hope in this difficult journey 🙏🏾
Hello! I can't donate to you sadly, so I will share instead!! I hope you reach your goal and may Allah protect you and your family!
Read books guys
I'm telling you. Read books. There's an entire world of dead useful knowledge contained. There are so many books that have a TON of useful information while also being easier to read than textbooks.
Listen, I know the internet's gone to pieces. Misinformation is practically the only thing you can be certain of with any search engine.
But books.
I mean yeah, there are books that are inaccurate. Or outdated. But for the most part, if someone cares enough to compile so much information on a subject together into a book, they care enough to make sure it's right. After all, it's not so easy to edit it like a blog once it's published. They're not spending so much time and labor putting together random units of information they stumbled across on the internet. They're doing this with genuine research and careful time and knowledge.
Let me emphasize one more time that there are so many books with real information that are NOT COLLEGE TEXTBOOKS (though those can be incredible sources of information too!). There is real information out there in very easy to process formats if you're willing to open a book and thumb through the index, table of contents, or even just all the pages.
...I mean, it does require us to care a little bit. It's certainly not as fast and convenient as a quick internet search. But it is so much more reliable, and if you care to know more about a subject I think it's important to care enough to get some solid information about it and not just a once-and-done.
Side note, did you know the Dewey Decimal System has a number for everything? Actually everything? Want to pick up a book on crochet or leatherworking? Dewey's got you. Learn about moths? Yup. Politics? Public speaking? Languages? Writing? Architecture? Librarians have master's degrees specifically so they can help you find things in the DDS (and also for other reasons but ya know).
on Neighbors
I'm walking home from a neighbor's house, the one that is friends with my mom, the one that coached me with public speaking and got me to nationals as a kid, the one that surprised me with a scholarship when I graduated high school. It's a slightly chill evening and it's beautiful.
(We had been talking about my resumé and how I could improve it. We workshopped both that and my portfolio, and discussed possibilities of studies abroad, and swapped stories on things we missed from each other's lives now that I live hundreds of miles away.)
Now I'm walking home in the chill blue evening and I walk past my neighbor's house, the one with the chihuahuas, the one that over a decade ago rescued me when I got my pants caught in my bike chain and fell, trapped. Never met me in my life but when I fell in front of her house she came running out to help my small crying self.
And now I'm walking past my neighbor's house, the pale blue one on the corner, the neighbor that had a tire swing even though she was elderly, the place my family would go on walks to when I was a kid so the kids could play on her tire swing while the grownups talked. That tree died eventually, and my dad helped her cut it down. She gave him the tire swing to take home to us kids.
Over there across the way is my neighbor's house, the one that is good friends with my grandma and paid me to water her plants whenever she went away for a week. I see her husband from time to time out in the garage when I pass their place.
Over just a little bit farther is the orange house that looks like a castle, with the neighbors who had daughters just older than my sister and I, daughters who always gathered up their old clothing into giant bags to drop at our doorstep so my sister and I could have new clothing. A treasure. Their mom came to my graduation and got me a gift.
Now I'm walking down the road and there are the neighbors right next to us, with the small loud dogs, the neighbors that know my dad well. He always has my brothers over to do yard work and the such. Dad loves sending over the boys to collect leaves in the autumn from our neighbors - most of them are elderly and can use the help, and my dad collects truckfuls of leaves to compost for his garden. A win-win.
And there at the end, of course, are my neighbors who always loved to see us each Halloween. They were always prepared for us, always the first ones we saw. My youngest brother always took care of their dog. When our dog got out, that neighbor let us know and we were able to get her before she got too far away.
We were generations apart, my neighbors and I. Yet that never stopped them from loving my family and me.
I hope they know the fond love I have for them now, despite no longer living there.
queer coded fairies
faces from TASTY: A HISTORY OF YUMMY EXPERIMENTS
OUT TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Where was I?
Been reading a cute little number that has had me in fits of giggles on my commute each morning. Sometimes I’ve had to snap the book shut just as a guffaw was about to erupt. Very frustrating, reading in public and having to contain myself like that.
Eats shoots & leaves : the zero tolerance approach to punctuation. Truss, London : Profile Books, 2003.
