Recommendations based on Between You & Me: Confessions of a Comma Queenby Mary Norris

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

  1. What Happened

    by Hillary Rodham Clinton
    A candid look into the 2016 election, exploring the events leading up to her defeat.

    “In the past, for reasons I try to explain, I’ve often felt I had to be careful in public, like I was up on a wire without a net. Now I’m letting my guard down.” —Hillary Rodham Clinton, from the ... (Goodreads)

  2. Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African Childhood

    by Alexandra Fuller
    An autobiographical account of a white family in Rhodesia, struggling to survive in a war-torn land.

    Alexandra Fuller's book tells the story of her family of white Zimbabwean tenant farmers in the years before and after Independence. These are not the wealthy landowners demonised by the present ... (Wikipedia)

  3. Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal

    by Mary Roach
    A journey through the digestive system, exploring its secrets and mysteries.

    The irresistible, ever-curious, and always best-selling Mary Roach returns with a new adventure to the invisible realm we carry around inside. “America’s funniest science writer” ( Washington Post ) ... (Barnes & Noble)

  4. 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)

  5. Gratitude

    by Oliver Sacks
    A collection of essays on the importance of gratitude in life, written by the renowned neurologist and author Oliver Sacks.

    “My predominant feeling is one of gratitude. I have loved and been loved. I have been given much and I have given something in return. Above all, I have been a sentient being, a thinking animal, on ... (Goodreads)

  6. Chasing the Scream: The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs

    by Johann Hari
    Investigative look into the history and consequences of drug prohibition.

    New York Times Bestseller It is now one hundred years since drugs were first banned in the United States. On the eve of this centenary, journalist Johann Hari set off on an epic three-year, ... (Goodreads)

  7. The Order of Time

    by Carlo Rovelli
    Investigation into the nature of time, exploring its mysteries and infinite possibilities.

    Time is a mystery that does not cease to puzzle us. Philosophers, artists and poets have long explored its meaning while scientists have found that its structure is different from the simple ... (Goodreads)

  8. The Liars' Club

    by Mary Karr
    Memoir of a turbulent childhood in East Texas, exploring the power of love and family.

    The book tells the story of Karr's troubled childhood in a small Texas town in the early 1960s. Using a non-linear story line, Karr describes the troubles of growing up in a family and town where ... (Wikipedia)

  9. Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mount Everest Disaster

    by Jon Krakauer
    A gripping narrative of the 1996 expedition on Mount Everest that resulted in tragedy.

    When Jon Krakauer reached the summit of Mt. Everest in the early afternoon of May 10, 1996, he hadn't slept in fifty-seven hours and was reeling from the brain-altering effects of oxygen depletion. ... (Goodreads)

  10. Can't We Talk about Something More Pleasant?

    by Roz Chast
    A graphic memoir about a daughter's relationship with her aging parents.

    The book's storyline, spanning an eight-year period from 2001 to 2009, concerns Roz Chast's parents living in Brooklyn . The book describes various interactions between Chast and her parents. Chast, ... (Wikipedia)

  11. Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance

    by Angela Duckworth
    Examining how passion and perseverance can unlock hidden potential, and the power of resilience in achieving success.

    In this must-read book for anyone striving to succeed, pioneering psychologist Angela Duckworth shows parents, educators, students, and business people both seasoned and new that the secret to ... (Goodreads)

  12. Smoke Gets in Your Eyes & Other Lessons from the Crematory

    by Caitlin Doughty
    A journey through the funeral industry, exploring death, grief, and the beauty of life.

    "Morbid and illuminating" ( Entertainment Weekly )—a young mortician goes behind the scenes of her curious profession. Armed with a degree in medieval history and a flair for the macabre, Caitlin ... (Barnes & Noble)

  13. I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence

    by Amy Sedaris
    A hilarious guide to entertaining and living with style, grace, and a generous spirit.

    The inspiration for the TV show, At Home with Amy Sedaris,, here is a hilarious, helpful, and informative guide on how to entertain.,Are you lacking direction in how to whip up a swanky soiree for ... (Barnes & Noble)

  14. Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life

    by Barbara Kingsolver
    A family's journey to eat locally grown, sustainable food.

    Author Barbara Kingsolver and her family abandoned the industrial-food pipeline to live a rural life—vowing that, for one year, they'd only buy food raised in their own neighborhood, grow it ... (Goodreads)

  15. Astrophysics for People in a Hurry

    by Neil deGrasse Tyson
    An accessible exploration of the universe and its mysteries.

    Over a year on the New York Times bestseller list and more than a million copies sold. The essential universe, from our most celebrated and beloved astrophysicist. What is the nature of space and ... (Barnes & Noble)

  16. 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)

  17. Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life

    by Anne Lamott
    A witty and honest guide to writing and life, encouraging writers to embrace imperfection and find their own voice.

