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I like to read both and I probably read as much fiction as non-fiction. There are many different kind of non-fiction books which interest me.

 

I like biographies and autobiographies. For a while, while still growing up, I became absorped in supernatural subjects and read mostly about anything supernatural or paranormal abilities. Now it interests me less, but I still like to read about it sometimes. Also history topics and books about how to become a writer yourself, literary criticism. Anything that seems interesting.

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I read quite a bit of non-fiction. History is my favorite non-fiction genre, especially Tsarist Russia, the Russian Revolution, pre-revolutionary France, Marie Antoinette, the French Revolution, the American Civil War. I also like to read biographies of authors I enjoy or interesting historical figures. :)

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I don't read much non-fiction, but when I do it is usually travel biographies and annthing about dogs. I will very occasionally read a biography/autobiography of historical persons. And I read history now and again. I love anything about past kings and queens (loved Starkey's Six Wives: The Queens of Henry VIII).

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I've been reading "Too Close To the Sun - The Life and Times of Denys Finch Hatton" but I've got side-tracked onto another book for a bit.

He was an adventurer in Kenya during the early 1900's and had an affair with the author Karen Blixen who was running a coffee plantation over there. (Basis of movie Out of Africa )

 

I'm quite fascinated with this time period in Kenya and have read several other books concerning settler life. I loved The Flame Trees of Thirka by Elspeth Huxley and there are several about the antics of the aristocracy in the Rift Valley (nicknamed Happy Valley due to them being high most of the time).

Edited by poppy
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I can't think of a single non-fiction book I've read... I guess I haven't. This surprises me, because I'm a bit of a history-freak, so I should (logic tells me) have at least a few non-fiction books together with my already owned historical fiction novels. Would anyone like to recommend good non-fiction with a WWII theme? ;)

 

The Forgotten 500 by Gregory A. Freeman. From the Amazon Editorial Review:

 

Bombing of the Ploiesti, Romania, oil refineries, a key German resource, started in 1942. Allied pilots sustaining damage frequently bailed out over Serbia in German-occupied Yugoslavia, where the resistance and others hid them. By 1944, more than 500 were stranded and slowly starving. The OSS concocted the daring Operation Halyard to airlift them, but they had to construct a landing strip without tools and without alerting the Germans or endangering local villagers, and then the rescuers had to avoid being shot down themselves. The operation's story is an exciting tale, but it was kept from general knowledge for decades; the resistance leader most responsible was a rival to Tito. Nazi-baited by a Stalinist mole in British intelligence, he was executed in 1946 with the consent of Britain and America, which thereafter refused to acknowledge having been snookered (the State Department kept many details classified more than 50 years). Evoking the rescuees' successive desperation, wild hope, and joy, and their gratitude to the Serbians who risked their lives to help, Freeman produces a breathtaking popular account. Murray, Frieda --

 

Most recent Non-Fiction was Honeymoon In Tehran. Very interesting look inside of Iran.

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I've read Tobey Young's 'How to Lose Friends and Alienate People,' and other than that I have a lot of art/artist and design books. The most recent purchases being an Andrew Wyeth book, oh and one on Charles and Ray Eames. Lovely stuff!

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I am reading (or rather re-reading) a fascinating book at the moment entitled The Life and Death of St Kilda by Tom Steel. It is probably now out of print, but I bought it on a visit to the bird sanctuary on Fair Isle many years ago.

 

St Kilda is a group of islands inhabited for over 7000 years, on the outer fringes of the Hebrides, and is just about remote as it can be. I would love to go there some time. The islands were evacuated in August 1930, and the book tells the story of the islanders and their lost way of life. How the men used to scale the sheer cliffs in their bare feet to kill the sea birds (their main source of food and income from the feathers and oil) and how contact with the mainland and in particular, the introduction of religion of the more orthordox variety impacted on their way of life, and partly contributed to the islands downfall, as the services went on for so long (3 times a day for up to 3 hours at a time) that the islanders could not do the essential work.

 

I love books like this. Earlier this year when I was visiting Lundy I also read Lighthouse by Tony Parker, which is a series of interviews with lighthouse keepers. The job is now defunct as the lights around Britain are all automated, but there were keepers on Lundy until as recently as 1994 (the year before I started going). Trinity House were visiting the island on one of my visits a few years ago and showed me round the old keepers quarters on one of the two Lundy lights, which I found fascinating, but not as much as this book.

Edited by Talisman
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  • 5 weeks later...

Hello,

 

 

Just love reading be it fiction or non fiction , when i ws in my teenage i was crazy about fictions, but now i`m more interested in reading non fiction work, they are more useful and informative, currently i`m reading a book by Jim Clemmer it is about time management.

 

 

 

Regards,

sarah_9

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I read nonfiction books on subjects that interest me: the brain, language, psychiatry, evolution, hell, art history, death, dreams, cosmology, mnemonics, literary criticism, etc. It probably accounts for about 10 per cent of my overall reading.

Edited by Ben Mines
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I can't think of a single non-fiction book I've read... I guess I haven't. This surprises me, because I'm a bit of a history-freak, so I should (logic tells me) have at least a few non-fiction books together with my already owned historical fiction novels. Would anyone like to recommend good non-fiction with a WWII theme? :blush:

One I would recommended is 'The coming of the Third Reich' by Richard Evans though its not specifically about WW2, it does provide good background into the climate surrounding the establishment of the the Third Reich. It is the first volume of 3 that cover the establishment, events of and demise of the Third Reich. It is written for a general audience, so is accesible. I'm definitely going to get the other 2 volumes

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One I would recommended is 'The coming of the Third Reich' by Richard Evans though its not specifically about WW2, it does provide good background into the climate surrounding the establishment of the the Third Reich. It is the first volume of 3 that cover the establishment, events of and demise of the Third Reich. It is written for a general audience, so is accesible. I'm definitely going to get the other 2 volumes

 

I saw that at the Charity at the charity shop for 50p I might get that now.

 

I do have a lot of Non fiction. Some for my job and for furthering my knowledge and understanding of my work. Psycholo including psychology books and Human right books.

 

I have a lot of Human rights books. A lot of Political books especially books about Democracy etc.

 

My Chomsky books are very precious to me and I refer to them on a nearly daily basis.

 

I also have History books including a lot about Ancient Eygpt, the World Wars.

 

I like to pick up random referance books and read them. There is nothing better than to learn something new.

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About 50-50, which reflects my enjoyment too - like them equally. Last few non-fiction books include: The Water Road (Paul Gogarty - travel), The Secret Life of the French (Lucy Wadham), In Search of Robert Millar (Richard Moore), The Political Animal (Jeremy Paxman), A View from the Foothills (Chris Mullin - political memoir), Your Inner Fish (Neil Shubin - evolution), Lady Worsley's Whim (Hallie Rubenhold - history), Churchill's Wizards (Nicholas Rankin). So -fairly varied, but also reasonably representative as most of my non-fiction reading is travel lit, history (incl. biography) and science.

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