The most recommended books on eugenics

Who picked these books? Meet our 23 experts.

23 authors created a book list connected to eugenics, and here are their favorite eugenics books.
Shepherd is reader supported. When you buy books, we may earn an affiliate commission.

What type of eugenics book?

Loading...
Loading...

Take My Hand

By Dolen Perkins-Valdez,

Book cover of Take My Hand

Jennifer Lang Author Of Places We Left Behind: A Memoir-in-Miniature

From Jennifer's 3 favorite reads in 2023.

Who am I?

Author Creative Writer Yogini Experimenter Wayfarer

Jennifer's 3 favorite reads in 2023

Why did Jennifer love this book?

A fan of stories inspired by true events, I devoured this book. Civil Townsend is a Black nurse in post-segregation Montgomery, Alabama, who blows the whistle on a cruel injustice done to her patients.

She is tenacious, stubborn, and fierce about her beliefs and profession. While she strives to do right by her patients at the family planning clinic, she cannot stand by silently when she sees all the wrongs in their lives. The story follows her career from start to finish/retirement, and I found myself rooting for her at every step, every naysayer, and every obstacle along the way.

By Dolen Perkins-Valdez,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Take My Hand as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

AS SEEN ON BBC2 BETWEEN THE COVERS

Montgomery, Alabama. 1973. Fresh out of nursing school, Civil Townsend has big plans to make a difference in her community. She wants to help women make their own choices for their lives and bodies.

But when her first week on the job takes her down a dusty country road to a tumbledown cabin and into the heart of the Williams family, Civil learns there is more to her new role than she bargained for. Neither of the two young sisters has even kissed a boy, but they are poor and Black, and for…


The Routledge Handbook of Dehumanization

By Maria Kronfeldner (editor),

Book cover of The Routledge Handbook of Dehumanization

David Livingstone Smith Author Of Making Monsters: The Uncanny Power of Dehumanization

From the list on dehumanization and the impact of this phenomenon.

Who am I?

I have an international reputation as an expert on dehumanization. I have researched this subject for the past fifteen years, and have written three books and many articles, and given many talks on it, including a presentation at the 2012 G20 economic summit. I believe that dehumanization is an extremely important phenomenon to understand, because it fuels the worst atrocities that human beings inflict upon one another. If phrases like "never again" have any real meaning, we need to seriously investigate the processes, including dehumanization, that make such horrific actions possible.

David's book list on dehumanization and the impact of this phenomenon

Why did David love this book?

There is surprisingly little research literature dealing specifically with dehumanization outside of academic papers by social psychologists. But this state of affairs is changing, as more and more scholars recognize that understanding this harrowing phenomenon is crucial for the future of humanity. This unique volume, with contributions from thirty scholars from a whole range of academic disciplines, provides an excellent snapshot of the vibrant state of dehumanization studies today.

By Maria Kronfeldner (editor),

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Routledge Handbook of Dehumanization as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A striking feature of atrocities, as seen in genocides, civil wars, or violence against certain racial and ethnic groups, is the attempt to dehumanize - to deny and strip human beings of their humanity. Yet the very nature of dehumanization remains relatively poorly understood.

The Routledge Handbook of Dehumanization is the first comprehensive and multidisciplinary reference source on the subject and an outstanding survey of the key concepts, issues, and debates within dehumanization studies. Organized into four parts, the Handbook covers the following topics:

The history of dehumanization from Greek Antiquity to the 20th century, contextualizing the oscillating boundaries, dimensions,…


The Archaeology of Race

By Debbie Challis,

Book cover of The Archaeology of Race: The Eugenic Ideas of Francis Galton and Flinders Petrie

Angela Stienne Author Of Mummified: The Stories Behind Egyptian Mummies in Museums

From the list on why there’s an Egyptian mummy in your back garden.

Who am I?

When at 13, I declared that I’d become an Egyptologist, quite a lot of people thought it would pass. Fast forward 10 years, and I was starting a PhD on Egyptian mummies in museums – it did not pass. I journeyed from the Louvre where I was a gallery attendant trying to uncover the story of bodies buried in their garden, to England where I relocated with little English to pursue an Egyptology degree… and then two more! The ethics of human remains in museums is a complex topic: that’s why I like to make it more approachable to the public, from running my project Mummy Stories, to giving talks in pubs! 

Angela's book list on why there’s an Egyptian mummy in your back garden

Why did Angela love this book?

This was the first book to introduce me to the relation between race studies, eugenics, and archaeology.

It was quite a revelation: I was volunteering at the Petrie Museum at the time, and the book uncovers the dodgy relationship between Petrie and Francis Galton.

