The best books for detecting bullsh*t

I absolutely loved this book because it taught me one big thing: always pay attention to the red flags. In the beginning of The Husband’s Secret a key piece of evidence is introduced and from there working backwards, forwards, and somehow sideways, the story explains how the item was created, and what it means for everyone involved. This mystery novel helped me put together things that didn’t quite add up in my personal life, and strangely enough, I discovered a secret about my own husband at the time which later led to a divorce. Crazy how life works.

Written by an ex-FBI agent, What Every Body Is Saying completely changed the way I listen during conversations. People lie with their faces, but their bodies can’t hide the truth. In this book, you learn how each part of the body (i.e., eyes, hands, feet) manages stress and in doing so you can detect deception. For example, I’ve always heard if someone has their arms crossed that they are being defensive or untrustworthy well… that age-old thought is not necessarily true. In fact, crossing arms during conversation is scientifically proven to be a self-soothing measure, if anything, they are protecting themselves, not trying to intimidate others. In the book, I discovered tons of ways to figure out if someone is lying, all you have to do is listen to their body.

One of my favorite reads of all time is Abuse of Power because it gave birth to my inner conspiracy theorist. When a routine check turns violent, a reputable police officer does the unthinkable, and even worse, his brothers in blue follow suit, leaving the heroine trapped between telling the truth or staying alive. From this novel I learned if you want the truth out of someone, you have to ask the right questions, probing questions that require a specific answer other than yes or no, but even more than that, listen for inconsistencies. 

This action-packed spy thriller kept me on edge from the first chapter mostly due to the beautiful prose, but also because it depicts the CIA in an accessible way. The book taught me to analyze people based on not their words or actions, but their intentions. Diving headfirst into the political hierarchy of the esteemed agency, this book highlights that no one—especially the co-worker you sit next to and eat lunch with every day—can be trusted. Fun and fast-paced, Red Widow drops you in a body of water and just when you think you’re in a swimming pool, you find out you’re in the ocean. 

Did you know that 75% of bones in the human body are found below the knee? I thought that was interesting as well… if only it were true! This book taught me to critically assess data and not blindly accept every ‘scientific-sounding’ statement as truth. Medical Apartheid details the origins of several medical innovations which shockingly date back to slavery. The things doctors once considered permissible to do to enslaved women on the basis that ‘they did not feel pain’ brought literal tears to my eyes, but it was necessary for me to read because it shared the truth. A horrible, terrifying truth that pharmaceutical giants—like Pfizer—refuse to acknowledge to this day.