Nonfiction Wishlist: Damage Limitation (inspired by Nonfiction November)

In a flash of what may be short lived inspiration one morning while perusing the Guardian’s book reviews, it occurred to me it might be a good idea to keep an easily skimmable list of the nonfiction books I would read if I had unlimited time, money or access to a library in Britain with free interlibrary loan (ILL).

Reading reviews of nonfiction books on the Guardian website is an exercise in futility and frustration. So many fascinating books are published  that will never cross my path. What’s more, if they are being reviewed in the paper, that means they are brand new and only available in hardback, i.e. they are usually in the £20 to £30 price bracket. This means I will invariably wait until they come out in paperback, by which time they will have sunk so far down my Goodreads wishlist, I will probably have forgotten them. Added to which, I can usually only buy nonfiction in English either online, which I try to avoid, or in England, where I rarely go. Hence the advisability of a list that I can consult in a bookshop.

Cutting down the wishlist

When I looked at my nonfiction shelf on Goodreads I realised that (as of August 2022), of the 202 books listed, only 40 of those are actual wishlist books; I’ve already read another 39. In other words, I have 123 unread or partially read nonfiction books sitting on my shelves already, often covering the same subjects. Things that make you go hmmm! Let’s see if I can talk myself out of some of them or find an alternative on my TBR shelf.

The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference (2000), Malcolm Gladwell. Maybe I should read his Outliers first, on my TBR since 2014. Read TBR book Outliers

Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal (2001), Eric Schlosser. I have already read a similar book Fat Land: How Americans Became the Fattest People in the World (2003), Greg Critser this would just be a refresher course. My husband also has a book I haven’t read yet that discusses solutions, Fat Chance: Beating the Odds Against Sugar, Processed Food, Obesity and Disease (2012), Robert H. Lustig. I’ll read that instead. Maybe. Update 2023: I will also try to hold my fire on Chris van Tulleken’s new book, Ultra-Processed Food: The Science Behind Food That Isn’t Food. The trouble is, I really do want to read that. I wonder if my husband would appreciate it as a gift… Read TBR bookFat Chance

Het geluid van vallende sneeuw [The Sound of Falling Snow] (2006), Jannie Regnerus. An investigation into the Japanese belief that objects have a soul, an idea that Marie Kondo uses when she thanks objects for their service before discarding them. One to borrow from the library. Library

Things I Don’t Want to Know (2013), Deborah Levy. The first part of Levy’s living autobiography. Having read her Hot Milk and various interviews with her, this is a book I am curious to read, but probably only if it crosses my path secondhand. Stays on Wishlist

Amsterdam: A History of the World’s Most Liberal City (2013), Russell Shorto. I should read Geert Mak’s De eeuw van mijn vader [My Father’s Century] (1999) first, a book I had planned for April 2022 [Well, that didn’t happen!]. It examines a century of Dutch history through the lens of his own family history. He has also written a book about Amsterdam that I could borrow from the library. In fact, I have no shortage of books on my TBR on Dutch history. I can probably give Shorto’s book a miss, though a book by a knowledgeable outsider can be interesting, if only to trigger rants that may inspire a blogpost. Read TBR book De eeuw van mijn vader

The Cut Out Girl: A Story of War and Family, Lost and Found (Ver-geet-mij-niet) (2018), Bart van Es. A Dutch academic investigated this true story of a Jewish girl who was taken in during the war by his grandparents, treated like a daughter and asks why she later lost contact. Written in English, then translated into Dutch by someone else. This one is still firmly on my wishlist. However, I do have a book about Anne Frank to read, De achtertuin van het achterhuis [The back garden at the Annex] (2018) by Gerard Kremer on my shelf already. Dutch history will always interest me, especially 20th century history. Read TBR book De achtertuin van het achterhuis

The Wife’s Tale: A Personal History (2018), Aida Edemariam. Ethiopian history and tradition. This book won the 2019 RSL Ondaatje Prize and has been compared to an Ethiopian Wild Swans. I’ve added it to my online wishlist (one up from the Goodreads wishlist; I might actually order it). But wait! I have an acclaimed novel that covers the same ground: The Shadow King by Maaza Mengiste. Update 2023: reader, it seems to have appeared on my shelf. I obviously couldn’t resist the urge to order it. Whoops! Read 2 TBR books: The Wife’s Tale + The Shadow King

