The Best Non-Fiction I Read in 2020
When I started getting back into books (in a big way) during my early twenties, I stuck strictly to fiction. I wouldn’t have even thought about picking up any non-fiction, but now I’m as enthralled and interested in non-fiction as I am fiction.
Here are my favourite non-fiction reads of 2020.
*in no particular order*
I read Lowborn at the start of 2020, before we were plunged into a pandemic and the economy tanked, resulting in a Premiership footballer being the driving force behind a campaign to make the government show a modicum of empathy and human decency towards children in poverty. So now, more than ever, it’s the time for Kerry Hudson’s memoir about growing up poor in Britain. This is a moving and honest portrayal of Kerry’s life as she revisits the towns she grew up, but also a discussion about the impact of poverty in Britain today.
The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper – Hallie Rubenhold
The Western world is obsessed with male serial killers, yet rarely do we hear about the victims. Hallie Rubenhold’s The Five takes the bare bones of what we’ve heard about Jack the Ripper and gives us a vivid history of his victims instead. These are women who have been ignored, dismissed and misrepresented in history and Hallie attempts to change this with her meticulous research about their lives and the wider context in which their deaths were reported. Despite the depth of research, The Five is told in a really engaging and accessible way.
A Curious History of Sex – Kate Lister
I revelled in Kate Lister’s A Curious History of Sex in the UK’s first Lockdown back in May, so much so that my phone is full of screenshots of the weirdest and funniest facts from the book which I sent on to my friends. For example, did you know Kellogg’s manufactured plain cereals to suppress lustful urges? I did not. Because of this, I even hosted a quiz round inspired by this book. How very 2020 of me. This book is both hilarious and full of incredibly interesting facts, some that will make you laugh and others that will make you wince. Buy this for your history loving, dirty minded pals.
The Trauma Cleaner – Sarah Krasnostein
I’d never heard of trauma cleaners until this book. This book centres on Sandra Pankhurst a trans woman in Australia who cleans up places of trauma – crime scenes, the homes of vulnerable people who hoard or houses where people have died. Aside from this fascinating job, Sandra has had an extraordinary life which makes for a compelling read. From her abusive childhood, to her volatile family, through stories of her sex work and her transition, Sandra’s life is incredible to read. Sandra’s memory is patchy and unreliable, but journalist Sarah Krasnostein knits it all together and makes Sandra come alive on the page.
In the Dream House – Carmen Maria Machado
This memoir is unlike anything I’ve ever read before. Carmen Maria Machado tells her story of an abusive same sex relationship through short snapshots told in different genres which examine a different aspect or outlook of their relationship. Some chapters are a few pages long and others are just a sentence. When I started the book I wasn’t sure if it was for me, but it grabbed me in a completely unexpected way. It’s clever and thought-provoking but most of all it’s just stunningly written.
After a heart-breaking, cruel rejection by his foster family, Lemn Sissay spent the rest of his childhood in care homes. This is a unique memoir in which Lemn reflects on his experiences of the care system alongside the real documents he’s obtained from social services. As you read side-by-side the clinical reports on Lemn’s life against his verse and beautiful prose detailing the pain and neglect he suffered, it’s crushing.
Men Who Hate Women – Laura Bates
This was one of the most horrifying books I’ve ever read. As Laura Bates, founder of the Everyday Sexism Project, uncovers the worst of incel culture online, it truly hits home how far misogyny seeps into society. It’s a chilling, unforgettable book, one that will increase your fear about the internet, but I think everyone needs to read it.
Honourable Mentions: Becoming - Michelle Obama, Gotta Get Theroux This – Louis Theroux
Everyone and their mother has read Michelle Obama’s Becoming but I listened to it, for the first time, this year on audiobook and was completely enthralled, not only by Michelle’s story from her childhood to the White House but her optimism and warm nature. Louis Theroux’s Gotta Get Theroux this was unputdownable for me and despite being 400 pages, I polished it off in a day. Anyone who knows Louis’s documentary work will be familiar with the considered and engaging way he tackles such huge topics and his autobiography has a similar openness.