It was pivotal in transforming the ways I looked at familiar places: it reminded me that places I called home, like the Petrie Museum but also the Louvre, have been very exclusionary to many. It taught me to look differently at places I navigate on a regular basis, to look for the other story.

You’ll then have to listen to the Bricks + Mortals podcast on the history of UCL buildings, and your wanders in Bloomsbury won’t be the same again.

By Debbie Challis,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Archaeology of Race as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

How much was archaeology founded on prejudice? The Archaeology of Race explores the application of racial theory to interpret the past in Britain during the late Victorian and Edwardian period. It investigates how material culture from ancient Egypt and Greece was used to validate the construction of racial hierarchies. Specifically focusing on Francis Galton's ideas around inheritance and race, it explores how the Egyptologist Flinders Petrie applied these in his work in Egypt and in his political beliefs. It examines the professional networks formed by societies, such as the Anthropological Institute, and their widespread use of eugenic ideas in analysing…


Facing Eugenics

By Erika Dyck,

Book cover of Facing Eugenics: Reproduction, Sterilization, and the Politics of Choice

C. Elizabeth Koester Author Of In the Public Good: Eugenics and Law in Ontario

From the list on how eugenics came to Canada.

Who am I?

I'm a lapsed lawyer who decided as an empty-nest project to take a few history of medicine courses just for fun. One thing led to another and I found myself with a PhD and a book about eugenics and law to my name. I love the history of medicine. It connects us right back to the cavemen who worried about the same things we worry about today – illness, injury, our bodies, reproduction, death, dying. The history of eugenics is really a part of that history and it is filled with laws – coerced reproductive sterilization, marriage restrictions based on so-called “fitness,” etc. So it's a perfect union of my background and my newfound love. 

C.'s book list on how eugenics came to Canada

Why did C. love this book?

This is the most important book to read if you want to understand (a) eugenics generally and (b) how it played out in Alberta, the part of Canada where these ideas got the most traction. Dyck is a great historian, but even better, she does not forget that history is about real people. Her history is detailed and thorough, but it is not dry. She uses all kinds of interesting sources including courtroom evidence and personal records to bring the issues to life. She also moves the story forward by writing about abortion in the 1970s and 1980s and shows us in a very thought-provoking way the connections between eugenic “fitness” and our notions of “disability” today.

By Erika Dyck,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Facing Eugenics as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Facing Eugenics is a social history of sexual sterilization operations in twentieth-century Canada. Looking at real-life experiences of men and women who, either coercively or voluntarily, participated in the largest legal eugenics program in Canada, it considers the impact of successive legal policies and medical practices on shaping our understanding of contemporary reproductive rights. The book also provides deep insights into the broader implications of medical experimentation, institutionalization, and health care in North America. Erika Dyck uses a range of historical evidence, including medical files, court testimony, and personal records to place mental health and intelligence at the centre of…


Neurotribes

By Steve Silberman,

Book cover of Neurotribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity

Simon Baron-Cohen Author Of The Pattern Seekers: How Autism Drives Human Invention

From the list on exploring the human mind.

Who am I?

I am a professor of psychology and psychiatry at Cambridge University. I've been conducting autism research for 40 years, and this has taken me deep into understanding how the mind works, in both autistic and neurotypical people. I've focused in particular on two aspects of the mind, empathy and systemizing, to understand how these develop, how individual differences in these arise, and how we can celebrate such neurodiversity and provide support for people who struggle with these. My research spans psychology, neuroscience, genetics, endocrinology, clinical practice, education, and vulnerability. 

Simon's book list on exploring the human mind

Why did Simon love this book?

This book deservedly won the Samuel Johnson Prize for non-fiction. It is simultaneously a history of autism, and a history of the concept of neurodiversity. It reaches back to the origins of the internet and the dark history of eugenics in the Holocaust. And it reaches forward into contemporary ideas about respecting, accepting, and celebrating differences in the mind, particularly of autistic people.

By Steve Silberman,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Neurotribes as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Winner of the 2015 Samuel Johnson Prize for non-fictionA New York Times bestsellerForeword by Oliver SacksWhat is autism: a devastating developmental condition, a lifelong disability, or a naturally occurring form of cognitive difference akin to certain forms of genius? In truth, it is all of these things and more - and the future of our society depends on our understanding it.Following on from his groundbreaking article 'The Geek Syndrome', Wired reporter Steve Silberman unearths the secret history of autism, long suppressed by the same clinicians who became famous for discovering it, and finds surprising answers to the crucial question of…


Superior

By Angela Saini,

Book cover of Superior: The Return of Race Science

Alan H. Goodman Author Of Racism, Not Race: Answers to Frequently Asked Questions

From the list on what race is (and is not).

Who am I?

