Staff Picks Adult Nonfiction
September 2023
The Greatest Beer Run Ever
by John Donohue
A wonderful story. Well written. Chickie Donahue showed his love & respect for his friends serving in Vietnam during the war by bringing them a beer from New York. His adventures that turned what he thought would be a 3 day trip into a much longer adventure makes for a wonderful read.
Recommended by: Chris Schultz, Graphics Information Clerk
Posted in: Adult Nonfiction
April 2023
Fasting for Ramadan: Notes from a Spiritual Practice
by Kazim Ali
Posted in: Adult Nonfiction
February 2023
1000 Hours Outside: Activities to Match Screen Time with Green Time
by Ginny Yurich
The perfect book to help you and your children get outside more this year. Challenge yourselves to see how many hours you spend outside each month. Can you reach 1000 in a year? Even if you don’t hit that high of a number, you still win! This book is full of ideas to help get you started with the challenge. There are ideas for all ages and abilities including building bug hotels, forest games, painting with nature and more. Pick it up today and start enjoying outside.
Recommended by: Erin Faxel, Youth Services Teen Librarian
Posted in: Adult Nonfiction
June 2022
It’s All Relative: Adventures Up and Down the World’s Family Tree
by A.J. Jacobs
Posted in: Adult Nonfiction
March 2022
150+ Screen-Free Activities for Kids: The Very Best and Easiest Playtime Activities
by Asia Citro
Looking for something to do with your kids? Then check this book out! It is packed with science based ideas and play recipes that will keep you and your little ones active all year long. There’s slimes, doughs, sensory bins and more!
Recommended by: Erin Faxel, Youth Services Teen Librarian
Posted in: Adult Nonfiction
Vitamin N: The Essential Guide to a Nature-Rich Life
by Richard Louv
Looking for a way to connect to nature? Then this book is for you! It has over 500 activities for adults and children to get you out and about in the natural world. This book will help boost your mental acuity and creativity, promote wellness, and overall help you have a great time outside.
Recommended by: Erin Faxel, Youth Services Teen Librarian
Posted in: Adult Nonfiction
September 2021
Help, I’m Drowning: Weathering the Storms of Life with Grace and Hope
by Sally Clarkson
We can all acknowledge that 2020 was a difficult year . We hoped the fog would begin to clear in 2021, yet it still lingers. Among others mothers and caregivers have had an extremely challenging time managing the home and childcare during the pandemic. Sally Clarkson’s timely book, Help, I’m Drowning: Weathering the Storms of Life with Grace and Hope provides practical tips for women who feel the darkness starting to take hold as they navigate the various storms of life. Each chapter provides anecdotes from Sally’s life as well as biblical references that aim to provide the reader with encouragement and hope that they can make it safely to the other side of their storm. Find this and many of Sally Clarkson’s other books on Hoopla Digital.
Recommended by: Darnetta Bolton, Youth Services Reference Librarian I
Posted in: Adult Nonfiction
Leave Only Footprints: My Acadia-to-Zion Journey Through Every National Park
by Conor Knighton
When Conor Knighton’s fiancé leaves him he decides to take his mind off of it by traveling to all of the National Parks in one year. Good thing he worked for CBS and they loved the idea of him sending in reports from all of the parks. This book is full of his experiences from all of the parks. It’s not a pure fact book and it’s not a book written to get you to visit the parks (though after reading it I’m sure you’ll find at least one place you’d like to go). It has a ton of interesting activities that he participated in and has a lot of little pieces of interviews from people he met there. A very fun and informative read.
Recommended by: Erin Faxel, Youth Services Teen Librarian
Posted in: Adult Nonfiction
August 2021
The Anthropocene Reviewed
by John Green
The Anthropocene is basically the world as we know it and the impact people have on the environment, animals, climate, and each other. In this collection of essays, author John Green steps away from his usual YA novels to write short reviews on different things within the Anthropocene including animals (Canada Geese), places (Indianapolis), food & drink (Diet Dr. Pepper), and ideas (The Yips). Each chapter is a different topic with a unique view and how it benefited or hurt existence complete with Green’s own starred review of the topic. Written during the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, Green conveys feelings and emotions that are all too familiar and joins us in our struggle to weight how our recent experiences will shape who we are and what we will become. I cannot recommend this title enough.
Recommended by: Brandi Smits, Youth Services Manager
Posted in: Adult Nonfiction
July 2021
Vegetables Unleashed: A Cookbook
by José Andrés
Healthy eating has become very trendy, but something as basic as eating vegetables every day is still difficult for most people. How do you squeeze in 3-5 servings of vegetables each day without eating the same thing repeatedly? José Andrés, popular chef and restaurant owner, has made eating greens more fun that you can imagine. In his popular cookbook Vegetables Unleashed: A Cookbook, Andrés gives us a plethora of ideas for making vegetables so delicious that they will become the star of the plate and not just a sad standby. The book is organized by season for easy shopping throughout the year and even includes many articles on sustainability and agriculture. This book is sure to inspire you to try something new. So go and eat your vegetables!
Recommended by: Darnetta Bolton, Youth Services Reference Librarian I
Posted in: Adult Nonfiction