    A newer edition of this title can be found, here., "Thirty years ago my older brother, who was ten years old at the time, was trying to get a report on birds written that he'd had three months to ... (Goodreads)

  18. Small Fry: A Memoir

    by Lisa Brennan-Jobs
    A memoir of Lisa Brennan-Jobs, daughter of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, and her complicated relationship with her father.

    Born on a farm and named in a field by her parents–artist Chrisann Brennan and Steve Jobs--Lisa Brennan-Jobs's childhood unfolded in a rapidly changing Silicon Valley. When she was young, Lisa's ... (Goodreads)

  19. Primates of Park Avenue

    by Wednesday Martin
    An anthropological study of the wealthy mothers of Manhattan's Upper East Side, exploring their social rituals and cultural practices.

    An instant #1 New York Times bestseller, Primates of Park Avenue is an “amusing, perceptive and…deliciously evil” ( The New York Times Book Review ) memoir of the most secretive and elite ... (Barnes & Noble)

  20. Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End

    by Atul Gawande
    An exploration of the human experience of mortality and the importance of end-of-life care.

    In, Being Mortal, author Atul Gawande tackles the hardest challenge of his profession: how medicine can not only improve life but also the process of its ending Medicine has triumphed in modern ... (Goodreads)

  21. The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Fall of Imperial Russia

    by Candace Fleming
    A detailed account of the Romanov family's rise to power, their downfall, and the events leading up to their tragic end.

    Here is the tumultuous, heartrending, true story of the Romanovs—at once an intimate portrait of Russia's last royal family and a gripping account of its undoing. Using captivating photos and ... (Goodreads)

  22. When I Was Puerto Rican

    by Esmeralda Santiago
    A young woman's memoir of her immigrant journey from Puerto Rico to New York City.

    Esmeralda Santiago is the oldest child her parents have together, although her father has an older daughter she doesn't know about. Her parents' relationship is damaged as her mother suspects her ... (Wikipedia)

  23. Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis

    by J.D. Vance
    An exploration of the struggles of working-class Americans, and the power of family and culture to shape one's life.

    Hillbilly Elegy is a passionate and personal analysis of a culture in crisis—that of white working-class Americans. The disintegration of this group, a process that has been slowly occurring now for ... (Goodreads)

  24. The World's Strongest Librarian: A Memoir of Tourette's, Faith, Strength, and the Power of Family

    by Josh Hanagarne
    A memoir of a librarian with Tourette's syndrome, who finds solace in books and strength in his family.

    An inspiring story of how a Mormon kid with Tourette's found salvation in books and weight-lifting. Josh Hanagarne couldn't be invisible if he tried. Although he wouldn't officially be diagnosed with ... (Goodreads)

  25. The Judgment of Paris: The Revolutionary Decade That Gave the World Impressionism

    by Ross King
    The story of the rise of Impressionism in Paris during the 1860s and 1870s, focusing on the Salon des Refusés and the works of Manet, Monet, and Renoir.

    With a novelist's skill and the insight of an historian, bestselling author Ross King recalls a seminal period when Paris was the artistic center of the world, and the rivalry between Meissonier and ... (Goodreads)

  26. Upstairs at the White House: My Life with the First Ladies

    by J.B. West
    A behind-the-scenes look at life in the White House during the administrations of Truman to Nixon, as seen through the eyes of the chief usher.

    In this, New York Times, bestseller, the White House chief usher for nearly three decades offers a behind-the-scenes look at America’s first families. J. B. West, chief usher of the White House, ... (Barnes & Noble)

  27. Just Kids

    by Patti Smith
    Chronicles of two young artists in New York City, finding friendship and inspiration in each other.

    In Just Kids , Patti Smith's first book of prose, the legendary American artist offers a never-before-seen glimpse of her remarkable relationship with photographer Robert Mapplethorpe in the epochal ... (Goodreads)

  28. The Bright Hour: A Memoir of Living and Dying

    by Nina Riggs
    A poignant memoir of a woman's journey through terminal cancer, exploring life, love, and mortality with grace and humor.

    * INSTANT, NEW YORK TIMES, BESTSELLER * “Stunning...heartrending...this year’s, When Breath Becomes Air,.” —Nora Krug,, The Washington Post, “Beautiful and haunting.” —Matt McCarthy, MD,, USA TODAY, ... (Barnes & Noble)

  29. Out of Africa / Shadows on the Grass

    by Isak Dinesen
    Memoir of a Danish woman's life in colonial Kenya, filled with love, loss, and the beauty of Africa.

    Out of Africa tells the story of a farm that the narrator once had in Africa. The farm is located at the foot of the Ngong hills outside of Nairobi, in what is now Kenya. It sits at an altitude of ... (Goodreads)

  30. Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones

    by James Clear
    A practical guide to creating and maintaining good habits, and breaking bad ones, using small, incremental changes.

    No matter your goals, Atomic Habits offers a proven framework for improving–every day. James Clear, one of the world's leading experts on habit formation, reveals practical strategies that will teach ... (Goodreads)