Mr. Kaor Yamamoto, Lex Boon. A Dutch journalist investigated why a Japanese man sent four letters per week to a hotel in Volendam, every one the same. One to borrow from the library, just for fun. Library

The Better Half: On the Genetic Superiority of Women (2020), Sharon Moalem. This comes under the heading of sounding absolutely fascinating, but I probably wouldn’t read it for years if I bought it. I should finish Caroline Criado Perez’s Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men (2019) first. I suspect The Better Half piggybacks on the success of Invisible Women; Sharon Moalem is a man, by the way… Finish currently reading TBR book Invisible Women

Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants (2013), Robin Wall Kimmerer. This is remaining firmly on the list of books I think I would love, unless it’s too airy-fairy and tending towards spiritual mumbo jumbo. Having a quote on the front cover by Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love isn’t helping convince me, even if I did love that as a light summer read. I’m looking for more depth from Braiding Sweetgrass. I’d prefer to borrow it or browse it before buying. It’s available on archive.org. The Dutch Online Library has also added it (in Dutch). After a brief glance, I’m convinced I’ll love it. But there are other nature books awaiting my attention on my shelves: Wilding by Isabella Tree (now finished), Vesper Flights by Helen Macdonald (half-read) and The Old Ways by Robert Macfarlane (TBR) as well as various gardening books. I also have to buy Entangled Life: How Funghi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds and Shape Our Futures (2021) by Merlin Sheldrake for my April book club (I didn’t!). Ironically, it has quotes from both Helen Macdonald and Robert Macfarlane on the front cover. Why don’t authors say “This book is nearly as good as mine. Read mine first!”?  Braiding Sweetgrass will have to go on the back burner. Remains on wishlist / to be read online

My Name is Why (2019), Lemn Sissay. Autobiography of a Black British boy, adopted, then fostered, neglected, but turned into a renowned author and broadcaster, against all the odds. I will read it if I come across it. I have plenty of other books about the consequences of British colonialism to read, including one about the Windrush generation. Remains on wishlist

The Life and Rhymes of Benjamin Zephaniah:The Autobiography (2018), Benjamin Zephaniah. I have enjoyed some of Zephaniah’s poetry and he has led an interesting life, so I will keep an eye out for this, but wouldn’t buy it new. Sadly, he died a few days ago, far too young. Remains on wishlist 

Blooming Flowers: A Seasonal History of Plants and People (2020), Kasia Body. I’m attracted as much by the cover as the subject, but I already have substitutes on my shelves so won’t order it. Read a different TBR book 

The Resurrection of Winnie Mandela, Sisonke Msimang. I already have an older book about Winnie Mandela, so I should make myself read that first. I also have the half-read 1001 book Burger’s Daughter by Nadine Gordimer, about the life of a dissident’s daughter in South Africa. I planned to read it in this month (2022) (theme: family members) or give up for good. Skim read?

Between the Stops: The View of My Life from the Top of the Number 12 Bus (2019), Sandi Toksvig. I would love to read this because Sandi Toksvig is a delight and I’ve loved a couple of her YA books, but am unlikely to order it. Stays on wishlist

The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable (2016), Amitav Ghosh. Before I think of buying this, I need to read Ghosh’s The Hungry Tide to see if I like his style. Then I should read Resetting Our Future: What If Solving the Climate Crisis is Simple? by Tom Bowman and George Monbiot’s Amazon (now half-read), all gathering dust on my bookshelves. Read TBR books: The Hungry Tide + What if Solving…

Homesick: Why I Live in a Shed (2019), Catrina Davies. I believe I read about this book in a Guardian review, then saw Davies interviewed in Simon Reeves’ depressing documentary about how difficult it is for young people in Cornwall to find meaningful jobs or anywhere to live. This is high on my list of books to buy, if only for the satisfaction of paying  the author for her work. I grew up in a seaside resort with high unemployment on the other side of the  country and it wasn’t uncommon for families running guesthouses to sleep in the garden shed in tourist season, but at least they could go back inside once it got colder. Update 2023: I bought this on my Kobo app and have read 69%. Finish reading!

The Road to Somewhere: Populist Revolt and the Future of Politics (2017), David Goodhart. This sounds so fascinating that I might just have to buy it as it has to do with rootedness and whether you have an Anywhere or Somewhere outlook. As someone who thought they were internationally oriented but actually likes staying in one place, and in the light of Brexit, this sounds like it may just be worth buying because I don’t think it will ever be available in the library here. Update 2023: This is now lurking on my Kobo. TBR!