2003! Where the hell was I when this was…
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ART FOR EVERY BOOK I READ THIS SUMMER PART 4: We Have Always Been Here by Samra Habib
My Studio Ghibli inspired Notion Template.
🌿🌱🌼🐚🍃🌾☁️
Get it now for 5$ ☁️ (Limited time)
Admit it, we all, at least once in our lives, wanted to read one book a week. Maybe it’s because Jeff Bezos or Barack Obama does it, or sometimes it might be a book vlogger who claims that she read 100+ books this year and shares her top 10. Or maybe it’s because you have a TBR pile you are drowning in, and you just want to finish them. I have always wondered how people manage to do this.
I recently started speed reading my non-fiction books, and it really worked.
you'll be vibing, in a good place mentally and then a friend will do or say something and then suddenly you're 11 years old again and you're wondering why your friend didn't invite you to her birthday party and you're crying to your mom wondering why none of you're friends seem to like you very much and you pray that you could be different (i.e. normal) but the night just greets you with like your friend, with silence
Ah brb just tryna find a way to make vampires possible irl as far as it can go without body morphs/mods.
Non/fiction: "Человек, который бережет время" с иллюстрациями от Franziska Walther
Я давно не писала о книгах, которые очень люблю, могу часто просматривать и не скучать. Но тут, раз так вышло, что я не пропустила книжную ярмарку Non/fiction – расскажу об одной своей находке с небольшого стенда немецкой литературы. Её автор Курт Тухольский, еврейский писатель довоенного времени. Книга на немецком, датирована 1912 годом, никакая не детская, а самая взрослая книга-гротеск. Уточняю я это потому, что еще ни разу не видела подобно проиллюстрированную художественную книгу и тем более не автора-современника. Сделала это совсем молодая девушка-иллюстратор Франциска Вальтер (Franziska Walther), и я, нужно сказать, очень впечатлена этой находкой. Еще её формат и обложка создают ощущение, что ты только что взял её по абонементу в библиотеке.
Все иллюстрации:
www.franziskawalther.de
2023 READS (BOOKLIST)
What an incredible year is has been with my adventures in literature. I went from not reading a complete book in years to reading 30+ whole books in less than a year. Pictured above are THE BOATMAN'S DAUGHTER by ANDY DAVIDSON (★ ★ ★ ★ ★) and MY GOVERNMENT MEANS TO KILL ME by RASHEED NEWSON (★ ★ ★ ★ ★), two amazing books I read this year, but didn't get a chance to review. In descending order, here are all the books I read in 2023:
TRUE EVIL TRILOGY by R. L. STINE (1992) ★ ★ ★
JAZZ by TONI MORRISON (1992) ★ ★ ★ ★
SONG OF SOLOMON by TONI MORRISON (1977) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
SIDLE CREEK by JOLENE McILWAIN (2023) ★ ★ ★ ★
MUCKROSS ABBEY AND OTHER STORIES by SABINA MURRAY (2023) ★ ★ ★
TEXAS HEAT: AND OTHER STORIES by WILLIAM HARRISON (2023) ★ ★ ★
BOYS IN THE VALLEY by PHILIP FRACASSI (2023) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
PIRANESI by SUSANNA CLARKE (2023) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
BARACOON: THE STORY OF THE LAST BLACK CARGO by ZORA NEALE HURSTON (2018) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
NINETEEN CLAWS AND A BLACKBIRD by AGUSTINA BAZTERRICA (2020) ★ ★
THE VIOLIN CONSPIRACY by BRANDON SLOCUMB (2022) ★ ★ ★ ★
MONSTRILIO by GERARDO SAMANO CORDOVA (2023) ★ ★ ★
THE SHARDS by BRET EASTON ELLIS (2023) ★ ★ ★ ★
HUMAN SACRIFICES by MARIA FERNANDA AMPUERO (2021) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
DEVIL HOUSE by JOHN DARNIELLE (2022) ★ ★ ★ ★
FLUX by JINWOO CHONG (2023) ★ ★ ★
THE TROOP by NICK CUTTER (2014) ★ ★ ★
MY DARKEST PRAYER by S. A. COSBY (2019) ★ ★ ★ ★
WE HAVE ALWAYS LIVED IN THE CASTLE by SHIRLEY JACKSON (1962) ★ ★ ★ ★
BELOVED by TONI MORRISON (1987) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE by SHIRLEY JACKSON (1959) ★ ★ ★
THE VANISHING HALF by BRIT BENNETT (2020) ★ ★ ★ ★
