New and Upcoming Nonfiction (April 2022)

Click on the title of the book to place a hold!

Eitan Eats the World: A Cookbook – Eitan Berneth

Every time 20-year-old Eitan Bernath tastes something, he immediately thinks, “How can I make this myself?” Eitan Eats the World contains 85 fresh comfort food recipes highlighting the enthusiasm, creativity, and foolproof techniques of the cooking prodigy beloved from TikTok to ‘The Drew Barrymore Show’.

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In the Margins: On the Pleasures of Reading and Writing – Elena Ferrante

In 2020, Claire Luchette in O, The Oprah Magazine described the beloved Italian novelist Elena Ferrante as “an oracle among authors.” Here, in these four crisp essays, Ferrante offers a rare look at the origins of her literary powers. She writes about her influences, her struggles, and her formation as both a reader and a writer; she describes the perils of “bad language” and suggests ways in which it has long excluded women’s truth; she proposes a choral fusion of feminine talent as she brilliantly discourses on the work of Emily Dickinson, Gertrude Stein, Ingeborg Bachmann, and many others.

Here is a subtle yet candid book by “one of the great novelists of our time” about adventures in literature, both in and out of the margins. 

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Immoral, Indecent, and Scurrilous – Gerald Hannon

When 18-year-old Gerald Hannon left his small mining community in Marathon, Ontario, to attend the University of Toronto, he never would have predicted he’d become part of LGBTQ+ history. Almost 60 years later, he reflects on the major moments in his career as a journalist and LGBTQ+ activist. From the charges of transmitting immoral, indecent and scurrilous literature laid against him and his colleagues at The Body Politic to his dismissal from his teaching post at Ryerson University for being a sex worker, this memoir candidly chronicles Hannon’s life as an unrepentant sex radical. 

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I Was Never Here: My True Canadian Spy Story of Coffees, Code Names, and Covert Operations in the Age of Terrorism – Andrew Kirsch

Andrew Kirsch didn’t grow up watching spy movies, or dreaming about being a real-life James Bond. He was hardly aware that Canada even had its own intelligence service—let alone knew what its officers did. But when a terrorist attack occurred near the office of his financial services job, all of a sudden fighting terrorism meant a lot more to him than the markets. Within 18 months he had landed a job with the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS)—where he spent the next decade of his life.

In I Was Never Here, Kirsch (now an in-demand security consultant) spills the secrets of what life as an intelligence officer is really like, and dispels a few myths along the way. With humour, honesty, and candour, Kirsch shares his on-the-ground experience (or as much of it as he’s allowed to) of becoming a member of CSIS: from his vetting and training, to his initial desk job as a policy analyst, to his rise up the ranks to leading covert special operations missions. If you’ve ever wondered whether spies can have real dating lives, how they handle family responsibilities, or how they come up with cover stories or aliases, you’re in luck.

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The Folding Lady: Tools and Tricks for Making the Most of Your Space Room by Room – Sophie Liard

In this illustrated guide, Sophie Liard brings her expertise together and teaches you how to fold all of your household items, from boxers, leggings, and socks to sheets, towels and even napkins and wrapping paper. The Folding Lady shows you that anything is foldable and shares the inner joy that folding brings and offers extra tips on organizing drawers, desks, snack drawers, cosmetics, and more to make life a little easier and more manageable.

Sophie encourages you to take charge of small, simple, and achievable tasks. Sometimes you have to let go of trying to tackle the big stuff and make the most of the little things that can be controlled. The Folding Lady will bring you comfort and help you find solace amid the daily stress. 

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Genius Kitchen: Easy and Delicious Recipes to Make Your Brain Sharp, Body Strong, and Taste Buds Happy – Max Lugavere

Inspired by traditions from around the globe, the 100-plus recipes and stunning photographs in Genius Kitchen feature an international twist, with bold flavors that favor simplicity and quality of ingredients over complexity and quantity. In addition, Max lists the basic, healthy ingredients and tools that are essential for a well-stocked kitchen and pantry, and offers techniques and best practices for healthy cooking and eating well on a budget.