Venice: The Lion, the City and the Water (2019), Cees Nooteboom. This is really on my wishlist because I had a blogging friend who loved both the English translation of Cees Nooteboom’s travel books and Venice. So far I have only read two of his novels which I find overly philosophical and my only connection with Venice is the beautiful and intriguing descriptions in Cordelia Funke’s The Thief of Scipio. I will have to peruse it in a bookshop before spending money on this one, but it is also a coffee table book in collaboration with his photographer partner. I may well borrow another of his travel books from the library, however. Check the library

Slave Empire: How Slavery Built Modern Britain (2021), Padraic X. Scanlan. First I should read the books I already have on this subject: Empireland (Sathnam Sanghera), Black and British (David Olosuga) and The Windrush Betrayal: Exposing the Hostile Environment (Amelia Gentleman) for starters. 2023: Finish Empireland and The Windrush Betrayal (both half-read)+ Read Black and British

Stroika With a London View (2010), William B. Foreignerski (translated from Latvian by the author). An overqualified Latvian moves to London to work in the construction industry. A humorous look at pre-Brexit Britain from the viewpoint of an immigrant. I’m considering buying this as an ebook, but in 2022, I could only order through Amazon on Kindle, which I prefer not to do. It would have cost me €17.94 with a delivery time of about 6 weeks if I ordered it through Amazon.nl; if I was in England it would have cost me £6.99, 2-day delivery! Update 2023: I can now buy the e-book for just €4.42 on bol.com (Dutch online retailer). I may treat myself. It’s not often you come across a Latvian book. Buy Stroika With a London View!

Foreign Devils on the Silk Road (1980), Peter Hopkirk. All about six men who led archeological expeditions to areas in China to dig up ancient artifacts covered by sand. They are now in various museums around the world and China would like them back. This is one of those books that’s worth noting on a list, but  I doubt I’ll ever find it. There are more modern books about the history of the The Silk Road, notably by historian Peter Francopan, so that might be worth looking for in the library. 2023: The New Silk Road was on special offer last year, so I couldn’t resist. TBR: The New Silk Road

Loved Clothes Last: How the Joy of Rewearing and Repairing Your Clothes Can be a Revolutionary Act (2021), Orsola de Castro. This fits perfectly into my life philosophy. The main problem is actually doing the mending. Before I treat myself to this book, though, I am going to see what they have in the extensive selection of craft books at the library. Reading reviews online, I think my time might be better spent watching some videos on YouTube and then actually trying to put it into practice. Check the library

The Art of Repair (2021), Molly Martin. This sounds like the practical manual for mending clothes that I am looking for! It may be more of a gift book than a practical one, however. Check the library

Fashionopolis: The Price of Fast Fashion and the Future of Clothes (2019), Dana Thomas. This sounds fascinating, but perhaps I should explore the subject via the library rather than using up resources by buying my own copy. This sounds more inspirational than Loved Clothes Last because it concentrates more on high tech solutions to environmentally unfriendly textile production as well as small scale sharing, recycling, etc. but the problem is price and scalability. One to borrow from the library, if possible. Library?

Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World (2019), David Epstein. Being a generalist myself, I’m very interested in this subject, but when a reviewer I trust says I’d be better off reading a summary or watching a TED talk about the subject, then my conclusion is: watch the TED talk first. 

Kindertijd (1967), Tove Ditlevsen. This is part of an autobiographical trilogy that I want to borrow from the library. As it’s a translation from Danish, I feel perfectly happy reading it in Dutch. Library

Laat voor de thee in het hertenpaleis. Een familiegeschiedenis in Baghdad (Late for Tea at the Deer Palace) (2009), Tamara Chalabi. Available from my library

The Disappearing Spoon. And Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements (2010), Sam Kean. One to keep in mind when looking for a popular science read, but not a must-have. I’ve been reading Jay Ingram’s collection of short articles, The Speed of Honey for the past 12 years, I believe, and Bill Bryson’sA Short History of Nearly Everything has been on my bedside table for years, hoping the knowledge will somehow be absorbed into my brain as I sleep, perhaps. I did read the first couple of chapters once and recall one fact: up until some relatively recent date (the crusades?), the concept of zero did not yet exist in western mathematics. I also have Ian Stewart’s What Shape is a Snowflake? to read before I add anything new to the science pile. My husband also has an extensive shelf of space and mathematics-themed books if I’m desperate, though nothing much about chemistry or medicine, which interest me more than physics and space. I’ll leave it on my list. Wishlist