Studying anthropology and biology in the 1970s, I was in the perfect position to understand why race was not genetic. From that time on, I wanted everyone to know what race was and was not. But here we a half century later and most individuals in the US – and the world still believe that race is a valid way to divide individuals into biological groups, and worse, that race, rather than racism, explains differences in life circumstances. As a professor and president of the American Anthropological Association I have taught courses and helped with documentaries, museum exhibits, websites, articles, and books to dispel consequential myth about race and genetics.  

Alan's book list on what race is (and is not)

Why did Alan love this book?

Superior by science journalist Angela Saini is based on source materials. In addition, it is animated by interviews with key scientists involved in the struggle to end race science. Saini weaves together stories that get at the more intimate details of, on the one hand, the persistence and continual reinvention of race and race science, and on the other, the work of individuals including Jonathan Marks and Jay Kaufman to move us all to better understanding why racism, not biological race, is the cause of inequalities in health and wealth. Superior is the most readable of all the books that focus on race and human variation.  

By Angela Saini,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked Superior as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Financial Times Book of the Year Telegraph Top 50 Books of the Year Guardian Book of the Year New Statesman Book of the Year

'Roundly debunks racism's core lie - that inequality is to do with genetics, rather than political power' Reni Eddo-Lodge

Where did the idea of race come from, and what does it mean? In an age of identity politics, DNA ancestry testing and the rise of the far-right, a belief in biological differences between populations is experiencing a resurgence. The truth is: race is a social construct. Our problem is we find this hard to believe.

In…


The Persons Case

By Robert J. Sharpe, Patricia I. McMahon,

Book cover of The Persons Case: The Origins and Legacy of the Fight for Legal Personhood

C. Elizabeth Koester Author Of In the Public Good: Eugenics and Law in Ontario

From the list on how eugenics came to Canada.

Who am I?

I'm a lapsed lawyer who decided as an empty-nest project to take a few history of medicine courses just for fun. One thing led to another and I found myself with a PhD and a book about eugenics and law to my name. I love the history of medicine. It connects us right back to the cavemen who worried about the same things we worry about today – illness, injury, our bodies, reproduction, death, dying. The history of eugenics is really a part of that history and it is filled with laws – coerced reproductive sterilization, marriage restrictions based on so-called “fitness,” etc. So it's a perfect union of my background and my newfound love. 

C.'s book list on how eugenics came to Canada

Why did C. love this book?

This book should be made into a movie! Yes, it is written by two legal historians and yes, it is about a court case, but it reads like a thriller. Great characters, twists and turns in the plot, prime ministers, feisty ladies, the whole nine yards. It is the story of how a British court decided that women were “persons” and thus could be appointed to the Canadian Senate. At the time, only certain “persons” were eligible and only men were considered “persons.” It is not about eugenics, but the events take place around 1929 and the authors do a great job of explaining what Canadian society was like then. This helps us appreciate why the ground was so fertile for eugenic ideas and why women like the “persons” involved in the story were also eugenicists.

By Robert J. Sharpe, Patricia I. McMahon,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Persons Case as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

On 18 October 1929, John Sankey, England's reform-minded Lord Chancellor, ruled in the Persons case that women were eligible for appointment to Canada's Senate. Initiated by Edmonton judge Emily Murphy and four other activist women, the Persons case challenged the exclusion of women from Canada's upper house and the idea that the meaning of the constitution could not change with time. The Persons Case considers the case in its political and social context and examines the lives of the key players: Emily Murphy, Nellie McClung, and the other members of the "famous five," the politicians who opposed the appointment of…


This Other Eden

By Paul Harding,

Book cover of This Other Eden: A Novel

Randy Kraft Author Of Off Season

From Randy's 3 favorite reads in 2023.

Who am I?

Author Introspective Observant Bookish Friendly

Randy's 3 favorite reads in 2023

Why did Randy love this book?

The story at the heart of this novel is based on an island off the coast of Maine that was settled in the mid-1800s by former slaves, some with native American DNA. There, they built a self-contained community without conflict until eugenicists and developers took over.

They were evicted, their homes burned, the dead exhumed and trashed, and several were committed to an asylum for supposedly feeble-minded. The story is, of course, disturbing; however, it is a fascinating anthropological journey, questioning the meaning of family and community and what it means to survive against the odds.

Another master class in superlative writing – the opening scene alone, describing a storm that batters the island, is reason enough to read Harding’s pitch-perfect prose.

No wonder the novel has been short-listed for both the Booker Prize and the National Book Award. Diaz, too, inspires me. 

