Nonfiction

The Last Nomad

by Laura
August 1, 2021August 1, 2021

CW: war, discussion of rape, female genital mutilation, abuse (physical, mental, and emotional)

The Last Nomad is a memoir by Shugri Said Salh. Shugri grew up as a nomad raised by her grandmother in the Somali desert prior to the Somali Civil War. She recounts momentous occasions from her childhood, her struggles after her mother’s death, her family’s separation as the fled the Somali Civil War, and her adjustments to life in Canada, followed by her experiences raising children today in the United States with circumstances she had never imagined.

Shugri tackles difficult subjects with honesty and a tone unique to one who has occupied two such opposite worlds. She discusses growing up in a society that places such pride on virginity yet has young girls consistently threatened by rape. The most moving transition for me was her views on female genital mutilation (FGM). As a child she underwent the traumatic mutilation but at time it was a great honor for her. After fleeing the civil war, moving to North America, and having a daughter of her own, she explains how her thoughts shifted. She doesn’t shy away from explaining the honor she once felt in FGM, but now views her survival following this trauma as a breaking of chains for her daughters and other women that will follow.

Shugri’s strength is beautiful. She underwent so much trauma with a consistent will to survive, to do better, and be better than what she witnessed. Though her memoir is filled with trials, it’s also infused with love, humor, and happy memories. It was a difficult read at times, but such an eye-opening experience into growing up in a country I know so little about.

I highly recommend this for anyone interested in memoirs, cross-cultural experiences, and women in the middle east. Even if memoirs are not your usual read, I still urge you to pick this up. Shugri writes with such honesty, humor, and personality, that it did not feel like the slog that nonfiction can occasionally be.

The Last Nomad can currently be preordered here through Bookshop.org and will be for sale August 3!

Thank you to Shugri Said Salh and Algonquin Books for gifting me a copy of The Last Nomad in exchange for an honest review.

Ms. Adventure

by Laura
March 2, 2021August 1, 2021

We’ve only started 2021, but I think Ms. Adventure is going to be the nonfiction read to beat for me this year. Thank you so much to Netgalley, Timber Press, and Jess Phoenix for gifting me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Jess Phoenix is a badass geologist and fills Ms. Adventure with stories of her research, education, travel, and life. From research in Death Valley to encountering drug cartels in Mexico onto filming a TV show that tried to incorporate more stunts than science and running for office, her life has not been boring. It’s a short read with each chapter consisting of a new site visited.

I loved Jess’ story telling style. She incorporates science that you don’t need to be a geology student to understand and takes you along on her adventures as though you were riding along with her. Her tone is casual, friendly, and frank. It was wonderful to be able to read some of her journal entries from expeditions at the ends of certain chapters, making her encounters that much more interesting. Even in these journal entries, she has a true flair for writing.

Jess’ honesty about her experiences is what I found most engaging. She talks about her journey to discover her interest in geology, something I found wholly encouraging. Whether your interest lies in geology or another field, it’s a wonderful reminder that it’s never too late to pursue your passions. She didn’t gloss over details of struggles in her work or pass off each assignment as being absolutely fascinating; in fact, she is straightforward that sometimes science can be boring, but it’s necessary to get through the boring bits to appreciate the discoveries.

I wasn’t expecting the closing chapter to involve a political discussion, as politics were never brought up earlier in the book, but I enjoyed seeing a scientist’s take on the previous election and hearing the fears many of them shared as a man took office who worked to discredit science. Some of the fears I was familiar with as I had them myself, but there were several others that hadn’t even occurred to me. It was encouraging to see a young scientist interested in pursuing a public office in an attempt to quell those fears and encourage public support of the science community. She’d absolutely have my vote!

Finally, I think Jess’ encouragement to stay curious and not let society strip you of your need to discover is crucial, words everyone can benefit from, which stayed true with the tone of the book. Ms. Adventure can be enjoyed by a wide-ranging audience, whether you’re looking for travel writing, scientific writing, adventure, or a memoir. Rarely have I been saddened to see the end of a nonfiction book. I would gladly immerse myself into more of Jess’ stories and hope this will spark a trend of more published works by womxn scientists.

Atomic Habits

by Laura
February 11, 2021February 11, 2021

If you’ve unsuccessfully tried incorporating new habits or breaking old habits, this book is for you. If you’ve successfully incorporated new habits or broken old habits, this book is for you too! Atomic Habits is going on the short list of books I recommend to everyone regardless of their reading preferences or lifestyle. Anyone can get something out of this book if they’re willing to put in the work, whether their goal is physical, financial, psychological, or any other category you could think of.

James Clear breaks down habit development (and habit breaking) into four easy laws; for habit development, make it obvious, make it attractive, make it easy, make it satisfying. For breaking undesirable habits, simply inverse the laws: make it invisible, make it unattractive, make it difficult, make it unsatisfying. Each law has its own section in which Clear breaks down the law into small, easy-to-understand chunks, provides examples of people who have successfully used the law to develop a habit, and advice for overcoming common excuses.

He talks about the importance of developing a good system, rather than a good goal. Though the goals are important, the system we use to achieve them is what determines whether we fail or succeed. He also emphasizes that once goals are reached it’s not uncommon for people to return to their previous behavior rather than striving to further improve their system or set a more advanced goal.

I could hear the excuses play out in my head as I was reading, excuses I’ve made so many times when I was tired or feeling particularly lazy, but it was like Clear was in my head. As soon as the excuses started popping up, I came to a part in the book discussing these same exact excuses and how to overcome them. Clear uses examples of real people who have utilized these laws to overcome their own excuses, making the book much more relatable. He uses professional sports teams as examples, but he also uses friends, office workers, artists, etc. There isn’t a lifestyle that these steps won’t be able to fit into because they’re so versatile.

Many of the resources Clear mentions are easily accessible and printable, allowing readers to develop their own habit trackers and systems. He recommends other reading materials that helped him develop Atomic Habits, as well books that correspond with certain steps or delve deeper into different types of systems people have developed.

I don’t currently have a list of annual readings because there are so few books I reread, and the ones I do reread aren’t read annually. However, I’m starting a list this year and Atomic Habits is at the top. There were so many great lessons and steps I could put into practice immediately, but I can see how that motivation could slip or I would overlook certain steps I no longer deem necessary after a year. Hopefully that will keep the information and motivation fresh in my head as I start each new year.