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Far from the Tree: Parents, Children, and the Search for Identity by Andrew Solomon

The winner of more than a dozen awards, including the National Book Critics Circle Award and Books for a Better Life Award, Solomon’s work draws on a decade of research interviewing more than 300 families. What he found is that when children are faced with adversity or exceptionality, their experience of being different within their families is universal. And he raises this question: Whether a child is deaf, gay, autistic, or genius, do we strive to raise our kids to be like us, or do we nurture their differences and allow them to find a community of their own?

As Solomon notes, while the apple generally doesn’t fall far from the tree, in these cases, they are “apples that have fallen elsewhere.” In family after family, Solomon found that love triumphs and that happy families who strive to accept these children are happy in many other ways. Ever wonder if you’re a toxic parent? See if you have any of these bad-parenting traits.

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Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

The concept of Freakonomics looks at a variety of behavioral and social phenomena through an economic lens. This best-seller, which sold more than four million copies worldwide, spawned numerous other books and a podcast that changed the way we look at the world. The authors discuss the everyday workings of everyday things—and how you can figure it all out, if you know the right questions to ask. How do “experts” bend the facts, and why do they make up statistics? How do you catch a cheater? Why is your new car worth so much less the moment you drive it off the lot? What do online daters lie about? Do parents really matter, and what were they telling the world when they gave you your name?

With a following of readers from the New York Times, economist Levitt received a wide range of queries from both ordinary people and the likes of a Tour de France champ and the CIA. Here, with the help of Dubner’s humorous writing, he provides the answers to life’s somewhat-pressing questions. Freakonomics also made our list of the 50 books to read before you’re 50.

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Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity by Katherine Boo

What does it mean to strive for a better life when everything is against you? How do we maintain our humanity in the face of poverty and longing? Boo delves into the lives of the families who live in the Annawadi slum, squatting on forgotten land owned by the Sahar International Airport in Mumbai and striving to make their lives better. As India transforms and modernizes, those who’ve resided in the traditionally “lower” castes have a glimpse of upward mobility and what it takes to get there. This beautifully written masterpiece was a national bestseller, the winner of the National Book Award in 2012 and a MacArthur “Genius” Grant, a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, and one of Time‘s Best Books of the Decade. It rightfully earns its spot on this list of the best nonfiction books—and it’s one of the books everyone should read in their lifetime.

40 best non fiction books

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40 Best Nonfiction Books

When reality is more interesting than fiction

It’s easy to get lost in a good book, especially if you’re reading one of the best new fiction books, a sizzling romance novel, or some seriously good historical fiction. But the best nonfiction books can equally capture your attention and draw you into their worlds. These works can take many forms and focus on anything and everything—from true crime, science, history, and travel to gender, race, politics, and economics, to name just a few. They may offer a comprehensive view of a topic, provide essential tips and tricks that make your life easier, or even change the way you look at the world. But they all have one thing in common: Their authors bring the subjects to life and make them incredibly compelling.

Here, you’ll find the best nonfiction books of all time—the ones that will really make you think. Most of these titles were culled from the annals of Pulitzer, the National Book Critics Circle, the National Book Foundation, and influential best-seller lists, but some are classics that have a lasting legacy. Some are important works that help us understand humanity. Others blow us away with their beautiful storytelling. And some are just plain good reads. FYI, this list focuses on general nonfiction, so here are the best memoirs and autobiographies, if you’re interested. Running short on time? Crack open one of these short nonfiction books you can read in a day.

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