Recommendations based on The Library Bookby Susan Orlean

* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans

  1. Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City

    by Matthew Desmond
    An exploration of eviction’s devastating consequences on the lives of the urban poor.

    NEW YORK TIMES, BESTSELLER • WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE • NAMED ONE OF, TIME,’S TEN BEST NONFICTION BOOKS OF THE DECADE • One of the most acclaimed books of our time, this modern classic “has set a ... (Barnes & Noble)

  2. Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay, and a Mother's Will to Survive

    by Stephanie Land
    A memoir of a single mother's struggle to make ends meet while working as a maid. A powerful story of resilience and determination.

    NEW YORK TIMES, BESTSELLER, , "A single mother's personal, unflinching look at America's class divide, a description of the tightrope many families walk just to get by, and a reminder of the dignity ... (Barnes & Noble)

  3. The Invention of Nature: Alexander von Humboldt's New World

    by Andrea Wulf
    Biography of the German scientist who changed our understanding of the natural world.

    The acclaimed author of Founding Gardeners reveals the forgotten life of Alexander von Humboldt, the visionary German naturalist whose ideas changed the way we see the natural world—and in the ... (Goodreads)

  4. Empty Mansions: The Mysterious Life of Huguette Clark and the Spending of a Great American Fortune

    by Bill Dedman
    Uncovering the secrets of an enigmatic heiress and her mysterious family fortune.

    When Pulitzer Prize – winning journalist Bill Dedman noticed in 2009 a grand home for sale, unoccupied for nearly sixty years, he stumbled through a surprising portal into American history. Empty ... (Goodreads)

  5. The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration

    by Isabel Wilkerson
    An exploration of the life-changing journeys of the millions of African-Americans who migrated from the South to the North, Midwest, and West from 1915 to 1970.

    In this epic, beautifully written masterwork, Pulitzer Prize–winning author Isabel Wilkerson chronicles one of the great untold stories of American history: the decades-long migration of black ... (Goodreads)

  6. Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors, and the Drug Company that Addicted America

    by Beth Macy
    A harrowing account of the opioid epidemic in America, exposing the greed and corruption that fueled it.

    Beth Macy takes us into the epicenter of America's twenty-plus year struggle with opioid addiction. From distressed small communities in Central Appalachia to wealthy suburbs; from disparate cities ... (Goodreads)

  7. The Greatest Love Story Ever Told

    by Megan Mullally
    A comedic memoir of the love story between actors Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman.

    At last, the full story behind Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman's epic romance, including stories, portraits, and the occasional puzzle, all telling the smoldering tale that has fascinated Hollywood ... (Goodreads)

  8. Between the World and Me

    by Ta-Nehisi Coates
    A letter to his son, exploring the realities of racism in America.

    “This is your country, this is your world, this is your body, and you must find some way to live within the all of it.” In a profound work that pivots from the biggest questions about American ... (Goodreads)

  9. I'll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman's Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer

    by Michelle McNamara
    A true crime book chronicling the author's investigation into the unsolved case of the Golden State Killer.

    A masterful true crime account of the Golden State Killer—the elusive serial rapist turned murderer who terrorized California for over a decade—from Michelle McNamara, the gifted journalist who died ... (Goodreads)

  10. Heartland: A Memoir of Working Hard and Being Broke in the Richest Country on Earth

    by Sarah Smarsh
    A memoir of growing up poor in rural Kansas, exploring the struggles and resilience of the working-class in America.

    During Sarah Smarsh’s turbulent childhood in Kansas in the 1980s and 1990s, the forces of cyclical poverty and the country’s changing economic policies solidified her family’s place among the working ... (Goodreads)

  11. On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century

    by Timothy Snyder
    A study of history and a call to action against the rise of authoritarianism.

    #1, New York Times, Bestseller •, A historian of fascism offers a guide for surviving and resisting America's turn towards authoritarianism., The Founding Fathers tried to protect us from the threat ... (Barnes & Noble)

  12. I'd Rather Be Reading: The Delights and Dilemmas of the Reading Life

    by Anne Bogel
    A love letter to reading, exploring the joys and challenges of being a book lover.

    For so many people, reading isn't just a hobby or a way to pass the time–it's a lifestyle. Our books shape us, define us, enchant us, and even sometimes infuriate us. Our books are a part of who we ... (Goodreads)

  13. Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup

    by John Carreyrou
    The rise and fall of Theranos, a fraudulent blood-testing startup, and the deceitful actions of its founder Elizabeth Holmes.

    The full inside story of the breathtaking rise and shocking collapse of a multibillion-dollar startup, by the prize-winning journalist who first broke the story and pursued it to the end in the face ... (Goodreads)

  14. Isaac's Storm: A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History

    by Erik Larson
    Story of the 1900 Galveston hurricane, and one man's desperate struggle to save his city.

    September 8, 1900, began innocently in the seaside town of Galveston, Texas. Even Isaac Cline, resident meteorologist for the U.S. Weather Bureau failed to grasp the true meaning of the strange ... (Goodreads)

  15. Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking

    by Susan Cain
    An exploration of the power of introversion, examining the implications of modern society's emphasis on extroversion.

