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Home > Editorials > Top 3 Tips On How To Read Non-Fiction

Top 3 Tips On How To Read Non-Fiction

Farisha F. by Farisha F.
December 28, 2022
in Editorials
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Table of Contents Toggle
  • What defines non-fiction?
  • Top 10 non-fiction books
  • Tips On How To Read Non-fiction?
  • Final thoughts

Have you ever been stuck on a non-fiction book? Do you struggle to finish reading it and perhaps give up and abandon it at some point? I must admit, it takes me quite a while to get through my non-fiction reads compared to the fiction ones. Why is that and how do we read non-fiction books effectively? This article will explore the various different types of non-fiction works, the best non-fiction books of all time, and the best approach to take when tackling a non-fiction read.

coffee-book-glasses-flowers

What defines non-fiction?

Firstly, for any young readers wondering “Is non-fiction real or fake?”, let me tell you that non-fiction is literally the opposite of fiction and therefore it is absolutely real. There are various types of non-fiction books that can be classed into their own genres. These include memoirs, autobiographies and biographies, self-help and instructional books, guides and how-to manuals, academic texts, philosophy, history, journalism, travel guides and travelogues, humor, and commentary.

Top 10 non-fiction books

Without further ado, I bring to you ten of the best non-fiction books from lists compiled by prominent sources such as Goodreads, Time magazine, Reader’s Digest, and The Guardian:

  1. A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking (1988)
  2. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote (1965)
  3. Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal by Eric Schlosser (2001)
  4. The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan (2006)
  5. The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert (2014)
  6. All the President’s Men: The Greatest Reporting Story of All Time by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward (1974)
  7. The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins (1976)
  8. A Room of One’s Own by Virginia Woolf (1929)
  9. The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan (1963)
  10. How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie (1936)
Book cover - How to Win Friends and Influence People

No doubt these are just a few great samples from the amazing non-fiction lists but I’ll make one more honorable mention: The Elements of Style by William Strunk and EB White (1959). Some of the greatest writers, including Stephen King, in his non-fiction book On Writing: A Memoir of the craft, have mentioned this book as an excellent guide for aspiring writers.

Non-fiction - book cover - Elements of Style

Tips On How To Read Non-fiction?

Now for the nitty gritty on how to effectively read that non-fiction you’ve been meaning to get to:

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1. Get in the right mood

Find a nice relaxing spot, set the mood with a cup of tea or coffee, grab a notebook, pen, and highlighter if it’s a book you’d like to take notes from. The right mindset will definitely help you concentrate.

2. Look through the table of contents

Reading the headings and subheadings will give you an excellent overview of the contents and are also a great tool to use if you’d like to make quick notes or summarize the contents using the same headings and subheadings. This will also allow you to pick and choose from content that is of interest to you rather than the entire book. Don’t feel pressured to read every chapter if you’re not into it.

3. Feel free to have a fiction book on the go at the same time

Don’t feel like you have to finish one book before you start another. Fiction and non-fiction are quite different. So if you’re feeling tired of one, you can switch to the other.  

Final thoughts

Why do we lack motivation to keep going with a non-fiction book? Its because we lack a good strategy when approaching a non-fiction read. Hopefully you find my top 3 tips useful for the next time you hope to get stuck into that non-fiction book on your to-be-read list. Happy reading!

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Genre: Nonfiction Books
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Farisha F.

Farisha F.

Contributor

Farisha’s favourite thing to do, in classic bibliophile style, is to curl up with a book and a cup of tea. She loves a good mystery, fantasy, folklore, adventure, romance, science fiction and the occasional non-fiction book. Since her love of travelling came to a halt, Farisha has become a “plant mum” to a number of plants (the count being somewhere around 30!). While tending to her potted plants on her apartment balcony down under, she dreams of someday being a writer herself.

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