Category: True Story

As someone with a disability, I love reading other disabled people’s stories and seeing how each is its own unique creation. In Golem Girl, Riva Lehrer was born with spina bifida. At the time she was born, there was very little support for parents with disabled children, and Lehrer internalized a lot of the ableism that she saw around her. But when she discovers a group of artists who use their work to express the deepest parts of themselves, Lehrer finds a new medium to work through her feelings around her identity.

Earlier this year, I listened to the audio edition of Imani Perry’s essay, A Dangerously High Threshold for Pain. You may know Perry from her National Book Award-winning book South to America, which was my favorite book of the year when it came out. In this essay, Perry writes about her experiences living with chronic illness and the pressure she feels to be excellent in all things. But the truth is, she can’t do everything. Eventually, Imani is diagnosed with Lupus and Graves Disease, and her doctor warns her that her dangerously high threshold for pain often results in her ignoring her body’s need for rest. Perry narrates the audio version, and her performance has stayed with me since I first heard it.

Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs? is a hilarious book of discussion questions that kids have about death. In each chapter, Doughty, a mortician, answers one question that a child has asked her over the course of her career. From hair growth to pet death, Doughty tackles each topic with her signature wit and humor. Plus, she narrates the audiobook, giving listeners an incredible performance. If you find yourself on a car trip or just need something to entertain the kids in your life, Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs? would be an incredible choice.

World of Wonders is a gorgeous book that’s perfect for giving to someone else or as a special treat for yourself. It’s full to the brim of love and enthusiasm for the natural world. Nezhukumatathil shares her love for everything from plants to animals to marine life. Plus, this book is a gorgeous keepsake, beautifully illustrated by Fumi Nakamura. This book is truly a one-of-a-kind reading experience.

Edited by the incredible disability rights activist, Alice Wong, this collection is a celebration of disabled people. As a disabled person myself, I found this collection such a joy to read. There are difficult circumstances discussed in the book, but each essay focuses on disabled lives and centers disabled people in the conversation. There’s such a broad collection of authors included in this essay, representing a wide range of races, ethnicities, sexualities, genders, religions, and economic status.

Dark humor is a staple of disability humor and few people do it better than Jenny Lawson. In her latest essay collection, Lawson shares hilarious personal anecdotes and gives a frank portrait of her life with chronic illness, anxiety, and depression. Balancing both serious and humorous topics can be quite the challenge, but Lawson is always more than up for the task!

Here’s one for history and biography lovers! The Dead Are Arising is an award-winning biography of Malcolm X. Les Payne worked on this book for decades, and when he passed, his daughter, Tamara Payne, continued his work and finished the book. The Dead Are Arising went on to receive dozens of accolades, including winning the National Book Award for nonfiction. This is definitely a book you won’t want to miss!

When I moved to the South, I realized that the Civil War meant a lot of different things to folks down here. One of the things I learned is how Southerners each go on their own journey with coming to terms with their identity. This book is a fabulous look at the author’s own journey to reckoning with the South’s past and its role in the Civil War. The new South, a more inclusive, accepting South, is on the rise.

I first read Rage Becomes Her a few years ago, and I haven’t stopped thinking about it since. In Rage Becomes Her, Chemaly looks at different aspects of women’s rage and how it has been treated throughout history. Each chapter discusses a different aspect of women’s anger —how it affects women’s health, how angry women have been treated throughout history, etc. Her writing is so clearly organized and well-researched; there’s something new to learn on every page.

Let the Record Show by Sarah Schulman is a hefty book, but well worth the time of sitting down with it for hours. This book is a history of the ACT UP movement, centering itself in New York City. Schulman breaks down the information by topic, walking readers through the complex organization and reviewing the different challenges they faced during the height of the AIDS crisis. I was incredibly impressed by the amount of detail. And even though it’s a hefty book, I became engrossed from the first chapter.

Lab Girl is a memoir by botanist Hope Jahren. This book is like a meditation on plants and how Jahren’s life has been influenced by her work in the scientific field studying and cataloging plants. She also shares what it’s been like for her, as a woman, to work in a male-dominated field. And the prose of this book is incredible, making it a joy to read.

In Braiding Sweetgrass, botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer combines her background in science and the traditions of her Indigenous heritage to write this beautiful book that focuses on the wisdom of plants. Her incredible prose and her depth of knowledge combine to create a one-of-a-kind reading experience.

Marie Mutsuki Mockett’s family owns a wheat farm in Nebraska, and every year, a crew of wheat harvesters arrive. One year, Mockett decides to follow the wheat harvesters on their yearly journey across the heartland to harvest that year’s crop. As a progressive biracial Japanese American, Mockett didn’t think she’d have much in common with the harvesters. But during their journey, Mockett gets to know the team of harvesters, having conversations with them about their faith.

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Eric Eyre broke the story about how drug companies sent over 12 million opioid pills into Kermit, West Virginia over a 12-year period. The town had a population of under 400. His book, Death in Mud Lick, shares the story of his reporting and gives more in-depth information about the opioid crisis in West Virginia. His work is another example of why we need local journalism, even in isolated, rural places like Appalachia.

Growing up in New York City did not prepare Emma for her summer working as an intern for a nonprofit located in Pocahontas County, West Virginia. She falls in love with the area and decides to stay on as permanent staff after her internship is over. A large part of this book focuses on Emma’s research into the murder of two women several decades before. But soon she learns there was a mysterious third rainbow girl, and no one knows what happened to her. This book threads together history, true crime, and memoir, and the different threads of this book combine to create something truly unique.

In this memoir, Brian Broome tells the story of his life growing up as a young, gay Black man in Appalachian Ohio. Broome has stated in interviews that he wanted to write this book for other poor, queer kids who feel they never see themselves and their life experiences in books. Eventually, Broome moves to Pittsburgh, making his home in urban Appalachia. His writing is vibrant and engrossing, so prepare a block of time for this book because once you start reading, you may find you’ve lost all track of time.

David Chang is known as an incredible restaurateur and has opened restaurants around the world. But he didn’t start out that way. He grew up as the son of Korean immigrants, and started out working as a line cook in a wide range of restaurants. He started his business and received a lot of early success. But the entire time, he was hiding his struggle with mental illness. This memoir follows his experience with anxiety and depression from a young age through his decorated career as a celebrity chef.

Long Litt Woon moved from Malaysia to Norway, married her husband, and made a life for herself as an anthropologist. But when Woon’s husband dies, she doesn’t know how to move through life without him. Then she discovers the mushroom community, which helps bring her new joy. The book is filled with all sorts of mushroom facts, giving readers a detailed account of what mushrooming looks like in Norway.

I always love a good cult book, and Amanda Montell’s is one of the best. Only, it’s not about one cult. It’s about the language of cults and how everyday exposure to this language influences how people view the world. Through her skill at narrative storytelling and incredible research skills, Montell takes us deep into the influence of cults and the words that help build them.

In the Dream House is a Book Riot favorite for a reason. Machado writes about her relationship with her girlfriend. As her girlfriend becomes more and more controlling and abusive, Machado realizes she needs to leave the relationship. The book is made up of chapters that each start with “The Dream House as…”  This experimental structure lends itself to the story and the unique narrative that Machado is weaving in this memoir.