DRIVE YOUR PLOW OVER THE BONES OF THE DEAD by OLGA TOKARZUK (2009) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
THE BURNING GIRLS by C. J. TUDOR (2021) ★ ★ ★
HIDDEN PICTURES by JASON REKULAK (2022) ★ ★ ★
THE BOOKS OF JACOB by OLGA TOKARZUK (2022) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
THE BOATMAN'S DAUGHTER by ANDY DAVIDSON (2020) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
SACRIFICIO by ERNESTO MESTRE-REED (2022) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
SUPERSTITIOUS by R. L. STINE (1995) ★ ★ ★
THE WRONG GIRL by R. L. STINE (2018) ★ ★ ★
MY GOVERNMENT MEANS TO KILL ME by RASHEED NEWSON (2022) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
BEST BARBARIAN: POEMS by ROGER REEVES (2022) ★ ★ ★
THE THORN PULLER by ITO HIROMI (2007) ★ ★ ★ ★
NOW DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOU ARE by DANA LEVIN (2022) ★ ★ ★
THE HOLLOW KIND by ANDY DAVIDSON (2022) ★ ★ ★ ★
A HOUSE WITH GOOD BONES by T. KINGFISHER (2022) ★ ★
A DELUSION OF SATAN: THE FULL STORY OF THE SALEM WITCH TRIALS by FRANCES HILL (1995) ★ ★ ★ ★
THE BOOKS OF JACOB by OLGA TOKARCZUK (REVIEW)
quickly: it’s a jewish cult in 1700’s poland (an astral traveling matriarch accidentally floating above all of existence / a man who prides himself on being no one and knowing nothing, a simpleton, yet attracts followers from all over / prophetesses who see prophecies fulfilled / sects that are cults that are sects that are cults / a security detail made entirely of women).
this book is as long as life, and just as monotonous, which is what makes it all the more enriching. it is truly a world and a time, encapsulated in 961 pages. it is a true story, with a thin glaze of magical realism drizzled on top. it reads like the bible (or should i say the Torah), slow, dry, and impactful. it is crowded, like a city street during lunch hour, but if you follow Yente and Jacob through the story, you’ll never get lost.
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
more thoughts: SPOILERS!
Some personal context… this is the first Big Book I’ve read since reading Infinite Jest back in like 2015. I’ve read a handful of books randomly from 2016-2022, going years sometimes without reading a full book. I was gifted a set of Goosebumps books by a friend last Christmas and the nostalgia inspired me to get reading again.
I went from Goosebumps to Fear Street to some brilliant new fiction (Sacrificio by Ernesto Mestre-Reed, The Boatman’s Daughter and The Hollow Kind by Andy Davidson). THE BOOKS OF JACOB is the longest book I’ve read in years, and it was almost nothing I thought it would be. After the delicious but “short” novels I’d been reading lately, I was craving the truly immersive feeling of that could only be captured in a 900+ page book.
The synopsis excited me immediately: JEWISH CULT IN 1700s POLAND! BASED ON A TRUE STORY!
Now by no means do I have any serious education of Jewish culture. I’ve watched movies, read some books, but I am not versed. However, with the level and detail of writing that Tokarczuk achieves in this work (much of it based on fact), it made real some of the things that only existed in my mind as fragments of information.
The entire story is broken up into books, books are broken up into chapters, and chapters each have their own subsections. Most of these subsections are prose, some are letters, and others are ‘scraps’ or behind-the-scenes moments captured by Nahmen, Jacob’s most faithful follower.
THE BOOK OF FOG, is the opener. It sets the scene and introduces you to a network of characters that Jacob will soon be at the center of.
THE BOOK OF SAND, sees families start to form, and Yente turns into a goddess of the air as she astral travels through time and space. Jacob is introduced and we see his travels (culturally and geographically). His followers witness ‘the great spirit’ descending into him, causing his entire body to shed. This book is filled with miraculous stories and acts.