By Paul Harding,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked This Other Eden as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In 1792, formerly enslaved Benjamin Honey and his Irish wife, Patience, discover an island where they can make a life together. Over a century later, the Honeys' descendants and a diverse group of neighbors are desperately poor, isolated, and often hungry, but nevertheless protected from the hostility awaiting them on the mainland.

During the tumultuous summer of 1912, Matthew Diamond, a retired, idealistic but prejudiced schoolteacher-turned-missionary, disrupts the community's fragile balance through his efforts to educate its children. His presence attracts the attention of authorities on the mainland who, under the influence of the eugenics-thinking popular among progressives of the…


Illiberal Reformers

By Thomas C. Leonard,

Book cover of Illiberal Reformers: Race, Eugenics, and American Economics in the Progressive Era

Malcolm Rutherford Author Of The Institutionalist Movement in American Economics, 1918-1947: Science and Social Control

From the list on the economic mind in America from 1880 to 1960.

Who am I?

When I was contemplating a topic for my PhD thesis, it struck me powerfully that American economics was severely under-studied, and that this applied even more so to those associated with “American institutional economics.” My research soon indicated to me that the literature that did exist was lacking in coverage and badly misleading. During my research in archives, I uncovered some real gems—just one example was the archives of the Robert Bookings Graduate School, an institution largely forgotten, but famous at the time. This was exciting and inspired me to continue on to provide a major re-evaluation of American economics in the interwar period.    

Malcolm's book list on the economic mind in America from 1880 to 1960

Why did Malcolm love this book?

Mary Furner’s book presents what is the common view of progressives as liberal reformers, but there is another side to progressive social science that is less liberal. 

The progressive era social science literature is replete with racism and with arguments about racial and other forms of inferiority derived from eugenics.

The vast amount of immigration from Southern and Eastern Europe gave rise to concerns about the undermining of American standards, both biological and economic, including theories of “race suicide.” 

Leonard’s book has generated a great deal of discussion, and while there is no doubt that many progressives displayed eugenic and racist ideas, it needs to be stressed that such views were not limited to progressives, but included many of those with conservative and even free-market views in other areas.     

By Thomas C. Leonard,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Illiberal Reformers as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In Illiberal Reformers, Thomas Leonard reexamines the economic progressives whose ideas and reform agenda underwrote the Progressive Era dismantling of laissez-faire and the creation of the regulatory welfare state, which, they believed, would humanize and rationalize industrial capitalism. But not for all. Academic social scientists such as Richard T. Ely, John R. Commons, and Edward A. Ross, together with their reform allies in social work, charity, journalism, and law, played a pivotal role in establishing minimum-wage and maximum-hours laws, workmen's compensation, antitrust regulation, and other hallmarks of the regulatory welfare state. But even as they offered uplift to some, economic…


Killing the Black Body

By Dorothy Roberts,

Book cover of Killing the Black Body: Race, Reproduction, and the Meaning of Liberty

Ann W. Duncan Author Of Sacred Pregnancy: Birth, Motherhood, and the Quest for Spiritual Community

From the list on exploring the spirituality of pregnancy and birth.

Who am I?

I became a mother while a graduate student. Bombarded by societal expectations and advice on pregnancy, childbirth, and motherhood, I quickly combined this life experience with my scholarly interests and wrote a dissertation on Christian women and childbirth. I later began to explore expressions of religion and spirituality outside of traditional religion – a topic that found expression in my book Sacred Pregnancy. I am a professor of American Studies and Religion at Goucher College in Baltimore, MD and have a Ph.D. in Religious Studies from the University of Virginia. I hope you enjoy these books as much as I have!

Ann's book list on exploring the spirituality of pregnancy and birth

Why did Ann love this book?

My book and other books profiled here point to the potential of pregnancy, birth, and motherhood as an opportunity for ritual and meaning making and as lightning rods for societal expectations and norms.

In this powerful book, Roberts takes on the ways in which these opportunities are inequitably available in the United States. With maternal mortality among black women alarmingly high, this book demonstrates that the struggle for reproductive justice must be part and parcel of any rethinking of how we experience and support childbirth in the United States.

By Dorothy Roberts,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Killing the Black Body as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Killing the Black Body remains a rallying cry for education, awareness, and action on extending reproductive justice to all women. It is as crucial as ever, even two decades after its original publication.
 
"A must-read for all those who claim to care about racial and gender justice in America." —Michelle Alexander, author of The New Jim Crow
 
In 1997, this groundbreaking book made a powerful entrance into the national conversation on race. In a media landscape dominated by racially biased images of welfare queens and crack babies, Killing the Black Body exposed America’s systemic abuse of Black women’s bodies. From…


Book cover of Unnatural Nature of Science

Peter Macinnis Author Of Mr Darwin's Incredible Shrinking World

From the list on history and science.

