No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt: The Home Front in World War II

The Life of Andrew Jackson

Robert V. Remini1988

This biography tracks Andrew Jackson from his frontier childhood to the presidency. It condenses three volumes of research into one book.

pace0·prose0·bleak0

Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison

Michel Foucault

A philosophical history examines the shift from public torture to modern prison surveillance. It analyzes how power controls the body.

earnest → clinical, still history

pace0·prose+1·bleak+1

The Gulag Archipeligo 1918-1956: An Experiment In Literary Investigation I - Ii.

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

A history of the Soviet forced labor camp system based on survivor reports and the author's own imprisonment. It documents state-run repression.

earnest → bleak, still history

pace0·prose+1·bleak+2

Confessions

Augustine of Hippo

A 4th-century bishop writes a spiritual autobiography addressed to God. He recounts his sinful youth and his eventual conversion to Christianity.

earnest → meditative

pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

Elizabeth the Queen: The Life of a Modern Monarch

Sally Bedell Smith

A chronological biography of Elizabeth II covering her private life, public duties, and interactions with world leaders.

Same earnest register, still biography

pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

The King's Speech

Mark Logue2010

A therapist uses unconventional methods to help King George VI overcome a stammer as the monarch prepares to lead Britain through World War II.

earnest → warm, still biography

pace0·prose-1·bleak-1

The Defining Moment: FDR's Hundred Days and the Triumph of Hope

Jonathan Alter

A history of Franklin D. Roosevelt's 1932 election and the first three months of his presidency during the Great Depression.

Same earnest register, still biography

pace+1·prose-1·bleak-1

Astrophysics for People in a Hurry

Neil deGrasse Tyson2017

A summary of the origin of the universe, the laws of physics, and the nature of space and time.

earnest → playful

pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1

Steal Like an Artist

Austin Kleon2012

A series of short, illustrated principles for creative work. It focuses on remixing existing ideas and establishing productive daily habits.

earnest → playful

pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1

Poke the Box

Seth Godin2011

A short manifesto encouraging readers to start projects and take initiative. It argues that the greatest risk is staying in place.

Same earnest register

pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1

The Frontier in American History

Frederick Jackson Turner1920

A series of essays arguing that the American character and democracy were shaped by the continuous expansion into the western wilderness.

earnest → clinical, still history

pace-1·prose0·bleak-1

Confessions

Augustine of Hippo

A 4th-century bishop writes a spiritual autobiography addressed to God. He recounts his sinful youth and his eventual conversion to Christianity.

earnest → meditative

pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

How to Read a Book

Mortimer J. Adler1940

This is a guide to active reading techniques for different genres. It outlines levels of reading from basic literacy to syntopical analysis.

earnest → mysterious

pace-1·prose+1·bleak0

Trail of Tears: The Rise and Fall of the Cherokee Nation

John Ehle

A historical account of the Cherokee Nation's political struggles and their forced removal from ancestral lands in the 1830s.

earnest → elegiac, still biography

pace0·prose-1·bleak+2

Hitler: A Study in Tyranny – A Classic Biography: Authoritative and Readable, Abridged

Alan Bullock

A detailed biography of Adolf Hitler that focuses on his rise to power and his psychological control over the German state.

earnest → clinical, still biography

pace0·prose0·bleak+2

Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee

Dee Alexander Brown

A chronological history of the displacement and systematic destruction of Native American tribes in the late 19th century.

earnest → elegiac, still history

pace0·prose-1·bleak+2