Six Bossy Favorite Nonfiction Reads of the Past Year

The Bossy Bookworm
Jun 12
7 min read

Six Favorite Nonfiction Reads

These were my six favorite nonfiction reads from last year: a behind-the-scenes peek into the life of a paramedic; a horrifying look at a cluster of serial killers; the fascinating story of a couple shipwrecked and fighting for survival; a charming glimpse into the world of dog shows; a timely and illuminating book for young people (and those with limited knowledge on the subject, like me) about the Constitution; and a shockingly compelling and poignant title about tuberculosis and the world's interconnectedness from the brilliant John Green.

If you like to read nonfiction, you might also like to check out some of my Bossy nonfiction reviews, or some of my Greedy Reading Lists of favorites (also accessible through that link). My roundup of nonfiction favorites from the year prior is here.

If you've read any of these books, I'd love to hear what you think! What are some of your favorite nonfiction reads?

01 Frog: The Secret Diary of a Paramedic by Sally Gould

Gould's memoir of her life as a paramedic is frank, captivating, often revolting, and disarmingly honest. She takes the reader on ride-alongs so vividly described, it's as though we're in the ambulance. She shares her pride in caring for patients, her deep frustrations, and she is open about her mental health struggles.

Sally Gould's memoir is named after a darkly humorous term of affection for paramedics in Australia (frog, because everything a paramedic touches croaks).

Gould grew up in Australia the daughter of a paramedic, and she follows in her father's footsteps, training to become a "frog" herself.

In her memoir, Gould explores her early days of uncertainty, moments of panic, scenes of complete disgust, tragic endings, and inspiring moments in which her team's arrival saves a life.

Gould takes the reader through the ups and downs of the job and is frank about her personal mental health challenges and how she coped with them as related to the difficulties of her career and lifestyle.

This is a satisfyingly deep dive into Gould's behind-the-scenes experiences, including an often breakneck pace, trying emotions, extensive practical knowledge, interpersonal skills, ability to read the room, separation from emotion, and pride in a job capably done.

This is Sally Gould's first book. I received a prepublication audiobook version of this title courtesy of Libro.fm and Simon & Schuster Australia.

You might also be interested in Bossy reviews of books involving medical or health elements, or in Bossy memoirs I've loved.

For my full review of this book please see Frog.

02 Fault Lines in the Constitution: The Framers, Their Fights, and the Flaws that Affect Us Today by Cynthia and Sanford Levinson

Cynthia and Sanford Levinson, a noted children's author and a constitutional scholar, have created a fascinating nonfiction book for young people--useful to readers of any age--that considers how the constitution was shaped, factors that continue to push its evolution, processes that guide our governance and laws, stumbling blocks toward progress, and how we can improve our guiding principles as our nation's needs continue to grow.

Designed for young people, Fault Lines is illuminating for anyone looking to get up to speed on the Framers' considerations, why the Constitution was shaped the way it was, its evolution, the possibilities and barriers in place regarding changing it, our current, growing needs, and how all of this affects our day-to-day leadership, rights, and lives.

Is a book for young people about the Constitution possibly the extent of the scope of my own current abilities to understand the ins and outs of all of this? Possibly, yes. Do the Levinsons' clear content along with the engaging book design (with graphics, examples from the past and present day, and plain language around challenges and opportunities) make for informative, entertaining, important reading? Yes. And does grasping the information contained in Fault Lines feel more relevant and essential than ever, as the current administration challenges and disregards the power of the Constitution and its impact on our lives in large-scale, destructive, and often terrifying ways? Definitely.

Note that the newest edition of this title reflects relevant factors and events through early 2025.

For my full review, please see Fault Lines in the Constitution.

03 Everything Is Tuberculosis: The History and Persistence of Our Deadliest Infection by John Green

Green's book is about tuberculosis, but it's also a view of our deep global interconnectedness, gross healthcare inequalities, the TB devastation that is still prevalent, and the possibility of both simple and comprehensive approaches that could eradicate the disease.

In John Green's nonfiction book Everything Is Tuberculosis, he tells his story of befriending a young man, Henry, who was suffering from tuberculosis and living in a hospital in Sierra Leone.

Green uses his tender eye and piercing analysis to explore the health care inequalities that allow the world's poorest citizens to disproportionately contract the incurable disease tuberculosis and to advocate for greater access to quality care and a search for a cure.

John Green is also the author of the nonfiction collection of essays The Anthropocene Reviewed (which was one of my six favorite nonfiction reads the year I read it) as well as other novels.