    The book that started the Quiet Revolution, At least one-third of the people we know are introverts. They are the ones who prefer listening to speaking; who innovate and create but dislike ... (Goodreads)

  16. Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI

    by David Grann
    Exposé of a series of murders of the Osage Nation in 1920s Oklahoma and the FBI's investigation.

    In the 1920s, the richest people per capita in the world were members of the Osage Indian Nation in Oklahoma. After oil was discovered beneath their land, the Osage rode in chauffeured automobiles, ... (Goodreads)

  17. Grant

    by Ron Chernow
    Biography of U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant, exploring his life and legacy.

    Ulysses S. Grant's life has typically been misunderstood. All too often he is caricatured as a chronic loser and inept businessman, fond of drinking to excess; or as the triumphant but brutal Union ... (Goodreads)

  18. Slouching Towards Bethlehem

    by Joan Didion
    Collection of essays exploring the cultural landscape of 1960s America.

    The first nonfiction work by one of the most distinctive prose stylists of our era, Joan Didion's Slouching Towards Bethlehem remains, decades after its first publication, the essential portrait of ... (Goodreads)

  19. The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey

    by Candice Millard
    A daring expedition through the Amazon to uncover the secrets of an uncharted river.

    At once an incredible adventure narrative and a penetrating biographical portrait, The River of Doubt is the true story of Theodore Roosevelt’s harrowing exploration of one of the most dangerous ... (Goodreads)

  20. West with the Night

    by Beryl Markham
    A memoir of a pioneering aviator's incredible adventures, from African skies to the US.

    The classic memoir of Africa, aviation, and adventure—the inspiration for Paula McLain’s Circling the Sun and “a bloody wonderful book” (Ernest Hemingway). Beryl Markham’s life story is a true epic. ... (Goodreads)

  21. White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism

    by Robin DiAngelo
    A critical analysis of the defensive moves that white people make when challenged racially. It explores the dynamics of white fragility and how it perpetuates racial inequality.

    Referring to the defensive moves that white people make when challenged racially, white fragility is characterized by emotions such as anger, fear, and guilt and by behaviors including argumentation ... (Goodreads)

  22. Living History

    by Hillary Rodham Clinton
    Autobiography of Hillary Rodham Clinton's life, from her childhood to her time as First Lady.

    The Phenomenal #1 Worldwide Bestseller—With a New Afterword Hillary Rodham Clinton is known to hundreds of millions of people around the world. Yet few beyond her close friends and family have ever ... (Goodreads)

  23. A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again: Essays and Arguments

    by David Foster Wallace
    Collection of essays and arguments, exploring the absurdities of contemporary culture.

    In this exuberantly praised book — a collection of seven pieces on subjects ranging from television to tennis, from the Illinois State Fair to the films of David Lynch, from postmodern literary ... (Goodreads)

  24. 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus

    by Charles C. Mann
    Re-examination of the pre-Columbian Americas, uncovering new evidence of its history.

    In this groundbreaking work of science, history, and archaeology, Charles C. Mann radically alters our understanding of the Americas before the arrival of Columbus in 1492.,Contrary to what so many ... (Goodreads)

  25. The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing

    by Marie Kondō
    A guide to mastering the art of decluttering and organizing for a more fulfilling life.

    #1, NEW YORK TIMES, BESTSELLER • The book that sparked a revolution and inspired the hit Netflix series, Tidying Up with Marie Kondo,: the original guide to decluttering your home once and for all. ... (Barnes & Noble)

  26. The Feather Thief

    by Kirk Wallace Johnson
    A true story of a bizarre heist of rare bird specimens from a British museum and the obsessive fly-tier who stole them.

    On a cool June evening in 2009, after performing a concert at London's Royal Academy of Music, twenty-year-old American flautist Edwin Rist boarded a train for a suburban outpost of the British ... (Goodreads)

  27. The Orchid Thief

    by Susan Orlean
    A captivating story of obsession, intrigue, and the beauty of the rare flower.

    The Orchid Thief is Susan Orlean’s tale of an amazing obsession. Determined to clone an endangered flower—the rare ghost orchid Polyrrhiza lindenii— a deeply eccentric and oddly attractive man named ... (Goodreads)

  28. The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels

    by Jon Meacham
    A historical analysis of American politics, highlighting moments of crisis and the leaders who rose to the occasion to defend democracy and justice.

    Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jon Meacham helps us understand the present moment in American politics and life by looking back at critical times in our history when hope overcame division and fear. ... (Goodreads)

  29. Women & Power: A Manifesto

    by Mary Beard
    A look at the history of female power and the cultural obstacles preventing women from achieving it.

    At long last, Mary Beard addresses in one brave book the misogynists and trolls who mercilessly attack and demean women the world over, including, very often, Mary herself. In Women & Power , she ... (Goodreads)

  30. Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century

    by Jessica Bruder
    A chronicle of a new American subculture of nomadic older adults, coping with economic precarity.

    An alternate cover edition of ISBN 9780393356311 can be found, here., The inspiration for Chloé Zhao's 2020 Golden Lion award-winning film starring Frances McDormand. From the beet fields of North ... (Goodreads)