THE BOOK OF THE ROAD, sees Jacob leading his followers into a new land, and initiating some of his followers by secret rituals. Their practices make them enemies of local Jews and they are soon pursued by The State. Jews issue curses against them, and Jacob sends curses back.
THE BOOK OF THE COMET, sees a comet that appears, with many seeing it as an auger of end times. More rituals. The Shekinah, feminine goddess, is witnessed descending into a gold statue, plague erupts, and Jacob and his followers are held for questioning in regards to their religious practices, eventually banishing him to prison in a monastery. This is where Jacob starts to fray.
THE BOOK OF METAL AND SULFER (my personal favorite for some reason?), sees Jacob sent to prison, yet his followers still cling to him, setting up a village around him. They all wait for the Shekinah to appear from a painting in the church monastery where he is being held. Jacob is ill, a lot, getting older and losing his glow. He is not himself sometimes. Eventually, war breaks out, giving Jacob an opportunity to negotiate his freedom.
THE BOOK OF THE DISTANT COUNTRY, Jacob once again enters a new land, lord of a castle now, where he lives on the lower floors as an old ailing man. The toll of prison manifests in his body. His practices alarm some and enamor others. This book sees the death of Jacob.
THE BOOK OF NAMES, is almost a denouement, biblical style, rife with anecdotes of the deaths of Jacob’s closest followers, and some of their children. Yente, the goddess, closes the story from high above us, somewhere in the afterlife.
In all, I was moved by the beautiful lacing of Jewish lore and mythology throughout the story. I found Jacob to be repulsive, arrogant, wise, contradictory, and ridiculous. Not much different from today’s cult leaders. He eventually endures that long hard ego death that only the body can devise. Throughout the story we see women who guard the knowledge of paternity, all women guards, Yente who knows all, Hayah the Prophetess who sees all, the holy trinity’s fourth part—the great divine feminine, and so on. I found the magic of the feminine, the resistance to “tradition”, and the movement of a people, to be incredible to read about.
I understand and sympathize with those who say they couldn’t read past the first half and were confused and lost in the sea of characters, especially when the main characters decide to switch names mid-story.
A SECRET: There are really only two names to keep up with in the story. Yente, and Jacob. Yente is easy to remember… she is Jacob’s grandmother, and she is also the sky, the wind, the air, and the ether. She is everywhere at all times, at any time, like God. So it’s hard to lose her in the story. Then there’s Jacob. The star upon which all other stars orbit and constellate. If you watch them throughout the pages, all others move around him, forming the loose, lingering, and prescient story arc that only life can form. Everyone else can be identified by their actions.
"There's nothing feminist about having so many resources at your fingertips and choosing to be ignorant. Nothing empowering or enlightening in deciding that intent trumps impact. Especially when the consequences aren't going to be experienced by you, but will instead be experienced by someone from a marginalized community."
Stack Saturday | Fiction or Nonfiction?
I’m usually more of a fiction reader, but lately I’ve been drawn to a few nonfiction titles, most of them related to history. Maybe with all this extra time I can actually put some time into absorbing all of this new information - I’ve always been interested in learning about lesser known figures so this might be the perfect opportunity. Which do you prefer?
I'm currently reading "The Universal Translator" by Yens Wahlgren.
This is the first non-fiction book I've genuinely enjoyed. There have been points where I have laughed or chuckled because it's just so fun.
This is a book about made-up langauges, known as conlangs. This means it covers everything from history's very first conlangs to your favourite fandom's languages. I'm having such a great time going from page to page thinking: "Omg! I've watched that show!"
So would truly recommend for those interested in languages or just any geek. It's got everything from Star Wars to Pingu.
find local theater near you. go to local theater near you. read plays. read non-fiction books. read fiction books written over one hundred years ago. go to the movie theater. watch movies with subtitles. watch slow movies. watch challenging movies. watch movies made for less than five million dollars. watch a documentary. watch television shows that have no fandoms. watch classic television shows. watch television shows starring actors that have no social media. read criticism of your favorite media frequently. think critically about your favorite media often. consume media made for adults.