Best Adult Nonfiction Read in 2020

Tracing the Desire Line by Melissa Matthewson (2019). Very interesting, poetic memoir about self and marriage. I flagged so many beautiful, thought-provoking sections to go back to. I read this in May when the "novelty" of quarantine had worn off. I was feeling kind of isolated, combing through past relationships to figure out what I might want in the future. I read this book over several nights, soaking in a hot bath with a waterproof notepad next to me. The gorgeous language let my imagination run free so I'd have to scribble ideas to continue later in my own writing. I'm looking forward to re-reading this one in the future, in a different life situation, and see what I get from it then.

The Incredible Shrinking Woman by Athena Dixon (2020). This essay collection is amazing. You can tell Athena Dixon has a background in poetry because the language is so beautiful, while still being so raw and matter-of-fact. So many of these pieces made me feel seen and understood. I know this is a collection I'll come back to time and time again. This is one of the first books I've read as an "adult" that makes me think "Oh, so the stuff I write can find a home." Not that I'm comparing my writing to Dixon's, but it's nice to know that such exploratory, experimental formats can find a place and be appreciated by readers instead of molded into something more mainstream.

But Enough About Me by Jancee Dunn (2006). I love Jancee Dunn from Rolling Stone but somehow didn’t know about her books. I absolutely loved this one - from the (old, but still entertaining) celebrity gossip to her humorous life stories. It was kind of an escape read and made me want to read more by Dunn.

Sex Object by Jessica Valenti (2016). I love this book because it helps me realize that stuff like... “this” happens to everyone, and it doesn’t have to be rape or assault to be wrong. This book made me feel understood and empowered but also just angry. Definitely want to read more by Valenti; I love her style.

Is This Anything? by Jerry Seinfeld (2020). Seinfeld has been my favorite show forever, and I’ve seen Jerry’s standup shows a few times (in person and recorded specials). I’ve read SeinLanguage. Therefore some of the jokes in this book were repeats, but this was still one of the best books I’ve read this year. I love how they were arranged chronologically, and how you can see Seinfeld’s thought progression in a lot of the jokes (and of course over time). A lot of jokes had me laughing out loud.

Pretty Funny for a Girl by Rebecca Elliot

Thanks to @kidlitexchange and @peachtreepublishing for a review copy of Pretty Funny for a Girl by @rebecca_elliot_author, which is out TODAY! Grab a copy if you’re ready to kick back with a hilarious YA novel.

Haylah has always been a huge comedy nerd. She watches stand-up every night before bed, and writes down anything funny she can think of. She’s a pro at laughing off anyone who tries to put her down, which happens a LOT because Haylah is fat. So fat, everyone (even her friends) calls her Pig. But Haylah laughs it off and channels all her energy into her comedy. When Leo, a student a few years ahead of her, performs a stand-up routine in the school’s talent show, Haylah is smitten. She starts slipping funny notes into Leo’s locker, and is thrilled to be writing his jokes. Except Leo doesn’t acknowledge her in the halls at school, because he doesn’t want anyone to know he doesn’t write his own jokes. Haylah’s friends think she’s being taken advantage of, but Haylah just wants to write comedy! And kiss the boy, but hey, she doesn’t have to admit that part.

This was a quick, funny read that I really enjoyed. As something of a comedy nerd myself, I especially loved that Elliot actually wrote the stand-up bits in the book! One thing I wasn’t completely sold on was Haylah’s body image - she spends the first ¾ of the book focused on her weight, and everything implies that she is pretty big. I am ALL. FOR. THIS. I love seeing fat girls own it in YA books - I think this is so important for teens. But in the last ¼ of the book, it’s almost like Haylah’s weight melts off. She starts being described as “curvy” where the words previously used definitely implied she was bigger than that. I can understand her focusing more on a comedy show than her weight, but it was such a major part of the book that it seems disingenuous to just drop it like that. As an adult woman who still struggles with body image, I don’t buy that a teen would just shrug it off all of a sudden after it being such a major part of her life - and her comedy act! So one small strike against the overall story for me, but it was a funny book and I absolutely loved that a bigger girl who loves being funny is being spotlighted in a YA book - I wish I had this when I was younger!

Strategic Sticker Placement

Well then.

Horne Section

When I visited my friend in England in 2011, she made sure to make me even more obsessed with British comedy (and comedy in general) by introducing me to Tim Minchin's work. She searched to see if he had a show in the area while I was there, and - HE DID! Kind of... he was going to be one of three guests at the Horne Section's show. Neither of us knew who they were, but wanted to see Tim, so we got tickets.

The Horne Section cracked us up. They are a band focused on musical comedy, but their banter was so deadpan that I couldn't stop laughing. Alex Horne is very matter-of-fact and everything he says cracks me up. Later that night I tweeted to them about coming to America and even laughed at his reply.

I found Alex Horne's books online not long after I got back to the states, and ordered them right away. And... haven't read them. Isn't that awful?! I don't know why I haven't read them yet, but I think I'm now giving myself the challenge of reading them before May - if I can handle it on top of these daily posts!

To inspire me to read these, I've been listening to the Horne Section podcast. It's just as hilarious as I remember the live show being. Check it out if you love comedy, musical comedy, British accents... well, just check it out!