Love in the Blitz: The Greatest Lost Love Letters of the Second World War (2020), Eileen Alexander. I would read this if I had it, but I wouldn’t go put of my way to find it. On the other hand, I might re-read Joyce Grenfell’s Dear Ma whose letters were funny and informative about wartime London. Remove from wishlist

Ramble Book (2020), Adam Buxton. I didn’t know anything about Adam Buxton when I discovered his podcasts a couple of years ago. In the first one I listened to, he was talking to Louis Theroux and I’ve also listened to him interviewing Philip Pullman and others. I’m probably more likely to selectively listen to more of his podcasts than to buy the book. Listen to podcast occasionally

The Wardian Case: How a Simple Box Moved Plants and Changed the World (2020), Luke Keogh. Mention of these mini greenhouses has cropped up a couple of times in my reading and television viewing in the past year or two, so I’d like to know more. However, I have to read the nature and gardening books I already have first. Read TBR books

Memory Speaks: On Losing and Reclaiming Language and Self, Julie Sedivy. A meditation on bilingualism and language learning. It would jump off a shelf at me if I saw it in a shop, but doubt I will buy it. Remove from wishlist

The Electricity of Every Living Thing (2018), Katherine May. The personal cogitations of a woman who was given a diagnosis of Asperger’s Syndrome as an adult and decides to walk the South West Coast Path, in sections. I have a personal interest in autism, so this definitely appeals to me. I can borrow it from the library, as well as her book Wintering, about accepting dark, quiet times in your life as normal because life has recurring seasons too. Library

Sentient: What Animals Reveal About Our Senses (2021), Jackie Higgins. One for the science reminder stack. Wishlist

Extreme Economies: What Life at the World’s Margins Can Teach Us About our Future (2020), Richard Davies. I’m still interested in reading this after Ian’s excellent review, but first I have Rutger Bregman’s Utopia for Realists to read. I’ve been promising my son I would read this ever since he got it. Perhaps I should buy him Davies’s book as a present. TBR: Utopia for Realists

Back to Basics: A Complete Guide to Traditional Skills (2007), Abigail R. Gehring. This sounds like a great guide for apocalyptic times, assuming one can get the supplies one needs at that point. Apart from that, I’ve always been interested in learning traditional skills, but have never had anyone to teach me. I’m still highly attracted to this title as well as the one about which food it’s worthwhile making yourself, Make the Bread, Buy the Butter by Jennifer Reese. Keep on wishlist

The Border: A Journey Around Russia Through North Korea, China, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania, Poland, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, Norway and the Northeast Passage (2017), Erika Fatland. I added this to my wishlist after I read Colin Thubron’s book about his travels in Kazakhstan and the other Stans, Into the Heart of Asia, shortly after the collapse of the USSR. Fatland’s journey is much more recent and covers more ground. She has also written a book called Sovietstan: Travels in Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kirghizstan, and Uzbekistan, which I would also like to read. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine makes me even more interested in the region and it’s relationship with Russia. I’m very tempted to buy it, but am worried it would take up a lot of space and just sit for years on the neverending travel memoir bookshelf. After all, I have other books covering this region, both fiction and non-fiction: Colin Thubron’s In Siberia and Paul Theroux’s The Iron Rooster, humorous To the Baltic With Bob by Griff Rhys Jones, a fantasy book by an Estonian, The Man Who Spoke Snakish, a book about the ex-Georgian president’s Dutch ex-wife. I also recently added Rory Stewart’s The Places In Between about walking across Afghanistan to my TBR. Maybe I should catch up on those books first, though I am intrigued by her perspective as a woman travelling alone in the region. Read 5 or 6 TBR books instead

The Journal of a Disappointed Man (1919), W.N.P. Barbellion. I have to admit I added this mainly because of the name Barbellion, which cropped up elsewhere (in The Quincunx by Charles Palliser), but when I found out more, it still intrigued me. Perhaps when I’m reading Pat Barker’s Regeneration trilogy or something else set around that period, I will read this as a companion piece. It was written by man who couldn’t go to war because he had MS. Stays on wishlist

