Great Nonfiction Books I read in 2024 & 2025

With the year 2025 ending and the new year of 2026 coming around the corner, I put together a list of great Nonfiction books I read in 2024 and 2025!

Believe: A Memoir In Stories by Christina Hom Wilson is a memoir about self-discovery, growth and a strong belief in God and how everything happens for a reason. Her life implodes on the day of September 1^st, 2000 just a year before the attacks a year later to the day in 2001. It was one of the best reads of 2024 as a whole and the summer in my opinion. You laugh and cry along with Christina as we read her story. I liked how each chapter is titled Story One and the name of that chapter instead of just Chapter 1. Whether you’re religious like I am or spiritual, you will appreciate the belief in God and how everything happens for a reason even if we don’t understand. Here is a Q&A with Christine that I also did with her last summer.

https://booknotions.com/qa-with-christina-h-wilson/

Forces of Nature: A Memoir of Family, Loss, and Finding Home by Gina DeMillo Wagner is a memoir about family, loss how to deal with it and finding where you belong. Gina’s brother Allen is born with a rare disorder Wili Prader Syndrome where he’d be loving one minute and violently the next. At 43 Alan passed and it left Gina feeling grief and all sorts of difficult feelings as well as wondering why. Could more have been done? I also like how the memoir also focused a little on her journey to becoming a journalist too. This memoir is important because we’ve all grieved and we have feelings and thoughts that we don’t always want to acknowledge but we learn they’re okay. Here are links to a regular Q&A discussing the book and an Authors In The Media Q&A discussing Gina’s journalism career!

https://booknotions.com/qa-with-gina-demillo-wagner/

https://booknotions.com/authors-in-the-media-with-gina-demillo-wagner/

 Tokyo Noir by Jake Adelstein is a memoir and sequel to the first memoir Tokyo Vice & many times sequels aren’t as equal to or as good as the original but Tokyo Noir was in fact better than the first book. Tokyo Noir came out last spring 16 years after Tokyo Vice.  It was great reading about TEPCO (Tokyo Electric Power Company) & how it and the earthquake caused the Fukishima Meltdown. It was also interesting that the Olympic committee had yakuza ties. Although Jake was able to get his enemy and feared yakuza boss Goto Tadamasa banished from the Yakuza, little did he know there were more battles he would have to face. There were times when I read about Jake’s suffering liver cancer, him losing his friend and love Michiel Brandt and making bad decisions I did a lot of crying. I prayed more rosaries than ever before & I was surprised I was able to do the Behind The Book without sobbing again. The memoir is also a reminder of how life is tough, but we are tougher.  If you enjoy nonfiction, memoirs, a fan of Tokyo Vice, you will enjoy Tokyo Noir! Here is my Behind The Book discussing Tokyo Noir.

https://booknotions.com/behind-the-book-tokyo-noir-with-jake-adelstein/

The Mysterious Mr. Nakamoto by Benjamin Wallace is about Benjamin’s fifteen year quest to find the true identity of Satoshi Nakamoto, the elusive creator of bitcoin. There are many suspects. Some claim it was Elon Musk. Some claim it was Australian Craig Wright. Some think it could be multiple people. Some think Satoshi might not even be Japanese. Craig Wright the Australian claimed he, Dave Kleiman and a third person were behind the Satoshi name and creators of Bitcoin. I’m open-minded and think it could be one person or multiple people. If Craig Wright is an imposter he’s the Anna Anderson of the bitcoin world. After reading this book, I was able to understand bitcoin more and why it’s so important. If you enjoy nonfiction books that have investigative reporting, bitcoin, and an unsolved mystery, The Mysterious Mr. Nakamoto is for you. I was very lucky to do both a Q&A & an Authors In The Media Q&A with Benjamin this year. The links are below.

https://booknotions.com/qa-with-benjamin-wallace/

https://booknotions.com/authors-in-the-media-with-benjamin-wallace/

 The Devil Takes Bitcoin also by Jake Adelstein is not about yakuza this time but it still takes place in Japan. We join Jake Adelstein and his friend Natalie Stucky as they try to help clear Mark Kepeles who was framed for stealing half a billion dollars in bitcoin. We are given a brief history of bitcoin as well as Satoshi Nakamoto and who the suspects could be when it comes to him. It was also interesting to learn about the history of Silk Road and Ross Ulbricht, its creator. It was also interesting learning about the real thief who stole half a billion dollars in Bitcoin. If you are a fan of nonfiction, bitcoin, a fan of investigative reporting, if you need something to read after reading The Mysterious Mr. Nakamoto by Benjamin Wallace, & are a fan of Jake Adelstein’s work, you will enjoy The Devil Takes Bitcoin.

