R E C O M M E N D A T I O N – N O N F I C T I O N
Tasnia Shahrin, Tanzina Tabassum Nova
Non-fiction, as a genre, is vast. History, sports, science, music, films, travelling — whatever your interest might be, you will find something to read in the wide area of non-fictions. Whether you are a newbie just trying out non-fictions, or an experienced reader, the following is a list of books for you. We believe, these are some books that everyone will enjoy reading.
Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans by Kadir Nelson
In Heart and Soul, Nelson knits together his nation’s proudest moments with its most shameful, taking on the whole of African-American history, from revolutionary-era slavery up to the election of President Obama. He handles this vast subject with easy grace, aided by the voice of a grandmotherly figure who’s an amalgam of voices from Nelson’s own family. The images convey strength and integrity as he recounts their contributions, including “the most important idea ever introduced to America by an African American” — Dr. King’s nonviolent protest. In short, this book is a powerful portrayal of the Black history.
Can I See Your I.D.? True Stories of False Identities by Chris Barton
Can you imagine what it would be like to live your life as someone else? Chris Barton gives readers a chance to explore the answer to that question in Can I See Your I.D.? The book features the stories of ten real people who took on false identities. This book will appeal to YA readers for a number of reasons: The writing is accessible to a range of readers, and the ten subjects featured in the book are really interesting. Black and white comic illustrations by Paul Hoppe is the perfect complement to these intriguing stories. Readers will learn about History without slogging through a dense text book, and many stories could serve as a springboard for teens who want to explore the topics in more depth.
The Descent of Man by Grayson Perry
Grayson Perry has been thinking about masculinity — what it is, how it operates, why little boys are thought to be made of slugs and snails — since he was a child. Now, in this funny and necessary book, he turns round to look at men with a clear eye and asks, what sort of men would make the world a better place, for everyone?
A River in Darkness: One Man’s Escape from North Korea by Masaji Ishikawa, RisaKobayashi
In this memoir translated from the original Japanese, Ishikawa candidly recounts his tumultuous upbringing and the brutal 36 years he spent living under a crushing totalitarian regime, as well as the challenges he faced repatriating to Japan after barely escaping North Korea with his life.
Pouranik Bagdhara by Nabeel Onusurjo
We have all used Bangla idioms like ‘মান্ধাতার আমল’, ‘শাপে বর’, ‘ধরণী দ্বিধা হও’, ‘অধিক সন্ন্যাসীতে গাজন নষ্ট’ in our daily conversations. However, most of us are not aware of their origins. In fact, many idioms we use in Bangla come from different mythological texts. This book is about those idioms. Different sections of the book contain idioms originating from different texts, such as The Ramayana, The Mahabharata, Shri Krishnakirtan, etc. Within the sections, the idioms are organised in a chronological way, so that the readers will get a general idea about the story of a particular text they are reading about.
Nirahang Shilpi by Sankha Ghosh
Who is an artiste? Is it just someone who sings, or dances, or acts, or writes? Or is there some deeper meaning to it? Sankha Ghosh shows us how an artiste can be or should be someone beyond a mere performer. When his co-artiste Gita Ghatak was insulted, the legendary singer Manna Dey protested as if he himself had been insulted. The book is full of incidents like this, which remind us of the power of humility.
An Era of Darkness by Shashi Tharoor
The British ruled India for nearly two centuries. They tortured Indian people and looted Indian wealth. However, some people try to establish that the British were also responsible for various developments in India. That might be true to some extent, but the question remains, how much of this development was done because they cared about the Indian people? And, how much of it was done because it was needed for the British themselves, not the Indians? An Era of Darkness will tell you the answers. Based on proven facts and statistics, along with Tharoor’s impeccable use of language, this book is as gripping as a well-written thriller.
Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari
10 million years ago, there were at least seven human species in the world. Now only one is left: us, Homo Sapiens. Where did the rest of the species go? How did the cave-dwelling, hunter-gatherer Homo Sapiens begin modern civilisation? What is the future of our species? Harari tries to find the answers to these questions, and many more, in Sapiens. However, as volumes of books could be written to answer any of these questions, this book gives only basic ideas about them. In other words, it works as an introduction to all these topics, so that the readers may become curious to know more about them. Besides, the ending of the book throws some questions to the readers, which would make them think about humans and humanity even more.
Tanzina Tabassum Nova is a full-time couch-potato, and a part-time reader, writer, translator, and reciter.
Tasnia is a proud Slytherin who loves binging on poetry and graphic novels in her free time.