Who am I?

A lot of the books I write are about science or history, and Mr Darwin just happened to be about both: it was a history of science, as science was in 1859. People say the world changed after Darwin published, The Origin of Species in 1859, but Origin was a symptom not a cause. My book is a history of science that looks at how the world was changing (and shrinking) in the year 1859, as new specimens, new materials, new technologies, and new ideas came into play.

Peter's book list on history and science

Why did Peter love this book?

I spend a lot of my time trying to clarify the bilge poured out by the merchants of fake science: the flat-earthers, creationists, and climate deniers mainly, but also medical quacks and other fruitloops who throw out alternative science, stuff which is like normal science, with one small exception. I was already fighting these fights when Wolpert came to Sydney, and I chaired a lecture he gave. He showed us where the problem lay in combatting idiocy: the idiots depend on naïve and naked intuition.

Invariably, these unhinged pseudo-realities rely on a simple misreading of scientific lore, and Lewis explained that this is because a great deal of science is counter-intuitive. We can’t see evolution happening, the world looks flat, the sun appears to go around us, and common sense says that kinetic energy must be proportional to velocity, not it's square. Enter the simpleton who slept through a key…

By Lewis Wolpert,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Unnatural Nature of Science as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

How is it that nobody--except maybe scientists--sees science for what it is? In this entertaining and provocative book, Lewis Wolpert draws on the entire history of science, from Thales of Miletus to Watson and Crick, from the study of eugenics to the discovery of the double helix. The result is a scientist's view of the culture of science, authoritative and informed and at the same time mercifully accessible to those who find cohabiting with this culture a puzzling experience. Science is arguably the defining feature of our age. For anyone who hopes to understand its nature, this lively and thoughtful…


The Black Stork

By Martin S. Pernick,

Book cover of The Black Stork: Eugenics and the Death of Defective Babies in American Medicine and Motion Pictures Since 1915

C. Elizabeth Koester Author Of In the Public Good: Eugenics and Law in Ontario

From the list on how eugenics came to Canada.

Who am I?

I'm a lapsed lawyer who decided as an empty-nest project to take a few history of medicine courses just for fun. One thing led to another and I found myself with a PhD and a book about eugenics and law to my name. I love the history of medicine. It connects us right back to the cavemen who worried about the same things we worry about today – illness, injury, our bodies, reproduction, death, dying. The history of eugenics is really a part of that history and it is filled with laws – coerced reproductive sterilization, marriage restrictions based on so-called “fitness,” etc. So it's a perfect union of my background and my newfound love. 

C.'s book list on how eugenics came to Canada

Why did C. love this book?

This is a book about how eugenic ideas were popularized in early movies. It focuses on one particular movie called The Black Stork which tells the true – and shocking – story of Harry Haiselden, a Chicago physician who was accused of allowing the deaths of so-called “defective” babies in the late 1910s. The book also includes fascinating background about the movie industry at the time, as well as about Pernick’s hunt for a copy of this old film. While it is not about Canada, it nevertheless really helps us understand the way eugenic ideas came before the public and their important relationship to pop culture. It is also a very engaging read which introduced me to the fun of learning about old movies.

By Martin S. Pernick,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Black Stork as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In the late 1910s Dr. Harry J. Haiselden, a prominent Chicago surgeon, electrified the nation by allowing the deaths of at least six infants he diagnosed as "defectives". Seeking to publicize his efforts to eliminate the "unfit", he displayed the dying infants to journalists, wrote about them for the Hearst newspapers, and starred in a feature film about his crusade. Prominent Americans from Clarence Darrow to Helen Keller rallied to his support.
The Black Stork tells this startling story, based on newly-rediscovered sources and long-lost motion pictures, in order to illuminate many broader controversies. The books shows how efforts to…


The Straight State

By Margot Canaday,

Book cover of The Straight State: Sexuality and Citizenship in Twentieth-Century America

Marian Lindberg Author Of Scandal on Plum Island: A Commander Becomes the Accused

From the list on power, gender politics, and stereotypes in America.

Who am I?

Based on my experiences as a single parent and worker in traditionally male fields (journalism and law, back when newsrooms and law firms resembled men's clubs), I believe that each person contains both “feminine” and “masculine” behaviors and feelings. Yet socially constructed gender norms discourage people from exhibiting this full range of being. Ben Koehler’s troubling and tragic story presented a way to explore the origins of 20th-century American gender norms while trying to solve the mystery of Ben’s guilt or innocence. A bonus was the opportunity to write about Plum Island, an environmental treasure with a fascinating history that many people, including myself, are seeking to preserve and open to the public.

Marian's book list on power, gender politics, and stereotypes in America

Why did Marian love this book?

