Nicole Recommends

Everything Is Tuberculosis

The History and Persistence of Our Deadliest Infection

By: John Green
Narrated by: John Green
Length: 5 hours 35 minutes

“As a lifelong John Green enjoyer, this book is no exception. If you enjoyed his Anthropocene Reviewed, this is of that same vein with a more detailed approach to a topic he is extremely interested in. It’s no secret Green cares about his writing and what he learns through that process, and this is no exception. With personal anecdotes,... Read more

The Impostor Heiress

Cassie Chadwick, the Greatest Grifter of the Gilded Age

By: Annie Reed
Narrated by: Kate Udall
Length: 9 hours 51 minutes

“This book was extremely entertaining. About halfway through I just couldn't stop listening and I stayed up late to finish it! I’m not sure that’s ever happened to me with a non-fiction book. I highly recommend this to true crime fans looking for something different, as well as to fans of Gilded Age history. Even while I was horrified by Cassie... Read more

The Wager

A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder

By: David Grann
Narrated by: Dion Graham & David Grann
Length: 8 hours 28 minutes

“I loved this nautical true story of mutiny on the high seas. The men lived by such a strict code. What IS to be done when the captain loses the confidence and respect of some of his crew? In a culture and atmosphere where your RANK determines whether your account of events is to be read, let alone believed, it makes for a very interesting... Read more

The Art Thief

A True Story of Love, Crime, and a Dangerous Obsession

By: Michael Finkel
Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini & Michael Finkel
Length: 5 hours 39 minutes

“I was there - in the room, jaw agape, with the most successful art thief in history as he did the deed, time and time again. In The Art Thief: A True Story of Love, Crime and a Dangerous Obsession, author Michael Finkel describes in astounding detail how Stâephane Breitwieser made off with artworks valued in the billions of dollars. Finkel's... Read more

The Hawk's Way

Encounters with Fierce Beauty

By: Sy Montgomery
Narrated by: Sy Montgomery
Length: 1 hour 58 minutes

“The brilliant Sy Montgomery (The Soul of an Octopus) focuses her keen eye and powers of observation on raptors, and it is gripping (pardon the pun)! Montgomery writes with passion and beauty, bringing nature to life with uncommon skill. Like the best non-fiction writers, she weaves her topic and subjectivity seamlessly together, to form a small... Read more

How to Keep House While Drowning

A Gentle Approach to Cleaning and Organizing

By: KC Davis
Narrated by: KC Davis & Dr. Raquel Martin
Length: 3 hours 3 minutes

“Like a good podcast that you wish you could always return to and underline, this audiobook is a perfect morale boost. Davis gives practical advice and language around what normally feels insurmountable. Read more

Off the Edge

Flat Earthers, Conspiracy Culture, and Why People Will Believe Anything

By: Kelly Weill
Narrated by: Xe Sands
Length: 7 hours 13 minutes

“A fascinating look at the origins of the flat earth conspiracy theory, and how it paved the way for the many other conspiracy theories that followed. It goes quickly and you're going to want to listen to it a couple times because you will find yourself exclaiming at the correlation to current events every few minutes. Xe punctuates this primer... Read more

Creativity

A Short and Cheerful Guide   

By: John Cleese
Narrated by: John Cleese
Length: 59 minutes

The legendary comedian, actor, and writer of Monty Python, Fawlty Towers, and A Fish Called Wanda fame shares his key ideas about creativity: that it’s a learnable, improvable skill.

“Many people have written about creativity, but although they were very, very clever, they weren't actually creative. I like to think I'm writing about it from the... Read more

Four Thousand Weeks

Time Management for Mortals

By: Oliver Burkeman
Narrated by: Oliver Burkeman
Length: 6 hours 13 minutes

“This little philosophical gem is my top non-fiction recommendation for this holiday season. What a gift, to give up on getting everything done, and focus on the things that really matter. The audiobook is a joy to listen to; the words seemed to mean even more as I listened, inspired. Read more

The Anthropocene Reviewed

Essays on a Human-Centered Planet

By: John Green
Narrated by: John Green
Length: 10 hours 42 minutes

“The sort of book that's a cure for misanthropy; that inspires you to write and so speak to what sorts of things matter to you, whether that's scratch 'n sniff stickers or Auld Lang Syne. Green will remind you of the capacity for love and wonder in the world around you. I give "The Anthropocene Reviewed" five stars. Read more

Long Time Coming

Reckoning with Race in America

By: Michael Eric Dyson
Narrated by: Michael Eric Dyson
Length: 4 hours 46 minutes

“What a nuanced, thoughtful, raw book. Written in letters to Black folks murdered in America over the past decade, these observations on how the intersections of history and culture create our world are stunning. (The section "Seeing Red" may be one of the strongest chapters I've read in a nonfiction book recently.) Fantastic on audio! Read more

Intimations

Six Essays

By: Zadie Smith
Narrated by: Zadie Smith
Length: 1 hour 50 minutes

“Listened to the audiobook of Intimations a full year after COVID-19 began, on the eve of George Floyd's murderer being found responsible, and it is just as powerful now as it would have been at the beginning of the pandemic. Stunning and worth listening to several times. Read more

Why Fish Don't Exist

A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life

By: Lulu Miller
Narrated by: Lulu Miller
Length: 4 hours 55 minutes

“Half memoir, half biography, Lulu Miller's examination of David Starr Jordan and the lies we tell ourselves to keep going is phenomenal. Nuanced and unputdownable. (And especially great on audio!) Read more

Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You

A Remix of the National Book Award-winning Stamped from the Beginning

By: Jason Reynolds & Ibram X. Kendi
Narrated by: Jason Reynolds
Length: 4 hours 11 minutes

“I will recommend this book over and over again because it is that amazing. I especially love the young adult adaptation because the information is so easy to absorb. The book is nonfiction but feels like a story is being told because of the incredible writing style. What's really special is that Ibram X. Kendi, one of the authors, narrates the... Read more

My Life with the Chimpanzees

By: Jane Goodall
Narrated by: Jane Goodall
Length: 3 hours 43 minutes

For the first time ever unabridged and read by the author, this audiobook is a testimony of true humanity-filled with adventure, life lessons and hope for our world.
From the time she was a girl, Jane Goodall dreamed of a life spent working with animals. Finally she had her wish. When she was twenty-six years old, she ventured into the forests of... Read more

She Came to Slay

The Life and Times of Harriet Tubman

By: Erica Armstrong Dunbar
Narrated by: Robin Miles & Erica Armstrong Dunbar
Length: 3 hours 52 minutes

“"She Came to Slay" is a journey into a major historical figure that we all "know", but Erica Armstrong Dunbar gives us so much more. For the first time ever, Harriet Tubman, is a fully fleshed out person with a complicated past, tragic life events, and we get to see all of those things that fueled her passionate mission with the Underground... Read more