Readers > Adult & teen lists > Best Nonfiction Reads of 2006
Staff Picks — Best Nonfiction Reads of 2006
These titles were the best books read by Multnomah County Library staff during 2006.
- Baugh, Bryan
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(2006)741.5 B346z 2006Besides its merits as a technical guide for illustrators, this book includes an excellent short history of science fiction comics and their artistic and literary themes. (Caleb)
- Berman, Morris
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(2006)973.931 B516d 2006This is a wonderful book about the realities of America sputtering out and what writing is already on the wall. Why China will be the next number one world power and how the corporations have sold us down the river and have decided that the U.S. working class will be treated like the third world. Why our dollar is already very inflated and will be practically useless in a few more years. Real cheery stuff. (Grant)
- Bouillier, Gregoire
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(2006)B-Bo663m 2006The Booklist review says it best: "Bouiller delivers an ostensibly autobiographical novella that is charmingly absurd, gently metafictional and gloriously French. Highly recommended." (Sharon)
- Chandrasekaran, Rajiv
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(2006)956.70443 C456i 2006I enjoyed Imperial life in the Emerald City. It seemed like an inside glimpse into what was going on in 2003 in the first year of the Iraq invasion. I thought it was informative and factual, and gave me some compassion for all the people who were there trying to do their best. I think Americans would do well to be educated about this. (Rebecca)
- Chomsky, Noam
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(2007)327.73 C548pe 2007This book — like all of Chomsky's work and probably Gilbert Achcar's as well — is very dense with information and seeks to do a difficult task: to explain the Middle East, its factions and recent developments. Gilbert Achcar is a real expert from France who gives the European perspective on these issues. It also explains how the U.S. media manipulates issues to subvert our understanding of them. This was the best book I have ever read about Middle East politics and allowed me to get a grasp on complex issues. It was current through July of 2006. (Grant)
- Dawkins, Richard
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(2006)211.8 D271g 2006A thorough look at the concept of God by one of today's leading scientists. Logic and clear-headedness are brought to bear on why people believe in God, what that belief has wrought and how to deal with religion's pervasiveness. Possibly a candidate for the "Preaching to the Secular Choir" award, this book is a great read for atheists, skeptics, fence-straddlers and intelligent religious devouts alike. (Stephan)
- Engelberg, Miriam
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(2006)GN 616.994 ENGELBERGHard to believe, but this book is laugh-out-loud funny. In this intimate comic strip portrait, a sense of humor tempers the fear and physical illness experienced by the author during her treatment for breast cancer. (Christopher)
- Fessler, Ann
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(2006)362.8298 F417g 2006The Girls Who Went Away it is the best book I've read this year. This book is an amazing piece of history. I couldn't put it down! (Terry)
- Fraser, Antonia
(2006)944.033 L888f 2006Every now and then history reads very much like a novel, and certainly the life of the Sun King of France, Louis XIV, fits that category. A life of victory and defeat, glory and despair, glittering facades that surrounded all the loves and hates of human hearts, this is an entertaining biography of Louis and the influences of the women in his life. And in a true case of art imitating life, we learn here that the Three Musketeers along with young hero D'Artagnan were actual historical figures in Louis' service! (Gail)
- Gonzales, Laurence
Deep Survival : Who Lives, Who Dies, and Why : True Stories of Miraculous Endurance and Sudden Death(2003)613.69 G643d 2003This is a fascinating examination of how our brains, reflexes and prior experiences may aid or hinder us in emergency situations. If you follow search and rescue mission news stories and wonder what you would do if you were lost in the woods, you will find lots to ponder in these suspenseful stories ranging from rafting trips gone wrong to climbers trapped on Mt. Hood. As I listened to this book on CD, I thought about how amazingly complex we humans are physically and emotionally. (Lisa)- Goodwin, Doris Kearns
(2005)B-L736go 2005This was such fascinating and well-written book that I went out and bought a copy for my home library. Actually multiple biographies of Lincoln and the men of his Cabinet, Ms. Goodwin has in-depth scholarly research which she presents in a clear, readable manner that brings all of these men to vivid life. Their individual ambitions, strengths and weaknesses are examined along with how each personality interacted with the others as Lincoln led them in the effort to save a nation torn apart over issues of slavery and states rights. It was a story I found totally absorbing. Lincoln in particular is revealed as a man of great heart, compassion and humility along with great vision and political genius. (Gail)A fascinating look into the contenders for the 1860 Republican nomination, how long shot Abraham Lincoln managed to win and how Lincoln then shrewdly brought his rivals on board to serve as his Cabinet during the critical years of the Civil War. (Cathy)- Mortenson, Greg
(2006)370.95491 M887t 2006Greg Mortensen promises he will build a school in Korphe, the small Pakistani village where he is nursed back to health after a failed attempt to climb K2. And amazingly, this nurse/mountain climber, who lives in a car in Berkeley, California, manages to build Korphe's first school. This book provides a glimpse into the worlds of people who live in the mountains of Pakistan and Afghanistan and of the dreams many of us around the world share — to provide better lives for our children. Full of adventure and inspiration — imagine riding in a jeep with dynamite under the driver's seat! (Lisa)A story about how one person can make a difference. Greg Mortenson lived in his car in the Bay Area and worked as a substitute nurse for hospitals to earn enough money in order to do what he really loved doing — mountain climbing. After a failed attempt in 1993 to reach the summit of K2 that nearly cost him his life, Greg is nursed back to health by members of a small mountain village in Pakistan, and vows to return the following year and build them a school. With the perseverance that helped him as a mountain climber, Greg deals with one obstacle after another in his quest to build a school, including capture by the Taliban, but makes many friends along the way and eventually succeeds in building 58 schools through his nonprofit Central Asia Institute. (Cathy)- Norton, Trevor
(2006)577.51 N888u 2006A hilarious yet touching memoir with brilliant nature writing by a distinguished British marine biologist. The only ways I could've enjoyed it more would be: 1) to read it while staying at the coast and 2) to finish reading it in the three-week checkout period. I had to return it and rehold it many times. My favorite book of 2006. (Tama)- Palast, Greg
(2006)973.931 P154a 2006This is a great book that discusses the Bush administration and its terrible practices around education, foreign policy, the Patriot Act, election fraud and the real mission accomplished — making the few rich more so while fleecing the poor and middle classes. It confronts the huge problems with the "no child left behind" educational model, its failures and inadequacies. (It basically allows the rich to take more money from the poor to pay for private elite education for their kids). Palast discusses the perpetual state of terrorist war and how the Bush administration lied to get us where we are so far. Armed Madhouse exposes the abuses to our civil rights, the real purpose for the war in Iraq and the perpetual fear campaign designed to increase the disparity between rich and working classes. (Grant)- Parsell, T. J.