For my full review, please see Everything Is Tuberculosis.

This title was one of My Very Favorite Bossy 2025 Reads across all genres.

04 A Marriage at Sea: A True Story of Love, Obsession, and Shipwreck by Sophie Elmhirst

Sophie Elmhirst's A Marriage at Sea is the true story of a couple whose sailing trip to New Zealand becomes a fight for survival. This is nonfiction that seems too incredible to be true, and I was hooked on the details of their 118-day-long struggles on the ocean.

Sophie Elmhirst revisits a decades-old true story that she crafts like fiction, skillfully using dry firsthand accounts and subsequent interviews to build a fascinating, fluid, compelling nonfiction book about a couple whose ambitious sailing trip from England to New Zealand was abruptly halted when a whale breached beneath their sailboat, capsizing it.

Elmhirst manages to shape a suspenseful nonfiction work despite the Maralyn and Maurice's significant periods of isolation, struggle, and repetitive tasks. She delves into their inner lives, exploring the workings of their relationship and fleshing out an intriguing dynamic against the unforgiving backdrop of the endless-seeming expanse of ocean and 118 days of clawing for survival.

The story's pacing doesn't flag, although the tale sets a slower tempo as Maurice and Maralyn settle into a daily pattern of fishing, gathering water, and struggling to keep their minds occupied--a measure that is largely driven by Maralyn. Maurice is frank about his deteriorating emotional state and his reliance upon Maralyn's unfailing determination.

The couple's evolving resourcefulness is incredible to witness, and it's fascinating to read about the renewed vigor with which particularly Maralyn faces each new, potentially deadly, challenge.

For my full review, please check out A Marriage at Sea.

05 Murderland: Crime and Bloodlust in the Time of Serial Killers by Caroline Fraser

I shuddered as I read (during daylight hours only) Caroline Fraser's painstaking accounts of the shockingly numerous serial killers who emerged from the Pacific Northwest and the proposal that extensive heavy metal industrial pollution in the region contributed to their flawed development, horrifying impulses, and killing sprees.

File my reading of this nonfiction book under Why Didn't I Listen to My Inner Voice...and Not Read This?

I was intrigued by the environmental factors Fraser tied to developmental disruptions and the emergence of a large number of eventual serial killers in heavily polluted portions of the Pacific Northwest. I was overly ambitious and thought I could handle any nonfiction book topic. I lied to myself about how much horrifying material I could stomach--and how much more disturbing I would find it because the content is all exhaustively researched and true. I forgot that getting frightened when I read at night disrupts my sleep. I didn't think about how I don't actually like to take in extensive information about murder and psychopaths.

Anyhoo! In Murderland, Caroline Fraser puts forth a fascinating link (she's not the first to do so, but her painstakingly detailed account offers a cohesive, extensive argument) between the numerous mass-murderers who took shape in the 1970s and 1980s and grew up to terrorize the Pacific Northwest--and, in some cases, other areas of the country--and an era in which devastating amounts of toxic pollutants were pumped into the air, water, and soil there.

I could have been satisfied with a long Atlantic-style article on these topics, but Fraser's writing is lovely and her turns of phrase are insightful and often poetic, which helped me continue reading the difficult material and atrocities here.

For my full review, please check out Murderland.

06 Dogland: Passion, Glory, and Lots of Slobber at the Westminster Dog Show by Tommy Tomlinson

Dogland explores what makes a show dog "best" and what happens behind the scenes of dog shows in this intriguing, good-natured, and heartwarming look at one promising champion and his caring handler as they strive to win Westminster Dog Show.

Tommy Tomlinson's playful, intriguing nonfiction Dogland takes an engaging look at dogs--particularly show dogs, but also beloved pets as well as humans' connections to these onetime wild beasts.

Reporter and SouthBound podcast host Tomlinson found himself watching the Westminster Dog Show and wondering, Are show dogs happy? What's life like for a dog whose life is all about grooming, standing still, and moving in an orderly fashion around a ring? And: How did these wild beasts end up here, anyway?

In a fascinating, heartwarming, lovely account, Tomlinson spends three years traveling dog shows across the country, using backstage access to witness the hard work, discipline, obsession, and affection of "the Fancy." At times he good-naturedly highlights the absurdity of this world, at least for those looking in from the outside, and draws occasional correlations to the satiric comedy Best in Show--a movie that inspires mixed reactions from those in the competition scene.

Dogland is often fun, intriguing in its peeks behind the scenes, and heartwarming in the deep dog-human connections that Tomlinson highlights.

For my full review, please check out this link.