Max wants everyone to be well and enjoy great food–a legacy imparted on him by the tragic health of his mother. Part cookbook, part wellness guide, Genius Kitchen provides key insights that make healthy eating a breeze. Max explains the importance of whole, fresh foods, how various nutrients work together keep you healthy, and how to get fit without counting calories. Breaking down each meal component, Max explains the art and science of nutrition without the dogma, so that you can feel your best every day without sacrificing your love of eating.

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My Grandfather’s Knife: Hidden Stories from the Second World War – Joseph Pearson

A knife, a diary, a recipe book, a stringed instrument and a cotton pouch. Each belonged to an individual who was in their twenties during the Second World War: a fresh-faced prairie boy, a melancholic youth, a capable cook, a musician wounded at the front and a survivor.

Over a cup of tea, try asking your friends what object they’d choose to represent their lives. The enthusiasm of their responses will give you an indication of how well objects anchor sprawling personal histories. Joseph Pearson, a Canadian historian and author, talked to elderly family members, friends, colleagues and acquaintances–people drawn from everyday life–asking them the same question: Is there an object that tells your wartime story? In many cases, he asked the question in reverse: Could he discover the wartime story of a deceased person through an object they once owned?

Through rigorous research and in engaging proseJoseph Pearson illuminates the often-dark history of the 20th century by bringing to life the stories of everyday objects in the hands of everyday people.

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The Power of Regret: How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward – Daniel H. Pink

Everybody has regrets, Daniel H. Pink explains in The Power of Regret. They’re a universal and healthy part of being human. And understanding how regret works can help us make smarter decisions, perform better at work and school, and bring greater meaning to our lives.

Drawing on research in social psychology, neuroscience, and biology, Pink debunks the myth of the “no regrets” philosophy of life. And using the largest sampling of American attitudes about regret ever conducted as well as his own World Regret Survey–which has collected regrets from more than 15,000 people in 105 countries–he lays out the four core regrets that each of us has. These deep regrets offer compelling insights into how we live and how we can find a better path forward.

As he did in his bestsellers Drive, When, and A Whole New Mind, Pink lays out a dynamic new way of thinking about regret and frames his ideas in ways that are clear, accessible, and pragmatic. Packed with true stories of people’s regrets as well as practical takeaways for reimagining regret as a positive force, The Power of Regret shows how we can live richer, more engaged lives.

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Fame-ish: My Life at the Edge of Stardom – Mary Lynn Rajskub

Becoming fame-ish ain’t easy. Judd Apatow must love you, but never put you in one of his movies. Remember to go drunk to your Legally Blonde 2 audition and make sure Paul Thomas Anderson has your cell phone number. Don’t forget to accidentally kiss Rush Limbaugh in front of paparazzi. It’s all part of the gig. Self-deprecating and sharp, Mary Lynn’s debut collection of essays will have you laughing, cringing, and reevaluating your idea of fame.

Smart, satirical, and relatable, this book gives new meaning to the word “icon” as Mary Lynn navigates showbiz against the backdrop of her own idiosyncrasies. She gives the people what they want: a raucous look at what it’s like to kind of somehow sometimes have a name in Hollywood. Like when she made out with Tom Cruise for forty-five minutes on a couch (with and without tongues!), only to have the scene left on the cutting room floor. Mary Lynn’s Fame-ish is an honest intimate look at sex, relationships, and career. You won’t want to put it down.

