Creative Nonfiction
The art and sincerity of the personal essay symbiotically fused with the craft of the story. Creative nonfiction remains the cornerstone of longtime periodicals like The New Yorker and The Atlantic Monthly, while finding new and edgier voice in journals like McSweeney's. Sample some of the personal essay fare we've found.
I Was Told There¹d Be Cake by Sloane Crosley
Fifteen essays ranging from childhood to present, some with coming-of-age themes, others about making transitions and embracing change, many about the ways in which we discover our own identities.
Fifteen essays ranging from childhood to present, some with coming-of-age themes, others about making transitions and embracing change, many about the ways in which we discover our own identities.
When You Are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris
David Sedaris' latest collection exhibits, although in fits and starts, some of the same cleverly self-deprecating humor that I've become accustomed to reading from this hilarious author.
David Sedaris' latest collection exhibits, although in fits and starts, some of the same cleverly self-deprecating humor that I've become accustomed to reading from this hilarious author.
Maps and Legends by Michael Chabon
'Maps and Legends' is a slim romp through Michael Chabon's love of genre fiction whose high points emerge when the author gets personal, describing how he came to write.
'Maps and Legends' is a slim romp through Michael Chabon's love of genre fiction whose high points emerge when the author gets personal, describing how he came to write.
Ultimate Blogs edited by Sarah Boxer
New York Times journalist Sarah Boxer recommends 27 masterpiece blogs in her book.
New York Times journalist Sarah Boxer recommends 27 masterpiece blogs in her book.
Psychogeography by Will Self
This fantastic collection of 55 essays is culled from British author Will Self's eponymous "Independent" column and is themed around an intimate acquaintance between Self and his environs.
This fantastic collection of 55 essays is culled from British author Will Self's eponymous "Independent" column and is themed around an intimate acquaintance between Self and his environs.
I Am America (And So Can You!) by Stephen Colbert
From Stephen Colbert, the host of television's highest-rated punditry show The Colbert Report, comes the book to fill the other 23˝ hours of your day.
From Stephen Colbert, the host of television's highest-rated punditry show The Colbert Report, comes the book to fill the other 23˝ hours of your day.
A Man Without A Country by Kurt Vonnegut
A Man Without a Country is Kurt Vonnegut’s hilariously funny and razor-sharp look at life, art, politics, and the condition of the soul of America today.
A Man Without a Country is Kurt Vonnegut’s hilariously funny and razor-sharp look at life, art, politics, and the condition of the soul of America today.
Life Interrupted, The Unfinished Monologue by Spalding Gray
Spalding Gray, America's captivating teller of angst-filled stories, ended his life in 2004, after two gruesome years of suicidal depression...
Spalding Gray, America's captivating teller of angst-filled stories, ended his life in 2004, after two gruesome years of suicidal depression...
The Believer Book of Writers Talking to Writers
This book is a collection of conversations between writers and their "mentors," taken from the pages of The Believer, along with previously unpublished conversations.
This book is a collection of conversations between writers and their "mentors," taken from the pages of The Believer, along with previously unpublished conversations.
On Bullshit by Harry G. Frankfurt
Frankfurt explores in short order (67 pages) how bullshit and the related concept of humbug are distinct from lying.
Frankfurt explores in short order (67 pages) how bullshit and the related concept of humbug are distinct from lying.
When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops? by George Carlin
George Carlin's irreverent jabs at everything are best appreciated as an audio book, read by the author.
George Carlin's irreverent jabs at everything are best appreciated as an audio book, read by the author.
The Partly Cloudy Patriot by Sarah Vowell
Sarah Vowell, known for her journalistic contributions to PRI's This American Life, travels through the American past and, in doing so, investigates the roads of her own life.
Sarah Vowell, known for her journalistic contributions to PRI's This American Life, travels through the American past and, in doing so, investigates the roads of her own life.
The Opposite of Fate by Amy Tan
Amy Tan has touched millions of readers. With the same spirit and humor that characterize her acclaimed novels, she now shares her insight into her own life and how she escaped the curses of her past to make a future of her own.
Amy Tan has touched millions of readers. With the same spirit and humor that characterize her acclaimed novels, she now shares her insight into her own life and how she escaped the curses of her past to make a future of her own.
Created in Darkness by Troubled Americans
Irreverent, eclectic, and really really funny, the selections in this book range from jokes to plays and back to essays and interviews. It is not easily classifiable.
Irreverent, eclectic, and really really funny, the selections in this book range from jokes to plays and back to essays and interviews. It is not easily classifiable.
Bleachy-Haired Honky Bitch by Hollis Gillespie
Hollis Gillespie recounts and celebrates a childhood that others might soon forget, and adulthood friends who would be impossible to fabricate. Funny!
Hollis Gillespie recounts and celebrates a childhood that others might soon forget, and adulthood friends who would be impossible to fabricate. Funny!
