I was born with an affinity for everything fiction, I think. If I had to choose between a poorly written work of fiction and a famous non-fiction, I would probably pick fiction. But I think non- fiction gets an undeserved bad rep because of some people who have read How to not give a f*ck at some point of their life and hasn't shut up about it ever since. No, non-fictions are not a ‘better’ genre, and they can be fun too if you know how to pick them. As I have made it my mission to read more non-fictions this year, I have got a trick or two up my sleeve and I shall now tell you how to pick a non-fiction that you'd enjoy reading.
People Power
Pick a biography about someone you like. What I like the most about biographies is that they often read like fictions. If you pick a biography of someone who have lived a very powerful or interesting life, and you look up to, it's like a peek behind the curtain. ( For example: Becoming by Michelle Obama or Born a crime by Trevor Noah. ) Or you could pick someone who led a really different life from the life you know. Something like The Diary of Anne Frank Which was written by a young Jewish girl against the backdrop of the Holocaust. Another example would be When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi.
Complementing your life
Pick something that goes with your aesthetics. Self-help books don't always have to be bland and uninspiring. There are thousands of cultures which means thousands of ways of living. Just pick one to feel inspired and change your life for the better. Two trending examples include The nordic Theory Of Everything: In Search Of A Better Life or The Book of Ichigo Ichie: The Art of Making the Most of Every Moment, the Japanese Way
Recommended reading
Pick a topic that genuinly interests you. What's your poison?
Science: The Theory of Everything by Stephen Hawking.
Fashion: #Girlboss by Sophia Amoruso.
Politics: Black Against Empire: The History and Politics of the Black Panther Party, by Joshua
Bloom and Waldo E. Martin III.
Art: Art Mattersby Neil Gaiman.
Space: An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth by Chris Hadfield
Business: Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the creator of Nike, Phil Knight.
Feminism: We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.
There's a non-fiction book for everyone.
Parallel universes
Pick something that falls under your go to genre. What's your go to genre for when you read fiction? For thriller, you can pick up a true crime book，for example: Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt or American Ghost: A Family's Haunted Past in the Desert Southwest by Hannah Nordhaus if you are looking for something horror. So there you go. Non-fiction can be such a daunting genre. But it doesn't have to be. This list is a good place to start for beginners like you and me. Just take your pick, a cuppa and you are all set.