East Side Voices: Essays Celebrating East and Southeast Asian Voices in Britain (2022), Helena Lee (ed.). I really ought to read one of my oldest books that covers the same ground, but was first published in the 1978 and focuses on women, Finding a Voice: Asian Women in Britain, edited by Amrit Wilson. It was updated last year to add a chapter from the point of view of young British Asian women today, comparing their lives with those of the women interviewed in the 1970s. I’ve read about half. Read TBR book Finding a Voice

When the Dust Settles: Stories of Love, Loss and Hope from an Expert in Disaster (2022), Lucy Easthope. This is particularly timely in the wake of a global pandemic and a war in Ukraine. It’s one to bear in mind once my glut of books has thinned out a bit. In fact, when the dust has settled. In 2023 I also picked up a book about pandemics, Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Pandemic (2012) by David Quammen.Leave on wishlist + read Spillover

Added to my wishlist in 2023

The Long Weekend: A Social History of Britain 1918-1939 (1940), Robert Graves. Wishlist

No One Round Here Reads Tolstoy: Memoirs of a Working Class Reader (2022), Mark Hodkinson. I read an excerpt from this in the Guardian and was intrigued. Wishlist

The Great Explosion (2015), Brian Dillon. In 1916, an explosion at a munitions factory in Kent killed 108 people. The book also explores the Kentish marshes (which ones?). Curious only because I hail from East Kent, but I would only buy this secondhand, where I am extremely unlikely to find it. Wishlist

The Book of Trespass: Crossing the Lines That Divide Us (2020), Nick Hayes. A vast proportion of Britain’s landscape is privately owned. Investigates past trespassers and the right to roam. One to look for whilst in England. Wishlist

Sea People: the Puzzle of Polynesia (2019), Christina Thompson. Recommended by a friend. Borrow?

Weggooien? Mooi niet! [Throw it Away? Absolutely Not!] (2015), Martine Postma. Spotted in the library. Borrow from library

Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Tell You Everything You Need to Know About Global Politics (2015), Tim Marshall. Wars and politics often come down to border disputes. This book tells you why they are where they are. Wishlist

There is Nothing for You Here: Finding Opportunity in the Twenty-First Century (2021), Fiona Hill. A British working class woman’s education led to her studying in Russia, Harvard, working under three US presidents, including Trump. A warning against populism. Wishlist

It’s a Continent: Unravelling Africa’s History One Country at a Time (2022), Astrid Madimba. Remove from wishlist because I bought Africa is Not a Country (2022) by Dipo Faloyin instead. Read TBR book Africa is Not a Country

Tussen de Himalaya en de hemel (2022), Maggie Doyne, translation of Between the Mountain and the Sky by De Vertaalzusjes (Inouchka & Charlaine Kreuning). Spotted at the library. When Maggie Doyne was backpacking in Nepal, she saw a child breaking rocks on the riverbank and decided to take action by setting up a children’s home, school and a charity. Borrow from library

Neurotribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity (2015), Steve Silberman. History of autism and a plea for more inclusion. Apparently the DSM3 contained a typo, meaning many children were unnecessarily diagnosed with PDD-NOS (an autism spectrum disorder). I don’t suppose I shall ever read this, but I’m leaving it on my wishlist as I have a personal interest in autism. In the meantime, I have read I Will Die on This Hill by Meghan Ashburn and Jules Edwards that gives an own voices and parental perspective of autism. Wishlist: Neurotribes

Chip War: The Fight for the World’s Most Critical Technology (2022), Chris Miller. A supposedly entertaining history and future of the semiconductor industry we all depend upon. I am very tempted to buy this, especially as my husband is heavily involved in the industry. Tempted to buy!

In summary

I’m not sure if I made much impact in reducing the number of books on my wishlist, but I have more than enough nonfiction lined up to keep me occupied. I would also like to point out that the wishlist books that listed above are not my only nonfiction books. If there didn’t happen to be a wishlist book on a similar subject, the ones already in my possession are not even listed here! My wishlist is very much pie in the sky, but lists can be useful when I don’t know what to look for in a bookshop or the library. It will be interesting to check back next year during Nonfiction November to see how many of them I have actually read.