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Sacred Medicine: A Doctor’s Quest to Unravel the Mysteries of Healing – Lissa Rankin

In 2007, Lissa Rankin left a promising career in medicine to tend to her own health and well-being. Her search to discover why people really get sick and what truly optimizes health outcomes launched a bestselling book, two television specials, and a revolution in the way we look at mind-body medicine. But so many questions remained for this doctor and skeptic. How is it that some people do everything right and stay sick, while others seem to do nothing extraordinary yet fully recover? How does faith healing work—or does it? What’s behind the phenomenon of spontaneous remission—and is this something we can influence?

Dr. Rankin embarked on a decade-long journey to explore these questions and more. The result is Sacred Medicine, both a seeker’s travelogue and a discerning guide to the sometimes-perilous paths available to patients when wellness fads, lifestyle changes, and doctors have failed them.
In Sacred Medicine, you’ll follow Dr. Rankin around the world to meet healers gifted and flawed, go on pilgrimage to sacred sites, investigate the science of healing, and learn how to stay safe when seeking a healer. You’ll receive the wisdom offered by Indigenous cultures for whom healing begins with our sacred connection to Mother Earth, and dive deep into the cutting-edge trauma research that is igniting a medical revolution. Rich with practices and protocols that Dr. Rankin has found particularly effective, Sacred Medicine delivers a thoughtful, grounded exploration of questions around how we heal—and a path of hope for those in need. 

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The Great Age Reboot: Cracking the Longevity Code for a Younger Tomorrow – Michael Roizen, Peter Linneman and Albert Ratner

As the human lifespan increases, Michael Roizen, M.D. offers an inspiring look into the future of longevity – and reveals how to prepare for a longer, healthier future. The most comprehensive and forward-looking take on aging to date, this indispensable book illuminates the prevention, treatment, and technology that will reshape how we think about old age and help us plan for an audacious future.

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Lost in the Valley of Death: A Story of Obsession and Danger in the Himalayas – Harley Rustad

Lost in the Valley of Death is about the disappearance of one charismatic young man, Justin Shetler. But it is, equally, about the tradition of Westerners seeking enlightenment in India, and about how, in our hyper-connected age, some explorers will go to new extremes to find fulfillment. We may never end up spending three weeks meditating in a cave in the Himalayas, as Shetler did, but we all look for answers and meaning in our lives. What happens when our complex modern world, with its blurred connections between the real world and online, collides with the beautiful but dangerous valley in India where Shetler disappeared? What drew Shetler to India and the remote Parvati Valley in the first place? And why was the end of his journey so different from that of others who followed the same path? 

A mix of travelogue, biography, memoir and true crime, this gripping story explores the longtime lure of India as a spiritual destination alongside the well-documented disappearances and murders of foreign travelers in the Parvati Valley over the past two decades. It queries the extremes to which we push ourselves to find meaning in life along the often dangerous path to enlightenment—all told through the complicated life and tragic disappearance of a charismatic thirty-five-year-old, Justin Alexander Shetler.

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How to Host a Viking Funeral: The Case for Burning Regrets, Chasing Your Crazy Ideas, and Becoming the Person You’re Meant to Be – Kyle Scheele

Turning 30, artist and speaker Kyle Scheele wanted to do something unusual to mark this milestone. Instead of a birthday bash, he decided to hold a funeral to memorialize the decade of his life that was ending. Building a 16-foot Viking ship out of cardboard, he invited friends to help him set it on fire—a symbolic farewell to his 20s and all the grief, regret, and mistakes that accompanied those years.

When video of his Viking funeral went viral, it encouraged many others to let go of past hurts as well. Moved by the response he received, Kyle planned a second funeral (this time with a 30-foot cardboard Viking ship) and asked people to share the things they carried—the bad choices, disappointments, heartaches, and negative thinking that they wanted to lay to rest. He received more than 20,000 responses from around the world—stories both heartbreaking and hilarious, painful and inspiring.

In this entertaining and wise book, Kyle reflects on what he discovered about freeing ourselves from the pain of the past, interweaving anecdotes from those who participated with the story of his own journey of renewal. How to Host a Viking Funeral is the story of letting go of the people we used to be, but no longer want to be. It’s about renewal; where there was once regret there is now blank space—an opportunity for a fresh start.