(2006)365.973 P266f 2006First-time author T.J. Parsell is a human rights activist dedicated to ending sexual violence against men, women and children in all forms of detention. As president of Stop Prisoner Rape, he served as a consultant to the National Prison Rape Elimination Commission. In this powerfully moving book he recounts with searing honesty his experiences as a teenager in an adult correctional facility. (Christopher)- Pinchbeck, Daniel
(2006)191 P647t 2006This is a spiritual book about shamanism, mythologies, crop circles and prophecies. Daniel weaves many recent developments in alternative histories, crop circles and new interpretations of ancient prophecies into this story of personal growth. Those people interested in the works of John Major Jenkins, Jose Argüelles, Carl Johan Calleman, Carl Jung or Rudolf Steiner will enjoy this 2012. It wasn't a "doom and gloom" book, but more of a transformation of consciousness piece. (Grant)- Pollan, Michael
(2006)394.10973 P771o 2006The Omnivore's Dilemma should be required reading for anyone who eats or shops for food. Pollan writes a fascinating history of four meals and discusses the social/political/economic impact and implications of the foods we eat today. Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood could be an interesting fiction companion. (Leni)- Powell, Julie
(2005)B-Po8716j 2005Really funny and engaging, even if you aren't a "foodie." (Candy)- Remnick, David
(2005)363.7285 R892g 2005This excellent collection of Remnick's interviews for The New Yorker magazine over the last 15 years gives readers an interesting glimpse and perspective into other people's lives: a defeated Al Gore after the 2000 election, Tony Blair (post-Iraq), Katherine Graham, Mike Tyson, survivors of Hurricane Katrina, Alexandr Solzhenitsyn, Vladimir Putin, the Romanovs, Benjamin Netanyahu, Yasser Arafat, Natan Sharansky, Philip Roth, Don DeLillo and others. (Cathy)- Reynolds, Simon
(2006)781.66 R465r 2006A chronicle of the course of post-punk music, a genre that flourished from 1978 to 1984 and has made a comeback during the past few years. Reynolds describes the intellectual and musical influences on groups like the Talking Heads, the Ramones, the Specials, Public Image Limited, Wire and Scritti Politti. A must-read for anyone who wants to learn more about post-punk music. (Steve)- Rothman, Rodney
(2005)306.38 R846e 2005When Rodney Rothman was in his twenties and between jobs, he decided to leave Los Angeles and retire to Florida. To the bewilderment of his friends and family, he found a way to live in a retirement community for seniors where he took up shuffleboard and tried to make friends at the pool. His approach is both humorous and sensitive, as he learns more about his elderly friends. A writer for the David Letterman show before "retiring," Rothman has a friendly, down-to-earth writing style. (Lisa)- Stewart, Rory
(2006)915.81 S851p 2006In January 2002 Rory Stewart walked across Afghanistan — surviving by his wits, his knowledge of Persian dialects and Muslim customs, and the kindness of strangers. By day he passed through mountains covered in nine feet of snow, hamlets burned and emptied by the Taliban, and communities thriving amid the remains of medieval civilizations. By night he slept on villagers' floors, shared their meals and listened to their stories. Along the way, Stewart — a Scottish journalist who has served in both the British Army and the Foreign Office — met heroes and rogues, tribal elders and teenage soldiers, Taliban commanders and foreign aid workers. He was also adopted by an unexpected companion — a retired fighting mastiff he named Babur in honor of Afghanistan's first Mughal emperor, in whose footsteps the pair was following. Stewart's wry humor and lean prose create a stunning travel narrative. (Jayne)- Walker, Sam
(2006)793.93 W184fAvid participants in fantasy sports occupy their time by pretending that professional athletes are their personal employees. Trash is talked, bets are placed and egos are bruised. Sam Walker exposes it all as ridiculous and worthwhile. (Caleb)