Men, did you know that too little body hair or too much talkativeness could keep you from being admitted to the United States in the early 1900s? The Straight State will have readers shaking their heads at the outrageous presumptions that immigration inspectors applied to keep “degenerates” out of the country. This was the first time that federal officials had both the interest and power to create policies against homosexuality, and they were crassly influenced by the eugenics movement and hostility to the poor. Canaday also shows how early welfare policies perpetuated gender stereotypes and discrimination against sexual “deviants,” favoring the married over the single. I learned so much! 

By Margot Canaday,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked The Straight State as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The Straight State is the most expansive study of the federal regulation of homosexuality yet written. Unearthing startling new evidence from the National Archives, Margot Canaday shows how the state systematically came to penalize homosexuality, giving rise to a regime of second-class citizenship that sexual minorities still live under today. Canaday looks at three key arenas of government control--immigration, the military, and welfare--and demonstrates how federal enforcement of sexual norms emerged with the rise of the modern bureaucratic state. She begins at the turn of the twentieth century when the state first stumbled upon evidence of sex and gender nonconformity,…


Y

By Brian K. Vaughan, Pia Guerra (illustrator), Jose Marzan Jr. (arist)

Book cover of Y: The Last Man

Jean Louise Author Of Waking Fire

From the list on transporting you to another time and place.

Who am I?

I believe worldbuilding is as important as realistic dialogue, engaging characters, and a well-paced plot. Worldbuilding is a key component of stories that take place in a contemporary high school, in the court of Henry VIII, or in some far-off land that only exists in the author’s imagination. I worldbuild in layers: 1. What happens in the characters’ daily lives; 2. Environment: religion, culture, social hierarchies, setting; and 3. Relevant historical events/figures/details. Worlds should be so well thought out that there’s no room for the reader to be distracted or confused. When the worldbuilding is good, you’ll be so engrossed that the only distraction you’ll have is wondering what happens next.

Jean's book list on transporting you to another time and place

Why did Jean love this book?

Y takes place on 20th-century Earth, but with a twist: all men have been exterminated by a mysterious virus except one. You’d think setting the story on Earth in the current time period would be easy, but I think that kind of setting is even harder because we know what that world should feel like and if things deviate, we’ll be quick to notice. And yet, although the premise of Y has not happened on Earth, the worldbuilding makes it plausible that it could. Y dives into the past and jumps into the future, it travels from one end of the U.S. to the other, it tangles international conspiracies with a lovelorn hero and a monkey that won’t stop flinging its poop—and you accept it because the foundation—the worldbuilding—is secure.

By Brian K. Vaughan, Pia Guerra (illustrator), Jose Marzan Jr. (arist)

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Y as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Written by Brian K. Vaughan Art by Pia Guerra & Jose Marzan, Jr. Cover by Massimo Carnevale The first ten issues of the award-winning series written by Brian K. Vaughan (EX MACHINA, Lost) are collected in an oversized hardcover with a new cover! Don't miss the amazing SF epic that Stephen King called "The best graphic novel I've ever read." Advance-solicited; on sale October 15 * 256 pg, FC, $29.99 US 7.0625" x 10.875" * MATURE READERS


Triplanetary

By E.E. Smith,

Book cover of Triplanetary

Kyt Wright Author Of Sirkkusaga

From the list on science fiction and fantasy series that influenced me.

Who am I?

I was born in 1957, the year the Space Race started when the USSR launched its first satellite and grew up with astronauts and cosmonauts on the TV. Yuri Gagarin and Gordon Cooper were familiar names to me as a child but I only really started to take notice as the Apollo programme ramped up. Science fiction influenced me at an very early age with books like Kemlo and Tom Swift and, having pestered my English teacher with my embryonic works decided at seventeen to write my own novel. Some years later and just short of sixty I finally wrote Sirkkusaga and now have seven published works out there - as well as two anthologies.

Kyt's book list on science fiction and fantasy series that influenced me

Why did Kyt love this book?

I read these as a young teenager and loved them, they’re star-spanning, rip-roaring tales of civilisations pitted against each other across the universe. Triplanetary is the first book of the Lensman series but we have to wait until book two; First Lensman, for the arrival of the titular characters.

The good guys (Hooray! Including Earth, of course) have an advantage in that certain of them have been selected by the Arisians to wear a device called the Lens - which allows them to harness their mental powers against the Boskonians (the bad guys - boo!), who are assisted by the evil Eddorians.

It’s all good fun, and I admit to the stories having influenced me slightly.