The Happy High Achiever: 8 Essentials To Overcome Anxiety, Manage Stress, And Energize Yourself For Success-Without Losing Your Edge by Mary E. Anderson is not an overly long book but it has a wealth of knowledge. Mary is a psychologist so she knows her stuff. It’s not your typical self help book. Mary gives practical advice on how you can be an achiever without being overcome by anxiety. I also feel it’s very helpful for your personal life too. One of my many favorite parts of the book was when Mary acknowledged having faith in a higher power is helpful and science backs it up. As a devout Catholic I appreciate this. If you’re a fan of psychology, nonfiction and wanting to know more healthy ways of being a high achiever and happy at the same time I recommend this book. Here is my Q&A with Mary as we go more in depth.

https://booknotions.com/qa-with-mary-e-anderson-ph-d/

Get Signed: Find an Agent, Land A Book Deal, and Become a Published Author by author and literary agent Lucinda Halpern is a great guide on how to pitch your book and getting the right agent to get published.  Its another small book with a wealth of information, and I learned a lot of information as I read it last spring. I love the fact that the book has real query letters from authors whose books are now on the Bestsellers Lists. It also stresses the importance of knowing your audience. If you’re curious about the publishing world, a nonfiction reader and if you have a story you want to share with us, you need to read Get Signed by Lucinda Halpern. In my Q&A with Lucinda we also go more in depth!

https://booknotions.com/qa-with-lucinda-halpern/

The Happy Writer by New York Times Bestselling Author Marissa Meyer is also a great nonfiction book about writing, getting an agent and also getting a publicist. Marissa began her podcast of the same name in 2020 after the covid pandemic hit and then in 2023 began writing the book. The book also is important when tackling perfectionism when writing. I know I dabbled into writing a few stories myself and in the middle of it I think nothing makes sense and I second guess myself. If you’re curious about writing and publishing The Happy Writer is one you will enjoy. Although The Happy Writer came out this year and Get Signed came out in 2024, I suggest reading The Happy Writer first and then reading Get Signed. I go more in depth with Marissa and it was a delight!

https://booknotions.com/behind-the-book-with-marissa-meyer/

Let Only Red Flowers Bloom: Identity And Belonging In Xi Jinpings China by Emily Feng is about Emily’s experience with investigative reporting in China. The book discusses religious persecution, censorship, tiktok. It was scary reading about Emily’s experience being followed. Emily is also banned from returning to China. One of my favorite parts of reading the memoir was about the bookseller she befriended and how the communist regime did not like the books he was selling. He had to escape to Tiawan and start over there. If you enjoy nonfiction books that have investigative reporting mixed with memoir Let Only Red Flowers Bloom is one you will enjoy. We go more in depth about her book here.

https://booknotions.com/qa-with-emily-feng/

The House of My Mother by Shari Franke In 2023 many of us watched as the news broke about mommy vlogger Ruby Franke was arrested for child abuse along with her friend Jodi Hildebrandt. Jodi had a life coaching website titled ConneXions which many claim is a cult. The House Of My Mother, however tells the story from behind the Viral 8 Passengers family vlog and the significant amount of emotional abuse Shari suffered from Ruby beginning before Jodi came into their lives. For people following the Ruby Franke & Jodi Hildebrandt saga, I suggest getting a copy of The House of My Mother.

Fetishized by Kaila Yu, tells her story as a young girl dreaming of beauty. Growing up in the 90s and early 2000s the beautiful woman depicted in media were mainly white women and when Asian women were depicted, they were depicted in overly sexual and submissive roles. Movies such as Memoirs of A Geisha, The Austin Powers films and Full Metal Jacket (among many others) come to mind. Kaila internalized that the only way someone who looked like her or had value or considered beautiful was to sexualize herself. Kaila provides her story in a series of essays, and she comes to the realization that with some of her choices becoming a pin up model and altering her body for the male gaze, that she played into the fetishization. This memoir is a reminder for Asian women as well as Non-Asian Women that our worth does not come from the male gaze. Thank you Kaila for writing this book!

The Art Spy by Michelle Young tells the story of Rose Valland art historian turned resistance spy rescuing art that the nazis wanted to loot. Rose came face to face with Goering and risked her life several times reporting to the resistance and documenting everything that was happening. Rose provided information to stop the last train of artworks leaving Paris which included works by Picasso, Monet, Cezanne, Gauguin, Braque, Degas, Modigliani, & Toulouse-Lautrec. Michelle’s journalism skills are put to good use! The amount of research is there and while it’s nonfiction, the writing is engaging and fast paced. Many nonfiction books have a bad habit of sounding like a text book which can turn off fiction readers who don’t enjoy nonfiction as well as nonfiction readers. In the case of The Art Spy, Michelle manages to captivate the reader with the truth. If you enjoy historical fiction or historical nonfiction books, especially about World War II, I suggest grabbing a copy. I think its one of the best books of 2025 and one of the best books I’ve ever read! Here is my Q&A I did with Michelle going more in depth!

https://booknotions.com/qa-with-michelle-young-2/