Reading The Facemaker also feels like an act of witnessing something that shouldn’t have ever been forgotten. We did this to ourselves, from the standpoint of humanity, and over a hundred years later, we haven’t stopped.
Tag Archives: Nonfiction
‘American Summer’ A Nuanced Portrayal of Trauma, Humanity
While An American Summer can be hard to read at times, it’s not hopeless. Nor are the people Kotlowitz writes about reduced to stereotypes. Rather, he has clearly taken the time to build the relationships that foster vulnerability.
‘The Wager’ A Harrowing Survival Tale
In fairness, at this point, I’d read a takeout menu if David Grann wrote it. But his writing, and research, continue to be rich and compelling.
‘Gentrifier’ Asks Tough Questions Wrapped in Cozy Experiences
Whether she is the gentrifier or isn’t, the perception stubbornly remains that the presence of “[her] whiteness” is linked to upward mobility for the neighborhood by many.
‘Bones’ a Disturbing, Enlightening Account of Violence and Injustice
Kimmerle doesn’t dwell on the violence; her focus is on telling the story without elaboration or obfuscation to best communicate her belief that every scoop of dirt contributes to long-overdue restorative justice for the dead, the broken, and their families.
‘Until Proven Safe’ a Timely Tour of Quarantine Past and Present
Manaugh and Twilley have not provided an exhaustive look at all types of quarantine, but it is comprehensive and cohesive enough to fascinate, or squick out, anyone at a cocktail party who makes the mistake of asking what you’re reading these days.
‘Kissing Bug’ An Education in a Lesser-Known Creepy-Crawly
Part memoir and part journalistic explainer, The Kissing Bug is all terrifying—and unexpectedly tender.
‘Dirty Work’ is a Sobering Reminder of What Lurks in the Economic Shadows
Commercial butchering, oil drilling, being a guard at a prison—they’re tough jobs but someone’s got to do them. But in the case of Dirty Work, author Eyal Press argues that the social stigma against these types of work means we collectively don’t have to consider the cost or the moral weight that gets placed on theContinue reading “‘Dirty Work’ is a Sobering Reminder of What Lurks in the Economic Shadows”
‘Crane Wife’ Questions Identity, Relationships
No close relationship is totally straightforward; that’s impossible whenever two people entwine themselves around each other for whatever purpose. But romantic relationships, and the relationships we have with ourselves as beings who may get into romantic relationships, are fraught with all manner of expectations and suppositions—often implicit and inherited from our families and/or the societyContinue reading “‘Crane Wife’ Questions Identity, Relationships”
‘Paradise Falls’ an Eerie, Relevant Tale
If you were to make a list of worst places to build an elementary school surrounded by a neighborhood geared toward young families, you might include Chernobyl, an alligator-infested swamp, maybe an old minefield. For the residents depicted in Keith O’Brian’s newest book, Paradise Falls, the extremely terrible and wholly unsafe place is an oldContinue reading “‘Paradise Falls’ an Eerie, Relevant Tale”