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How the World Really Works: The Science Behind How We Got Here and Where We Are Going – Vaclav Smil

We have never had so much information at our fingertips and yet most of us don’t know how the world really works. This book explains seven of the most fundamental realities governing our survival and prosperity. From energy and food production, through our material world and its globalization, to risks, our environment and its future, How the World Really Works offers a much-needed reality check – because before we can tackle problems effectively, we must understand the facts.

In this ambitious and thought-provoking book we see, for example, that globalization isn’t inevitable – the perils of allowing 70 per cent of the world’s rubber gloves to be made in just one factory became glaringly obvious in 2020 – and that our societies have been steadily increasing their dependence on fossil fuels, making their complete and rapid elimination unlikely. For example, each greenhouse-grown supermarket-bought tomato requires the equivalent of five tablespoons of diesel oil for its production; and we still lack any commercially viable ways of making steel, ammonia, cement or plastics on the scale required globally without fossil fuels.

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Forever Boy: A Mother’s Memoir of Autism and Finding Joy – Kate Swenson

When Kate Swenson’s son Cooper was diagnosed with severe, nonverbal autism, her world stopped. She had always dreamed of having the perfect family life. She hadn’t signed up for life as a mother raising a child with a disability.

At first, Kate experienced the grief of broken dreams. Then she felt the frustration and exhaustion of having to fight for your child in a world that is stacked against them. But through hard work, resilience and personal growth, she would come to learn that Cooper wasn’t the one who needed to change. She was. And it was this transformation that led Kate to acceptance–and ultimately joy. In Forever Boy, Kate shares her inspiring journey with honesty and compassion, offering solace and hope to others on this path and illuminating the strength and perseverance of mothers.

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Make This Tonight: Recipes to Get Dinner on the Table – Tastemade

Delicious meals just got easier with 100 all-new recipes for all types of cuisines in the first-ever cookbook from the beloved internet cooking gurus at Tastemade. Tastemade, the internet cooking phenomenon, presents you with 100 recipes designed to answer everyone’s daily question: What’s for dinner? Make This Tonight is a starter kit meant to empower you to create explosively flavorful dishes that will enrich your time in the kitchen and cultivate your culinary curiosity every day of the week. These are recipes that encourage you to get creative with your meal time and expand your taste buds’ horizons, while also staying unintimidating and approachable so that you’re empowered to cook for yourself. Make This Tonight is here to take away the stress of dinnertime and to pave the way for attainable, exciting meals.

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Dessert Can Save the World: Lessons, Secrets, and Recipes for a Stubbornly Joyful Existence – Christina Tosi

Dessert connects us heart-to-heart like almost nothing else. It brings us together in good times and bad, celebration and solace. And Christina Tosi, the founder and CEO of Milk Bar, believes it can save the world.

Does she really think the combination of sugar, flour, and butter has some magical ability to fix all the craziness of our modern existence? Of course not. Even with her trademark exuberance for baked goods that has touched millions of lives through her products, books, and television shows, Tosi knows a cookie is just a cookie. But bringing the joy a cookie holds into every area of your life most definitely can. The spirit of dessert—the relentless, unflinching commitment to finding or creating joy even when joy feels hard to come by—is what can save us. And then we, in turn, can each save the world.

In Dessert Can Save the World, Tosi chronicles her path to success in work and life. Along the way, she shares the wisdom she learned growing up surrounded by strong, amazing women who passed along the legacy of baking to harness love and create connection with others, as well as personal stories about succeeding in the highly competitive food world by unapologetically expressing her true self. Tosi also shares a few very personal and unorthodox recipes, of course. Dessert Can Save the World reveals all the secret ingredients for transforming our outlooks, our relationships, our work, and our entire collective existence into something boldly optimistic and stubbornly joyful.

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