Nonfiction

Sea state : a memoir

Tabitha Lasley

BIOGRAPHY Lasley, Tabitha
Literary Nonfiction, Nonfiction, Memoir, Adventure

"A stunning and brutally honest memoir that shines a light on what happens when female desire conflicts with a culture of masculinity in crisis In her midthirties and newly free from a terrible relationship, Tabitha Lasley quit her job at a London magazine, packed her bags, and poured her savings into a six-month lease on an apartment in Aberdeen, Scotland. She decided to make good on a long-deferred idea for a book about oil rigs and the men who work on them. Why oil rigs? She wanted to see what men were like with no women around. In Aberdeen, Tabitha became deeply entrenched in the world of roughnecks, a teeming subculture rich with brawls, hard labor, competition, and the deepest friendships imaginable. The longer she stayed, the more she found her presence had a destabilizing effect on the men--and her. Sea State is on the one hand a portrait of an overlooked industry: "offshore" is a way of life for generations of primarily working-class men and also a potent metaphor for those parts of life we keep at bay--class, masculinity, the transactions of desire, and the awful slipperiness of a ladder that could, if we tried hard enough, lead us to security. Sea State is on the other hand the story of a journalist whose professional distance from her subject becomes perilously thin. In Aberdeen, Tabitha gets high and dances with abandon, reliving her youth, when the music was good and the boys were bad. Twenty years on, there is Caden: a married rig worker who spends three weeks on and three weeks off. Alone and in an increasingly precarious state, Tabitha dives into their growing attraction. The relationship, reckless and explosive, will lay them both bare"--

This book is in my selection area, and I found my interest piqued each time I came across a review for it. It's one of those "under the radar" reads--worthy of "best of" rankings but not explosively viral like Educated or Atomic Habits. The author's narrative writing style allows a reader to (sea) breeze through the book. Read it if you're in the mood for a true story about living a life in search of something more. -Melody

Only in America! : the weird and wonderful 50 states

Heather Alexander

j973 Alexander
Nonfiction, Kids

"A state-by-state compendium of weird laws, quirks, one-offs, and unusual records only to be found in the wonderfully wacky US of A. Only in America! explores the strangest claims to fame and the most unusual place names every state has to offer. Visit the city of Dinosaur, drop by the Pizza Museum, find out where it is illegal to feed a pig without a permit, and check out the world's only "carhenge" (that's right, Stonehenge reconstructed using cars)."--

This books is chock full of interesting facts for each state as well as hundreds of beautiful illustrations with bold colors. The highlight for each state for me are the lists fantastic foods, its super interesting to read about dishes unique to each state and makes me want to try them all! I also enjoy the state slang and list of books that take place in each state. -Mari

Smalltime : a story of my family and the mob

Russell Shorto

364.1092 /Shorto
Nonfiction, Literary Nonfiction, True Crime, Biographies

"Family secrets emerge as a best-selling author dives into the history of the mob in small-town America. Johnstown, Pennsylvania, a city "in its brawny postwar prime," is where "Little Joe" Regino and Russ Shorto build a local gambling empire on the earnings of factory workers for whom placing a bet--on a horse or pool game, pinball or "tip seal"--is their best shot at the American dream. Decades later, Russell Shorto grew up knowing that his grandfather was a small-town mobster, but never thought to write about him, in keeping with an unspoken family vow of silence. Then a distant cousin prodded him: You gotta write about it. Smalltime, the story of Shorto's search for his namesake, delves into the world of the small-town mob, an intricate web that spanned midcentury America, stitching together cities from Yonkers to Fresno. A riveting immigrant story, Smalltime is also deeply personal, as the author's ailing father, Tony, becomes his partner in piecing together their patriarch's troubled past. Moving, wryly funny, and richly detailed, Smalltime is an irresistible memoir by a masterful writer of historical narrative"--

Shorto takes a deep dive into his own family history, uncovering its origins in Sicily, why Pennsylvania attracted his own great-grandfather to sail across the Atlantic, and why the mob? He unearths family secret after family secret and paints a picture of an American experience. -Anne M

The ultimate meal prep cookbook : one grocery list. a week of meals. no waste

641.555 /America's
Cookbooks, Nonfiction

Meal prep no longer means filling your freezer with boring casseroles, dipping into the same pot of beans every day for a week, or spending all day Sunday cooking. Instead, use these smart meal plans to customize fast, fresh dinners that fit your ever-changing schedule. We've done the work of building 25 weekly plans that minimize shopping and kitchen time and guide you through prep-ahead options, make-ahead options, and ingredient substitutions. So now you can reap the benefits to make your life easier, your grocery bill lower, and your dinners better.

Meal-prepping is a grand idea in theory, but when do you have the time to meal-prep? My weekends are always filled with chores and entertaining the kiddo and puppy (the cats are self-sufficient, lol). I tried checking this book out anyway, and I'm happy I did. I found a 5-ingredient black bean soup with zero chopping required. 10-minute meal prep? Sign me up! The soup was very good to boot, so now I've got my lunches ready all week. Gotta love soup season! -Melody