I am not a nonfiction reader. A big fiction reader, for certain, a big academic paper reader, of course, but not a nonfiction reader. In fact, I remember clearly looking with disdain at a classmate in my high school English class after he selected a nonfiction book to flick through. ‘How on earth’, I deliberated, ‘could someone choose a nonfiction book when we are surrounded by fiction books?’
Over the years, I have become violently humbled.
It is no surprise that nonfiction literature is continually overshadowed by fiction. From the recommendations we receive, to bookshop layouts, it seems as if most people blur past the non-fiction to settle on books that will take them to new places and introduce them to new characters. A study conducted in the US in 2021 showed that fiction sales soared to 404 million, while nonfiction trailed behind at about 360 million.
Not a major difference, but when speaking to other readers, I’ve remarked on the tendency towards fiction; I’ve never heard any monologues about a recent book they read that wasn’t fiction, for instance. Surely there are books out there that are entirely factual, and still entertaining? So I swallowed my juvenile distaste for them and went on a hunt.
It seems that young adult fiction experienced a remarkable 30.7% growth in 2021 following the resurgence of BookTok and fiction books for escapism in lockdown. Unsurprising, really. Conversely, nonfiction faced a slight decline, with genres like romance and fantasy emerging as favourites. Nonfiction isn’t promoted to students as readily, despite it allowing them to engage with expository writing.
It is also important to note that children, who learn to read through fiction, eventually reach a point in their education where they must read to learn and find it difficult to switch from narratives to academic writing for the purposes of dissecting information, although non-fiction books can demonstrate as great a profundity as fiction. Yet, engaging with diverse reading (from stories to memoirs, self-help to history) provides a reader with exposure to new vocabulary, new ideas and an all-round broad background into a huge field.
We are continually told that reading books enhances your vocabulary, your empathy, and more, but nonfiction seems to fade into the background. Nonfiction books are still books, albeit ones that are less distracting or pleasurable, but books nonetheless. They have an unfortunate reputation for being prosaic, when, actually, they can actively teach you about the world you operate in. Reading nonfiction hardwires your brain to engage in complex thought patterns, to take part in discussions, to ask questions about the real world, and to come to your own conclusions.
It allows you to enhance your specialised vocabulary bank; and in an age of digital technology, where most of our information is gleaned from short form content, it can be refreshing to read an entire book on a real life problem of your choice, and to delve deeper into it through the trusted research and hard work of an expert.
Over the decades, fiction has dominated the sales charts; but, head-strong, nonfiction achieves remarkable sales figures. Self-help books are responsible for 11% of the total book market (we’ve all seen Atomic Habits by James Clear recommended everywhere) and autobiographies are also widely loved. Since 2019, however, nonfiction sales have declined, with fictional sales surging by 45%. Through cultural shifts, political outbreaks, and the rise of digital media, the sector can witness extreme fluctuations – and nonfiction is sought out more and more for educational purposes.
This is increasingly apropos in an era (a political era, namely) that preys on the uneducated; the most powerful thing one can do is read up on the issues that govern our society. Yes, fiction leads to adventure, and cannot be replaced, but nonfiction books provide you with legitimate information about the real world that not many people have, or bother to follow up on.
I’m not ordering you to switch your late-night reading from Wuthering Heights to The Art of War, but you may find that the themes you love so much about your fiction literature, can be further explored in nonfiction on the same topics. And if you can’t implement what you learn through them in your daily life, at least you can brandish some interesting facts at the next house party.
In light of this, I asked students and friends whether they read non-fiction, and if they did, to give me some of their recent favourites. A lot of them responded along the lines of, ‘I can’t even remember the last non-fiction book I read’ and ‘I don’t have a single one’, which I feel adequately proves the point of this article. In any case, the books below are great places to start if you’re looking for an easy, entertaining non-fiction to peruse in the evenings or on your commute.
The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up, by Marie Kondo
Just Kids, by Patti Smith
Widow Basquiat, by Jennifer Clement
The Year of Magical Thinking, by Joan Didion
Testament of Youth, by Vera Brittain
The Hidden Life of Trees, by Peter Wohlleben
Maus, by Art Spiegelman
The Silk Roads, by Peter Frankopan
Monsters: What Do We Do with Great Art by Bad People?, by Claire Dederer
Poet, Mystic, Widow, Wife: The Extraordinary Lives of Medieval Women by Hetta Howes
Everything is Happening: Journey into a Painting by Michael Jacobs
I’m Glad my Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
A Beautiful Day to Die, by Heike Groos
The Creative Act: A Way of Being, by Rick Rubin
Killers of the Flower Moon, by David Grann
Empire of Pain, by Patrick R. Keefe
Women who Run with the Wolves, by Clarissa P. Estes
Little Weirds, by Jenny Slate
World of Wonders, by Aimee Nezhukumatathil
Unnatural Causes, by Dr Richard Shepherd
The Psychopath Test, by Jon Ronson
Oscar’s Ghost, by Laura Lee
