LitQueuelitqueue

After

Lafayette in the Somewhat United States

Sarah Vowell2015

5 of 6 directions open — nothing to recover from

More like it

1 more ↓

  • Eighty Days

    Matthew Goodman2013

    In 1889, reporters Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland race in opposite directions to beat the fictional record for circling the globe.

    wry → propulsive, still history

    pace0·prose0·bleak0

Denser prose

3 more ↓

  • Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison

    Michel Foucault

    A philosophical history examines the shift from public torture to modern prison surveillance. It analyzes how power controls the body.

    wry → clinical, still history

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+2

  • The Gulag Archipeligo 1918-1956: An Experiment In Literary Investigation I - Ii.

    Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

    A history of the Soviet forced labor camp system based on survivor reports and the author's own imprisonment. It documents state-run repression.

    wry → bleak, still history

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+3

  • Confessions

    Augustine of Hippo

    A 4th-century bishop writes a spiritual autobiography addressed to God. He recounts his sinful youth and his eventual conversion to Christianity.

    wry → meditative

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak0

Faster

3 more ↓

  • Astrophysics for People in a Hurry

    Neil deGrasse Tyson2017

    A summary of the origin of the universe, the laws of physics, and the nature of space and time.

    wry → playful

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak0

  • Steal Like an Artist

    Austin Kleon2012

    A series of short, illustrated principles for creative work. It focuses on remixing existing ideas and establishing productive daily habits.

    wry → playful

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak0

  • Poke the Box

    Seth Godin2011

    A short manifesto encouraging readers to start projects and take initiative. It argues that the greatest risk is staying in place.

    wry → earnest

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak0

Slower

3 more ↓

  • The Frontier in American History

    Frederick Jackson Turner1920

    A series of essays arguing that the American character and democracy were shaped by the continuous expansion into the western wilderness.

    wry → clinical, still history

    pace-2·prose+1·bleak0

  • Confessions

    Augustine of Hippo

    A 4th-century bishop writes a spiritual autobiography addressed to God. He recounts his sinful youth and his eventual conversion to Christianity.

    wry → meditative

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak0

  • How to Read a Book

    Mortimer J. Adler1940

    This is a guide to active reading techniques for different genres. It outlines levels of reading from basic literacy to syntopical analysis.

    wry → mysterious

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak+1

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • Trail of Tears: The Rise and Fall of the Cherokee Nation

    John Ehle

    A historical account of the Cherokee Nation's political struggles and their forced removal from ancestral lands in the 1830s.

    wry → elegiac, still history

    pace-1·prose0·bleak+3

  • Hitler: A Study in Tyranny – A Classic Biography: Authoritative and Readable, Abridged

    Alan Bullock

    A detailed biography of Adolf Hitler that focuses on his rise to power and his psychological control over the German state.

    wry → clinical, still history

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak+3

  • Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee

    Dee Alexander Brown

    A chronological history of the displacement and systematic destruction of Native American tribes in the late 19th century.

    wry → elegiac, still history

    pace-1·prose0·bleak+3