To be read:

• Read TBR bookFat Chance
• Read TBR book Outliers
• Read TBR book De eeuw van mijn vader
• Read TBR book De achtertuin van het achterhuis
• Read 2 TBR books: The Wife’s Tale + The Shadow King
• Finish currently reading TBR book Invisible Women
• Finish Vesper Flights by Helen Macdonald (half-read)
• Read The Old Ways by Robert Macfarlane
• Skim read The Resurrection of Winnie Mandela, Sisonke Msimang
• Read TBR books: The Hungry Tide + What if Solving the Climate Chris is Simple
• Finish reading Homesick: Why I Live in a Shed (2019), Catrina Davies
• Read The Road to Somewhere: Populist Revolt and the Future of Politics (2017), David Goodhart
• Finish Empireland and The Windrush Betrayal (both half-read)
• Read Black and British
• TBR: The New Silk Road
•  Finish The Speed of Honey
• Read Bill Bryson’sA Short History of Nearly Everything
• ReadWhat Shape is a Snowflake?, Ian Stewart
• Read Utopia for Realists
• Read Colin Thubron’s In Siberia + Paul Theroux’s The Iron Rooster + To the Baltic With Bob by Griff Rhys Jones + The Man Who Spoke Snakish (fantasy) + a book about the ex-Georgian president’s Dutch ex-wife + Rory Stewart’s The Places In Between
• Read TBR book Finding a Voice
• Read Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Pandemic (2012) by David Quammen
• Read TBR book Africa is Not a Country

Borrow from library:

• Het geluid van vallende sneeuw, Jannie Regnerus
• Mr. Kaor Yamamoto, Lex Boon
• Venice: The Lion, the City and the Water (2019), Cees Nooteboom (ILL?)
• Loved Clothes Last: How the Joy of Rewearing and Repairing Your Clothes Can be a Revolutionary Act (2021), Orsola de Castro (or something similar)
• The Art of Repair (2021), Molly Martin
• Fashionopolis: The Price of Fast Fashion and the Future of Clothes (2019), Dana Thomas
• Kindertijd (1967), Tove Ditlevsen
• Laat voor de thee in het hertenpaleis. Een familiegeschiedenis in Baghdad (Late for Tea at the Deer Palace) (2009), Tamara Chalabi
• The Electricity of Every Living Thing (2018), Katherine May
• Weggooien? Mooi niet! [Throw it Away? Absolutely Not!] (2015), Martine Postma
• Tussen de Himalaya en de hemel (2022), Maggie Doyne
• Sea People: the Puzzle of Polynesia (2019), Christina Thompson (borrow from friend)
• Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Tell You Everything You Need to Know About Global Politics (2015), Tim Marshall

Wishlist:

• Things I Don’t Want to Know (2013), Deborah Levy
• The Cut Out Girl: A Story of War and Family, Lost and Found (Ver-geet-mij-niet) (2018), Bart van Es
• Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants (2013), Robin Wall Kimmerer
• My Name is Why (2019), Lemn Sissay
• The Life and Rhymes of Benjamin Zephaniah:The Autobiography (2018), Benjamin Zephaniah
• Between the Stops: The View of My Life from the Top of the Number 12 Bus (2019), Sandi Toksvig
• Stroika With a London View – buy e-book
• The Disappearing Spoon. And Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements (2010), Sam Kean
• Sentient: What Animals Reveal About Our Senses (2021), Jackie Higgins
• Back to Basics: A Complete Guide to Traditional Skills (2007), Abigail R. Gehring
• Make the Bread, Buy the Butter by Jennifer Reese
• The Journal of a Disappointed Man (1919), W.N.P. Barbellion
• When the Dust Settles: Stories of Love, Loss and Hope from an Expert in Disaster (2022), Lucy Easthope
• The Long Weekend: A Social History of Britain 1918-1939 (1940), Robert Graves
• No One Round Here Reads Tolstoy: Memoirs of a Working Class Reader (2022), Mark Hodkinson
• The Great Explosion (2015), Brian Dillon
• The Book of Trespass: Crossing the Lines That Divide Us (2020), Nick Hayes
• There is Nothing for You Here: Finding Opportunity in the Twenty-First Century (2021), Fiona Hill
• Neurotribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity (2015), Steve Silberman
• Chip War: The Fight for the World’s Most Critical Technology (2022), Chris Miller

Inspired by Lisa at Hopewell’s Library of Life. The prompt was ‘New to my TBR’