Did I truly want to read a 400-page
book about a raging wildfire that caused $10-billion in damage and burned 2,579
homes to ash? Within a few pages, my answer was “Hell, yes!”
Centered on a record-setting
disaster in Fort McMurray, Alberta, Fire Weather is as gripping as a
Hollywood blockbuster and as magnetic as a Martin Luther King Jr. speech.
John
Vaillant captures the shock and heartbreak of destruction—but also the
cognitive dissonance that allows our species to burn enough fossil fuels to
threaten our very existence. Cities like Fort McMurray wouldn’t exist without
the oil industry. But nor would today’s terrifying “fire tornadoes.”
In this
time of reckoning, what should people like me do next?
***AN INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER*** *Longlisted for the BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION*
'Astounding on every page. John Vaillant is one of the great poetic chroniclers of the natural world' David Wallace-Wells
'No book feels timelier than John Vaillant's Fire Weather . . . an adrenaline-soaked nightmare that is impossible to put down' Cal Flyn, The Times
A gripping account of this century's most intense urban fire, and a panoramic exploration of the rapidly changing relationship between humanity and fire's fierce energy.
In May 2016, Fort McMurray, Alberta, the hub of Canada's oil industry, was overrun by wildfire. The multi-billion-dollar disaster turned…
I snapped up this best-seller to see
what the fuss was about. Sure enough, indie musician Michelle Zauner (aka
“Japanese Breakfast”) won me over with memories of her childhood meals, fraught
relationship with her Korean mother, and the devastation of losing her.
Their
love language, food, is so tantalizingly described that I found myself looking
up recipes for the succulent dishes Zauner and her mother shared. After one mouth-watering
passage, I marinated Korean short ribs for three days and wrapped them in
lettuce leaves to feed to my son.
Poignant and heartfelt, Crying in H Mart offers
many layers to savor.
The New York Times bestseller from the Grammy-nominated indie rockstar Japanese Breakfast, an unflinching, deeply moving memoir about growing up mixed-race, Korean food, losing her Korean mother, and forging her own identity in the wake of her loss.
'As good as everyone says it is and, yes, it will have you in tears. An essential read for anybody who has lost a loved one, as well as those who haven't' - Marie-Claire
In this exquisite story of family, food, grief, and endurance, Michelle Zauner proves herself far more than a dazzling singer,…
Tara McGuire’s exquisite
writing made me see the opioid crisis through new eyes.
Wisely, she steers
clear of the brutal statistics and non-stop anguish that make many books about
overdose painful to read. Instead, through a skillful blend of memoir and
speculative fiction, she made me laugh, cry, and vow not to moralize. Combining journalistic
research with cinematic descriptions of her son Holden’s private life, McGuire
drew me into the events and decisions that led to his sudden death at 21.
Holden,
like most drug users, cannot be dismissed as a self-destructive loser. Talented
and vulnerable, hopeful yet flawed, he was a worthy human being. McGuire helped
me understand his inner world.
is a moving meditation on grief: a stunning book that traces Tara McGuire’s excavation and documentation of the life path of her son Holden, a graffiti artist who died of an accidental opioid overdose at the age of twenty-one. Beginning with Holden’s death and leaping through time and space, McGuire employs fact, investigation, memory, fantasy, and even fabrication in her search for understanding not only of her son’s tragic death, but also his beautiful life. She navigates and writes across the many blank spaces to form a story of discovery and humanity, examining themes of grief, pain, mental illness, trauma,…
Music is much more than “ear
candy” or a series of torturous exercises we remember from piano lessons. In
the right doses, it can double as a mild painkiller, antidepressant, sleeping
pill, and memory aid. Yet today, many of us miss out on some of music’s most
potent effects.
Adriana Barton learned the
hard way. Starting at age five, she studied the cello for nearly two decades.
Years later, as a journalist, she set out to uncover music’s true potential,
combing through medical studies, traveling to neuroscience labs, and meeting
with traditional healers to get to the root of music’s profound effects on the
human body and brain. A captivating blend of science and story, this book will
change the way you think about music.