By E.E. Smith,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Triplanetary as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Triplanetary is a space opera by E. E. Smith. This is the original version first serialized in Amazing Stories magazine in 1934. Smith later reworked the story into the first of two Lensman prequels which was then published in 1948. Triplanetary covers an eons-long eugenics project of the super-intelligences of the Arisians an alien race breeding two genetic lines to become the ultimate weapon in their cosmic war with the Eddore.


Book cover of No One Cares about Crazy People: My Family and the Heartbreak of Mental Illness in America

JoEllen Notte Author Of In It Together: Navigating Depression with Partners, Friends, and Family

From the list on helping you talk about mental health.

Who am I?

According to my mother, my first words were, “what’s that?” and I believe that’s indicative of the level of curiosity with which I try to approach life. That curiosity led me to write books about how we can better love ourselves and each other when depression is gumming up the works. Talking about mental illness is hard, and I aim to make it easier. I’m not a doctor or therapist. I am best described as a “sex writer with a theatre degree” and I like to say my work focuses on sex, mental health, and how none of us are broken.  

JoEllen's book list on helping you talk about mental health

Why did JoEllen love this book?

It can be incredibly frustrating to try to talk about how broken the mental healthcare system is (especially in the United States). Most people have no frame of reference for it.

Similarly the impact mental illness can have on family and loved ones is, for many, uncharted territory. Enter No One Care About Crazy People.

Powers expertly weaves the history of mental healthcare in America together with the story of his family’s battles with schizophrenia. The result is a heartbreaking and beautiful and horrifying and eye-opening book that leaves you better equipped to have those frustrating conversations. 

I’m not going to lie to you, this is a hard one to read. It hurts. That said, it is one of my all-time favorite books.

By Ron Powers,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked No One Cares about Crazy People as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

"Extraordinary and courageous . . . No doubt if everyone were to read this book, the world would change."---New York Times Book Review

New York Times-bestselling author Ron Powers' critically acclaimed narrative of the social history of mental illness in America paired with the deeply personal story of his two sons' battles with schizophrenia.

From the centuries of torture of "lunatiks" at Bedlam Asylum to the infamous eugenics era to the follies of the anti-psychiatry movement to the current landscape in which too many families struggle alone to manage afflicted love ones, Powers limns our fears and myths about mental…


Only The Beautiful

By Susan Meissner,

Book cover of Only The Beautiful

Linda Rosen Author Of The Emerald Necklace

From Linda's 3 favorite reads in 2023.

Who am I?

Author Novelist Swimmer Public Speaker Reader Lover of gardens

Linda's 3 favorite reads in 2023

Why did Linda love this book?

This is another gripping story by Susan Meissner. In this novel, she brings us a piece of women’s history not often spoken of, though so important to remember, with characters alive on the page.

I listened to this captivating story on audio and kept my earbuds in while walking, gardening, cooking, dressing – actually, I never wanted to take them out.

I love a book that has strong, determined female characters and one that brings up issues to discuss. This novel has it all.

By Susan Meissner,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked Only The Beautiful as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A Best Historical Fiction of Spring Pick by Amazon, PopSugar, AARP, and BookBub!

A heartrending story about a young mother’s fight to keep her daughter, and the terrible injustice that tears them apart, by the USA Today bestselling author of The Nature of Fragile Things and The Last Year of the War.
 
California, 1938—When she loses her parents in an accident, sixteen-year-old Rosanne is taken in by the owners of the vineyard where she has lived her whole life as the vinedresser’s daughter. She moves into Celine and Truman Calvert’s spacious house with a secret, however—Rosie sees colors when she…


The Genetic Lottery

By Kathryn Paige Harden,

Book cover of The Genetic Lottery: Why DNA Matters for Social Equality

Rob Brooks Author Of Artificial Intimacy: Virtual Friends, Digital Lovers, and Algorithmic Matchmakers

From the list on big-picture takes on human behaviour.

Who am I?

I’m a scientist who studies the evolutionary tussle between cooperation and conflict that makes sex so infernally complicated. I started out by studying small animals, but the last decade or so have seen an increasing focus on humans. At the same time I’ve been intent on sharing what I learn with curious audiences on television, radio, and in print. I lead a program at my university that introduced me to some amazing technology researchers, from engineers in AI and robotics to lawyers who work on privacy. That’s when I realized the value of evolutionary knowledge in understating the fast-paced technological revolution we are currently living through.

Rob's book list on big-picture takes on human behaviour

Why did Rob love this book?

This begins as an exceptional introduction to genetics and the very latest technological and statistical methods. What sets this book apart, however, is the understanding of what genetics and inheritance mean, which took my breath away. 

