25 Nonfiction Books to Read in 2025

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📚 Books Mentioned 📚

#nonfiction #nonfictionbooks #books #bookrecommendations #bookrecs

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[Showtunediva]

In The Dreamhouse has the most powerful writing. I highly recommend!
Happy Holidays to you and your husband Olive. Thanks for all your great recommendations.❤

[ashleyhobgood]

I recommend Isaac's Storm by Erik Larson. It is one of my favorites that I read this year. It is about a hurricane that devastated Galveston, Texas in 1900.

[mame-musing]

“Dead Wake” by Erik Larson is very engaging. As a reader you meet many of the passengers and crew members as if they were characters in a novel. Larson did a huge amount of research for this book and it pays off. I’ve read several of his books and this is one of my favorites.
“The Woman They Could Not Silence” by Kate Moore is a testament to a persistent and indomitable spirit. As with “The Radium Girls” you will become angry with the injustice of the situation. Being educated and of a similar social class as the superintendent doctor worked, to some degree, favorably in how asylum inmates were treated.
Thanks for compiling this list of interesting non-fiction.

[tristanbowler]

As a Utahn, Desert Solitaire is one of my favorite books. If possible, plan a trip to Arches while you’re reading it. Really improves the whole experience.

[a_bookish_gemini]

Two of the books you mention in passing in this video already happen to be on my physical bookshelves, so I will be prioritizing those in 2025. I was prepared to add more to my theoretical TBR, as I always am when watching your videos, but I’m OK with this outcome too. 😂

Also - EVE and In the Dreamhouse were both 5-star reads for me. Fantastic books.

[readingbytheriver]

What a great list. Some I own and read already others are now on my pile of possibilities. Thank you. Enjoy reading for 2025. Cheers for the holidays.

[kChandler]

Hi Olive. I appreciate your comment about needing to avoid stories that are heavily descriptive of toxic relationships. I have similar feelings about being exposed to abuse of women. Although it was very popular, I could not watch The Handmaid's Tale series and of course, did not attempt to read the book. On a different subject, have you read, Wesley the Owl? I loved it and think you would love it too. I enjoyed this video since I am drawn more often to non-fiction than fiction. I will be reading some of the books you mentioned.

[splitreads]

Boom Town is such a fun book. I checked out Fire Weather but returned it before I read it, I’ll have to see what you think. In The Dreamhouse is amazing, it is so creative. But I agree it is a tough read. It’s hard for people to leave bad relationships (I’m currently reading See What You Made Me Do by Jess Hill about domestic abuse).

[TheNovelHoneyShelf-Essie]

I feel so connected to you by the fact that you're reading a book in order to have better answers for trivia night.I love that

[sarahrigg]

Ruth Reichl's books are so fun, I know you'll enjoy "Tender." I'm 100 percent sure you'll like "Dream House." I have that Abbey nature book on my "to read" list after reading Annie Dillard who name checks him (I think) in her nature writing.

[juliehughes]

Great selections, Olive. You always put together such thoughtful lists for us.

[jf]

Thanks for this tremendous list, Olive! I have several of these books on my physical TBR and you are inspiring me to get to them. Thanks for the reminder about the Craig Brown book. Been meaning to get to it since it came out! Best of the holidays to you and your family!

[GregHarness]

Wonderful! I always enjoy the breadth of your recommendations which cover spans of time and geography. I've read and loved some Michael Pollan but not "Cooked." John Valliant's "Fire Weather" is on my TBR. And "Desert Solitaire" is one of my all-time favorite books which I revisit every few years.

[catsandbats]

I haven't read very much nonfiction this year. I am hoping to read more in 2025. I already have the audiobook to Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe on hold through Libby and it should be available in January. I am also planning on finally reading The Radium Girls as well.

[audreyapproved]

Cooked is great, Flashboys is entertaining, and I just finished The Spirit Catches You When You Fall Down! I hope you like all of them. I also want to get to Fires of Vesuvius, Fire Weather and The Hare with Amber Eyes!

[launchedathousand]

The Spirit Captures You made huge waves when it came out, we talked about it quite a bit in my anthropology classes. I haven't read any of these but I will say if you haven't read any Carrie Fisher's writing yet your in for a treat! She's so funny and I loved her memoir Wishful Drinking.

[ChaoticBibliophile]

Great list as always! I was surprised by how brilliant and engrossing Eve was; I think you’ll enjoy it loads. The research is extraordinary for sure.

Rather than a toxic relationship, In the Dream House talks about abuse within queer relationships, especially between women, which is often not discussed even in queer media. Its narrative structure is quite daring and interesting too, so I’m glad you’re giving it a chance 😊

[Ihearbooks]

the Cell is interesting but dry the audio helped. The Spirit Catches you is a very informative and great book. Hope you get to The 900 Days. I've looked at it so many times. Will love to hear your review. Boom Town sounds fascinating and so fun. Behind the Beautiful Forevers is one of the best narrative non-fictions I've ever read. Hope you don't miss that one. Happy reading

[amyswann]

I really liked The Spirit Catches You and Behind the Beautiful Forevers! Good choices!

[coffemuse]

I really enjoyed Dead Wake, I hope you will too!