NONFICTION NOVEMBER 2026
Week 1, November 2-8 - My Year in Nonfiction - Celebrate your year of nonfiction. What books have you read? What were your favorites? Have you had a favorite topic? Is there a topic you want to read about more? What are you hoping to get out of participating in Nonfiction November?
Week 1 is hosted by Heather at Based on a True Story.
What books have you read?
My nonfiction reading is way down this year. I've only read six titles:
Every Day I Read: 53 Ways to Get Closer to Books by Hwang Bo-Reum
⭐⭐⭐💫 (my thoughts)
The Irish Goodbye: Micro-Memoirs by Beth Ann Fennelly
⭐⭐⭐💫 (my thoughts)
⭐⭐⭐⭐ (my thoughts)
Frog: And Other Essays by Anne Fadiman
⭐⭐⭐⭐💫 (my thoughts)
What's working?
✔ Memoirs and essays
✔ Read/listen combinations
✔ Short books
What's not?
Consciously or not, I have avoided several of my go-to subjects this year:
✖ The Supreme Court
✖ social justice
✖ politics
What was your favorite?
Frog: and Other Essays by Anne Fadiman, especially the titular essay, was my favorite. It made me want to reread her earlier collections.
Have you had a favorite topic?
Memoirs, especially those with a bookish angle, have seemed particularly appealing this year.
Is there a topic you want to read about more?
Essay collections
Narrative nonfiction
What are you hoping to get out of participating in Nonfiction November?
Nonfiction November is my #1 source for nonfiction recommendations. I'm sure I'll add enough titles to my TBR list to last an entire year!
I find I really enjoy listening to narrative nonfiction. It seems to balance out well with reading fiction in print. Maybe have nonfiction and fiction with listening and reading helps me keep the books separate from each other.
ReplyDeleteHelen - I love narrative nonfiction on audio, too, but often find I need a print copy as well. I hate to miss photos, graphs, charts, etc. I've been trying to get most of my books thi syear in both print and audio.
DeleteIt's always interesting to see what topics you naturally gravitate to. I have definitely been much more of an escapist read in the last 5 years or so. I do love a good narrative nonfiction tough and I just finished The Lion in the Living Room which I found interesting even though I'm not a cat person!
ReplyDeleteKatherine - This has definitely not been my year for serious nonfiction! Maybe 2027 will be different. I just looked up The Lion in the Living Room - what a cute cover, and I'm not a cat person either!
DeleteThese titles sound interesting, but I also was mesmerized by the book covers. :) I love the daffodils in the vase the most (The Irish Goodbye). Thanks for sharing your list!
ReplyDeleteLisa - I'm pretty sure it was those daffodils that drew to The Irish Goodbye on the first place!
DeleteNonfiction November is a great source for new titles to read in the coming year. I'm looking forward to that!
ReplyDeleteJoy - I always add titles during Nonfiction November that will fill an entire year's reading list!
DeleteTroika sounds good to me and I've watched ONE season of White Lotus so I'll be ready to skim past any spoilers. lol
ReplyDeleteJinjer - I have not watched White Lotus so wasn't too worried about spoilers, but that could be a concern if you're into the show but not caught up.
DeleteI prefer narrative nonfiction too. I think you have done well this year. Thanks for sharing your recommendations and happy Nonfiction November!
ReplyDeleteShelleyrae - I love narrative nonfiction and hope to get back into my normal nonfiction habit next year.
DeleteI hope to read several of these on your list including Receipts from the Bookshop and Frog. It has been a long time since I've read a book of essays.
ReplyDeleteDeb - Frog has such a varied, eclectic mix of essays and I really loved it!
DeleteMy nonfiction is down this year as well. I also really enjoy memoirs but haven't indulged this year there much. Troika still appeals to me. I love the cover of The Irish Goodbye--that cover would definitely make me pick it up!
ReplyDeleteI understand the need to taking a mental break from the Supreme Court and politics and social justice. Sometimes we just need some fresh air.
JaneGS - Troika was such an interesting mix of the story of one road trip set against a backdrop of family history and The Odyssey... with The White Lotus thrown in for good measure. I enjoyed the author's narration. Maybe I'll get back to my usual nonfiction topics next year.
DeleteI'm really intrigued what are micro-memoirs? I've seen that book on a few lists and my interest has definitely been piqued.
ReplyDeleteAnne - The entries/chapters are very short in this micro-memoir. Some ar just a sentence ot two.
DeleteInteresting that you avoided your usual go-to subjects. With all that's been going on with the government (thankfully, things are looking up since the Election!), I can understand why you might not want to dive into those right now. I haven't read Frog, but I do have Fadiman's Ex Libris on my "keeper" shelf. I should give it another read. It's been years! I just started Radium Girls last night. I don't know why I've been avoiding it. Maybe I thought it would be dry and heavy on the science. Nope. I couldn't put it down and read close to 100 pages last night!
ReplyDeleteLes - Frog made me want to immediately reread Ex Libris. The first essay, about combining libraries with her husband's, was just as good as I remembered. Radium Girls was such a good read (or read/listen combo for me) and the adaptation was well done, too
DeleteI definitely understand avoiding books on The Supreme Court, social justice
ReplyDeleteand politics this year. Everything is so heavy these days!
Stephanie - Exactly! Hopefully 2027 will be different.
DeleteReceipts from the Bookshop sounds so good! Anything English seaside appeals to me. Lol.
ReplyDeleteErin - Same here! The seaside setting made Receipts from the Bookshop even more appealing.
DeleteGood luck with your nonfiction reading this month! I think I tried Everyday I Read on audio but I got a bit lost so think I will try it via ebook. Does she offer insights and tips? Have you read her novel about the bookstore?
ReplyDeleteSusan - I didn't get an awful lot out of Every Day I Read. It was fine, but I don't go out of my way to recommend it. I tried her novel, but set is aside after the first section.
DeleteAny reason you think you read less nonfiction this year?
ReplyDeleteEmma - I'm doing a yearlong slow read of War and Peace and usually read my daily chapter, the discussion, and finally catch up with the chat each morning. That's the time I previously devoted to nonfiction. Also the news was a lot this year and I tended to shy away from my typical nonfiction subjects.
DeleteI enjoy Fadiman and if "Frog" is good enough to make you want to go back and read the earlier collections then it must be worthwhile. Thank you for listing it here!
ReplyDeletetrav - If you're already a Fadiman fan, Frog definitely belongs on your list!
DeleteNonfiction November is definitely an excellent way to get recommendations -- I like getting ideas for stuff that's out of my comfort zone but highly recommended, personally. (That said, I think I'll steer clear of politics...)
ReplyDeleteHere's my post: https://breathesbooks.com/2026/11/08/my-year-in-non-fiction-2/
Nicky - It seems like there are plenty of sources for fiction recommendations, but I've really come to rely on Nonfiction November for learning about all the nonfiction that somehow slips through the cracks. Thanks for your link :)
DeleteI'm still waiting on Troika to get to my library acquisitions or be reasonably priced. I am getting close for both the Katie Clapham and Sarah Perry books.
ReplyDeleteI did a roundup for my year of nonfiction even though I will read 2 more. Challenge finished! Looking forward to next year's challenges and have a few titles in mind.
One of my favorites this year was Raising Hare. Also liked Thirty Below and Daughters of the Bamboo Grove.