March 2024 Reading Roundup | Non-Fiction
My local library service provides a huge catalogue of digital resources in the form of audiobooks and eBooks, which I finally started taking advantage of in March. If you’re a big digital reader, I highly recommend seeing if your local library offers this service — it could save you big money, and support your local community resources in the process!
My reading habits are usually skewed heavily in favour of fiction, but since I love reading non-fiction in the form of audiobooks (it makes them feel like long podcasts!), some long road trips and long walks saw me through 5 non-fiction books last month:
Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? — Dr Julie Smith
Library Audiobook | 🌕🌕🌕🌗🌑
HarperOne
This has been on my radar since a colleague mentioned it to me eons ago, so I finally gave it a go upon spotting it in the library catalogue. With Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before?, clinical psychologist Dr Julie Smith has created a comprehensive but easy-to-digest mental health handbook.
While I enjoyed listening to the audio, I recommend picking up a physical copy if you can; The book is structured in bitesize chunks, designed to flip to a particular section matching the challenge you’re facing, and the toolkits Smith provides are simple to follow.
Having been through therapy, I didn’t find that this book covered anything particularly new or groundbreaking for me. That being said, I can see how it could prove invaluable to someone who doesn’t know where else to start — of course, a book is not a replacement for therapy, but sadly many don’t have access to it as a resource. I even ended up buying a second-hand copy to have nearby at times of need, whether to make use of a toolkit or explain a tricky concept to someone when I can’t find the words myself.
Why We Sleep — Matthew Walker
Library Audiobook | 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑
Simon & Schuster
Another book that’s been on my radar for a long time, and as I’m prioritising my sleep hygiene this year, it felt like the right time to finally jump in. In Why We Sleep, scientist Matthew Walker covers years of research to uncover the secrets of sleep — why we do it, why it’s important and what happens when we don’t get enough.
I’m generally sceptical when it comes to non-fiction books, especially ones this long — I often find them to be padded with fluff and could bear to be 100 pages shorter at least. I didn’t feel this way with Why We Sleep — every chapter genuinely kept my attention and taught me something valuable.
As can be expected with any non-fiction book, Walker writes according to his own biases, so I encourage brief further reading to explore the criticisms from other scientists. But, even with these small points of criticism considered, I think that Why We Sleep is still an incredibly valuable read.
I will say that he does frame his lessons with a lot of doom and gloom, so make sure you’re in the right headspace for that before jumping in.
Digital Minimalism — Cal Newport
Library Audiobook | 🌕🌕🌕🌑🌑
Portfolio Penguin
A drive across the country in Friday afternoon traffic, coupled with my habit of listening to audiobooks at 1.5x speed, meant that I got through this in one sitting.
It was fine — The advice was accessible and I appreciated the real-life examples and success stories. Newport has certainly encouraged me to take a step back and examine my own social media use and overall digital habits.
However, Digital Minimalism carries a complaint that I tend to find with many non-fiction books — it’s too long. Yes, even for a book that I got through in one sitting. The information could have easily been put across in an article or two — everything else was repetition, tangents, and fluff. And although I wouldn’t firmly put it into the category of “tech bro self-help” that I’ve come to absolutely despise, it does teeter dangerously close to that line at times.
Overall, a valuable read if you find your screen time creeping into dangerous numbers, but you can probably get everything you need from the first couple of chapters and skip the rest!
Other Minds — Peter Godfrey-Smith
Library Audiobook | 🌕🌕🌗🌑🌑
Macmillan
Another audiobook I got through in one sitting, this time driving home from the aforementioned cross-country trip!
I’m a big marine biology nerd (fun fact: I was originally planning to study marine biology at university… until I got to sixth form and discovered that I’m not actually that good at science), so I thought this was going to be right up my street. There were several interesting facts and insights into what cephalopod biology can teach us about the broader fields of evolution and consciousness, but to be honest, I was just bored.
Maybe I wasn’t in the right headspace during the drive, but I found myself zoning out of the audio often… yet I don’t feel like I missed too much, which tells me that, once again, this book could probably have been a hundred pages or so shorter.
Period Power — Maisie Hill
Library eBook | 🌕🌕🌑🌑🌑
Green Tree
I’ve been trying to keep track of, and live more in tune with my menstrual cycle lately — it’s amazing how deeply it can affect every aspect of our lives when we start paying more attention! So, Period Power screamed “must-read”.
This book started so strong. I’m grateful to have had a fairly comprehensive education on reproductive anatomy so I was able to skim many of the basic anatomy chapters. But, sadly, this basic knowledge is still missing from so many curriculums, so Hill breaks it down wonderfully for anyone who might not have been so fortunate.
I loved the way Hill went on to split the menstrual cycle into four “seasons” with a comprehensive description of how the body reacts to each phase of the cycle and what it needs at that time.
Unfortunately, things went south in the later chapters. It’s full of sales pitches, misinformation and pseudo-science. Hill’s advice in these chapters is the definition of privilege, demonstrating a complete lack of nuance toward the lifestyle choices that might be available to different people. Disappointing.
April Non-Fiction Hopefuls:
Wordslut — Amanda Montell
Taste — Stanley Tucci
Being Mortal — Atul Gawande
The Woman In Me — Britney Spears