Does any one like reading non-fiction?

[Elasticwoman]

All the books I was given for Christmas are non-fiction. Enjoying Amo Amas Amat And All That by Harry Mount at the moment. It's very funny and takes me back to schooldays when I learned Latin at school. Would never have thought of buying or borrowing this myself, and rather embarrassed to note the old fogey author is younger than me. Usually I go for biography or history when not a novel. What non-fiction do other MNetters enjoy, and does any one find themselves surprised at enjoying some non-fiction they were given for Christmas?

My Pils bought me "Getting Things Done" by David Allen. A bit of a dig at my organisation (ok- a huge dig and my house is really not that bad!) Surprised at just how obviously nasty they can be but also surprised that it does have a few good ideas in it. Would never have bought myself an organisation book so I guess it does fall in your catagory. Don?t ANYONE let them know I have read any of it (or DH) though . I gave a dignified "thank you" at the time and let my eyes do the talking would hate to think they might find out I enjoyed it!!!!

I find some historical biographies alright, but no, for the most part, I don't really care for non-fiction.

Quite a lot of books in the 'Popular Science' section of Waterstones.

I have not a science qualification to my name (used to get 3/10 in the multiple choice physics) but lots of those books are really well written and accessible.

Steve Jones books (on genetics) and Steven Pinker (language) for a start.......

Got a book from library at the moment THE Wisdom of Crowds by James Surowiecki. ( Not 'crowd pyschology' but rather the fact that the sum of individuals' knowldge of guesswork might offer some useful insights)

Want to get The Amo Ams Amt book as was a Latin swot at school.......

I got Amo Amas for Christmas too - also two history books: one about the Civil War and a biography of John Donne. Also looking forward to reading DH's Richard Dawkins when he is finished with it. I love history - have just signed up for an OU course in European History so planning to read quite a lot.

I like non-fiction, biographies (reading Roy Jenkins biog of Winston Churchill atm), travel books, history, psychology (easy stuff, like Oilver Sacks), indeed anything which takes my fancy.

yes i do

i like popular science a lot

and biographies

am reading things to be cheerful about by mark steel atm

and that new scientish one about penguins feet

I don't really go for fiction really atm. dunno why

I like biographies, social history and psychology books.
Never heard of amo,amas,amat what is it about?

I read the odd bit of history and historical biographies. Funnily enough, I could not get into Roy Jenkins' biography of Churchill and I also have not yet started William Hague's biography of Pitt despite asking for it and receiving it last Christmas. This year, I got a load of historical biographies of women. Not sure if they appeal.

The best history I read last year was Antonia Fraser's book about the Gunpowder Plot.

Oh and I do read the occasional travelogue.

I like fiction, but not just anything iyswim. I have to find specific books I like rather than reading the latest by a specific author, or anything that made it onto the Booker shortlist etc.

I read 'istorical books - am currently reading a biography of Anne Boleyn, and a new one about the last days of Henry VIII.

I want to read WH's biog of Pitt, it looks very good. Ikwym about the Churchill book. I read RJ's Gladstone book, which was excellent but I am struggling with this one (well, if I'm honest, I haven't read a word of it in a month. Today's reading matter is Charlotte's Web ).

I'm picky about fiction, too. I've read one of Whatsername Picoult's book, don't want to read another particularly. The same with Anita Shreve's books, I can't tell one from another, they're all alike to me!

I am enjoying Pitt the Younger - fascinating stuff!

Amo Amas Amat is about the Latin language and manages to be witty and entertaining despite all those lists of declensions and conjugations which I never had to learn at school during my 5 years of Latin lessons. My teacher just let every one work through the books at their own pace, and marked the exercise books in red ink, with which she was v liberal. If you asked a question she would answer it so lengthily you'd wish you hadn't, so it encouraged thinking for yourself.

Does any one recognise the teacher/school from that description?

In my thirties I harldy read any fiction at all. It's now about 50% fiction (esp Booker-type writers), the remainder being science (much like poppyknot - my current book is Beyond Reason by AK Dewdney), mountaineering, Churchill (but I too failed on Jenkin's biography).

I like biographies, some history and read some of the mommy stuff like "bitch in the house" and a few other collections of essays by women/mommies. I like the cranky old fogey stuff that rant about rudeness and todays lack of civility. I really liked alan clark diaries for some strange reason, am reading part 2 now which I gave dh for christmas. Last christmas I got the biography of jane austen and loved it.

I got the second vol. of Monarchy by David Starkey for Christmas from DS (he gave me the first vol. a couple of years ago.
I've also got a book about England's queens by Maureen Waller & a couple of other history books.
I like Bill Bryson too - I'm redaing his biography atm

I love biographies, diaries and letters - and the last book that made me cry was non-fiction, it was Our Hidden Lives by Simon Garfield, extracted from the Mass Observation diaries of five people in WW2.

Also the last book that made me laugh till I cried was non-fiction - the Timewaster Letters by Robin Cooper. His series of letters to Dorling Kindersley publishers actually made me weep with laughter. It was a tough test for my barely recovered pelvic floor, I can tell you.

However I'd say I read 10 novels for every one non-fiction.

i like memoirs, although i try not to touch the 'Child called It' genre. Experience by Martin Amis was a lot more appealing than any of his novels. Period Piece by Gwen Raverat is one of my favourite books.

There are a lot of female historians I like to read - not particularly because they are female, i've just realised that they mostly are female. Barbara Tuchman, Cecil Woodham Smith, Lisa Cannadine, Alison Weir.

Choosyfloosy, I love Period Piece too - I've never met anyone else who has read it though! I also love A London Child of the 1870s by M Hughes which has a similar sort of feel.

And I agree about Martin Amis - couldn't get on with Koba the Dread though.

ooh miss g, i read A London Child and its sequels. I did like them but struggled somehow - i felt the person who lent them to me was judging me as my life is so different from the life in the book IYSWIM! probably she never thought any such thing, I was younger then.

I solve the Period Piece problem by forcing other people to read it . also i once rehearsed/acted a play in what was her house - a strange experience but a happy memory.

I've got London Child & London girl among the books my dad gave me when my mum died - I haven't got round to them yet - so many books, so little time - I'll give them a try when I've finished my Cristmas books

i love anything to do with ancient eygpt and could read biographies all day

i too like the east end london ones but from nottingham lol

i also read any vintage hair books i can get my hands on

I love Alison Weir too - have you read her fiction book about lady jane grey? Not sure what I think of it - it's written from several points of view, which tends to be a bit confusing, especially as i never actually read chapter headings!

no haven't read that one. sounds good.

I've recently read some of Richard Feynman's books (the Nobel Prize winning physicist) - his autobiography was great (as was the follow up). I like a good biography!

Other good non-fiction I can think of - Alan Clark's diaries and Piers Morgan's diaries.

I read as many non-fiction as fiction - bios and diaries, popular science, history (especially social), quirky ones. A good one I read not so long ago was called the Victorian House - fascinating social history. And have just finished Shepperton Babylon - good book on British cinema's unknown side.

I used to read a lot of fiction and I seem to have just stopped liking it over the past 5 years or so. I bought myself lots of non fiction for Christmas.

Where did it all go right by Andrew Collins
Hugh Fearlessly Eats it All, a collection of food writing by Hugh FW
A food book by Tom Parker Bowles
A book about being a food critic in NY
A book about collective responsibilty
Bait and Switch by Barbara Ehrenrich (sp?)
The Corporation, about corporations and their behaviour
The Google Story

And I enjoyed things like Watching the English by Kate Fox amd The Tipping Point and Freakonomics.