The Funny Thing Is... by Ellen DeGeneres
Why did a successful, busy television personality choose to write yet another book? She says, "I'd rather write a book than read a book. It's like reading, only you get paid for it."
Why did a successful, busy television personality choose to write yet another book? She says, "I'd rather write a book than read a book. It's like reading, only you get paid for it."
Dress Your Family In Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris
David Sedaris' Dress Your Family In Corduroy and Denim, another collection of essays based on the diary he has kept every day for some thirty-odd years. While most of these stories have seen print already in Esquire, GQ and the New Yorker, Sedaris' work is so contained and addictive, you can't eat just one.
David Sedaris' Dress Your Family In Corduroy and Denim, another collection of essays based on the diary he has kept every day for some thirty-odd years. While most of these stories have seen print already in Esquire, GQ and the New Yorker, Sedaris' work is so contained and addictive, you can't eat just one.
Naked: Writers Uncover the Way We Live on Earth
Naked brings together thirty-one pieces by writers who examine and challenge the way people live with our environment. Edward Abbey's correspondence rants against passive nonresistance. Stacey Richter mines the questionable legacy of John James Audubon, Bruce Chatwin makes a case for nomadism and T. C. Boyle suggests we are all wild at heart, and not particularly well-groomed.
Naked brings together thirty-one pieces by writers who examine and challenge the way people live with our environment. Edward Abbey's correspondence rants against passive nonresistance. Stacey Richter mines the questionable legacy of John James Audubon, Bruce Chatwin makes a case for nomadism and T. C. Boyle suggests we are all wild at heart, and not particularly well-groomed.
Global Village Idiot by John O’Farrell
John O’Farrell is a columnist with the Guardian as well as a writer for the TV show Spitting Image and a joke writer for Tony Blair. Global Village Idiot is a reprinting of many of his Guardian columns over the period of time beginning with George W. Bush on the campaign trail and ending on the desert trails leading to Baghdad.
John O’Farrell is a columnist with the Guardian as well as a writer for the TV show Spitting Image and a joke writer for Tony Blair. Global Village Idiot is a reprinting of many of his Guardian columns over the period of time beginning with George W. Bush on the campaign trail and ending on the desert trails leading to Baghdad.
Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs by Chuck Klosterman
Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs reminds me of a drunken night out with friends discussing the parallels between Three's Company and the bible or recounting childhood rules of kickball or other such topics that occupy the minds of the over-educated, under-challenged class.
Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs reminds me of a drunken night out with friends discussing the parallels between Three's Company and the bible or recounting childhood rules of kickball or other such topics that occupy the minds of the over-educated, under-challenged class.
Feeding a Yen by Calvin Trillin
In "Feeding a Yen," Calvin Trillin's most recent collection of food essays, we tag along as he seeks out such delicacies as pimientos de Padron in Spain, pan bagnat in Nice and boudin in Louisiana. These are foods that comprise Trillin's "Register of Frustration and Deprivation"...
In "Feeding a Yen," Calvin Trillin's most recent collection of food essays, we tag along as he seeks out such delicacies as pimientos de Padron in Spain, pan bagnat in Nice and boudin in Louisiana. These are foods that comprise Trillin's "Register of Frustration and Deprivation"...
Slouching Towards Bethlehem by Joan Didion
Upon reading only a couple of the essays collected in "Slouching Towards Bethlehem," I knew two things immediately: her voice is one of an unbiased observer who doesn't judge, but merely collects people, places, events, information and structures them so that they are compellingly readable. Secondly, Joan Did ion's prose is some of the most artfully arranged I have ever read.
Upon reading only a couple of the essays collected in "Slouching Towards Bethlehem," I knew two things immediately: her voice is one of an unbiased observer who doesn't judge, but merely collects people, places, events, information and structures them so that they are compellingly readable. Secondly, Joan Did ion's prose is some of the most artfully arranged I have ever read.
Yoga for People Who Can't Be Bothered to Do It by Geoff Dyer
Geoff Dyer is a man who "lives in London where he spends much of his time wishing he lived in San Francisco." That's what it says on the jacket of "Yoga for People Who Can't Be Bothered to Do It," and it's exactly the feeling of restlessness one gets from Dyer's most recent book.
Geoff Dyer is a man who "lives in London where he spends much of his time wishing he lived in San Francisco." That's what it says on the jacket of "Yoga for People Who Can't Be Bothered to Do It," and it's exactly the feeling of restlessness one gets from Dyer's most recent book.
The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2002 by Dave Eggers
The latest edition to Houghton Mifflin's Best American Series, "The Best American Nonrequired Reading" flaunts Dave Eggers as its editor, whose bestselling memoir, "A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius," which in 2000 turned him into an overnight pop-cultural icon.
The latest edition to Houghton Mifflin's Best American Series, "The Best American Nonrequired Reading" flaunts Dave Eggers as its editor, whose bestselling memoir, "A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius," which in 2000 turned him into an overnight pop-cultural icon.