For more than a century, the crusty old nature-nurture false dichotomy has dominated human understanding of inheritance and - especially - the genetics of behavior. Despite many valiant attempts, genetics has seldom managed to escape the legacy of eugenics and the towering figures of Galton, Pearson and Fisher. Harden provides a refreshing, coherent, powerful case that liberates genetic knowledge from eugenics, and places a modern understanding of genetics and what she calls ‘genetic luck’ at the centre of any program to improve society and achieve equality.

Both geneticists and those who think that only environmental (nurture-based) or technological solutions can improve societies have a lot to learn from this book. Hopefully, it will finally…

By Kathryn Paige Harden,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Genetic Lottery as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A provocative and timely case for how the science of genetics can help create a more just and equal society

In recent years, scientists like Kathryn Paige Harden have shown that DNA makes us different, in our personalities and in our health-and in ways that matter for educational and economic success in our current society.

In The Genetic Lottery, Harden introduces readers to the latest genetic science, dismantling dangerous ideas about racial superiority and challenging us to grapple with what equality really means in a world where people are born different. Weaving together personal stories with scientific evidence, Harden shows…


Horses in Society

By Margaret E. Derry,

Book cover of Horses in Society: A Story of Animal Breeding and Marketing Culture, 1800-1920

Ann Greene Author Of Horses at Work: Harnessing Power in Industrial America

From the list on horses in history.

Who am I?

Growing up in rural Wisconsin, I was crazy about both horses and books, so it’s not surprising that in grad school I became a horse historian. I found that writing about work horses linked my love of horses with my interests in technology and nature. The books I’ve chosen show how humans and horses shaped each other, society, the environment, and built the modern world. I hope readers browse (graze?) these books at their leisure and pleasure.

Ann's book list on horses in history

Why did Ann love this book?

This book traces the connections between horse breeding, biological science, international commerce, and foreign relations in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Derry focuses on three large topics: the breeding of large draft horses, international military horse markets, and government breeding programs. The horse market was essentially a warhorse market. I love how this book shows that looking at something like horse breeding leads to a better understanding of things like political economy and foreign relations. Breeding beliefs and practices reveal a lot about society and culture, and the military material is fascinating. I also recommend the chapter on horse culture that looks at literature and painting (the author is herself an accomplished painter).

By Margaret E. Derry,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Horses in Society as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Before crude oil and the combustion engine, the industrialized world relied on a different kind of power - the power of the horse. Horses in Society is the story of horse production in the United States, Britain, and Canada at the height of the species' usefulness, the late nineteenth and early twentieth-century. Margaret E. Derry shows how horse breeding practices used during this period to heighten the value of the animals in the marketplace incorporated a intriguing cross section of influences, including Mendelism, eugenics, and Darwinism. Derry elucidates the increasingly complex horse world by looking at the international trade in…


Keeping America Sane

By Ian Robert Dowbiggin,

Book cover of Keeping America Sane: Psychiatry and Eugenics in the United States and Canada, 1880 1940

C. Elizabeth Koester Author Of In the Public Good: Eugenics and Law in Ontario

From the list on how eugenics came to Canada.

Who am I?

I'm a lapsed lawyer who decided as an empty-nest project to take a few history of medicine courses just for fun. One thing led to another and I found myself with a PhD and a book about eugenics and law to my name. I love the history of medicine. It connects us right back to the cavemen who worried about the same things we worry about today – illness, injury, our bodies, reproduction, death, dying. The history of eugenics is really a part of that history and it is filled with laws – coerced reproductive sterilization, marriage restrictions based on so-called “fitness,” etc. So it's a perfect union of my background and my newfound love. 

C.'s book list on how eugenics came to Canada

Why did C. love this book?

It is important when trying to understand eugenics in Canada to compare how it played out in this country to its trajectory elsewhere. This helps us understand what the commonalities were in the ideas and also to see how and where specific environments resulted in local incarnations of these ideas. Dowbiggin does this for us with great insight by writing comparatively about psychiatry and eugenics in Canada and the U.S. I knew that psychiatrists had enthusiastically taken up the eugenic cause but this book explains really well how and why this happened on both sides of the border, showing us that the profession’s general support for eugenics was not necessarily (or only) because of the ideas themselves, but for professional and status-building reasons.

By Ian Robert Dowbiggin,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Keeping America Sane as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

What would bring a physician to conclude that sterilization is appropriate treatment for the mentally ill and mentally handicapped? Using archival sources, Ian Robert Dowbiggin documents the involvement of both American and Canadian psychiatrists in the eugenics movement of the early twentieth century. He explains why professional men and women committed to helping those less fortunate than themselves arrived at such morally and intellectually dubious conclusions.

Psychiatrists at the end of the nineteenth century felt professionally vulnerable, Dowbiggin explains, because they were under intense pressure from state and provincial governments and from other physicians to reform their specialty. Eugenic ideas,…