Best non-fiction reads of 2023Like this list

10 items

• Always Italicise

  How to Write While Colonised

  Te Punga Somerville, Alice

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  Towards the end of this I just started crying and I don’t even know why, really? Bu that's poetry for you - peeling up the edges of yourself in sneaky ways!

• A Heart That Works

  Delaney, Rob, 1977-

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  Picking up a book about someone's child dying isn't a reading choice to take lightly but Rob Delaney's beautful memoir about his son, Henry, brings all the humanity, joy, grief and yes, humour, that you find in life and death. Highly…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• I'll Show Myself Out

  Essays on Midlife & Motherhood

  Klein, Jessi, 1975-

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  It took me way too long to finish this but it was brilliant. Jessi Klein’s assertion that the journey of motherhood hits all the same beats as Campbell’s “Heroes’ journey” is 100%. Plus she is an imperfect, messy hilarious person/writer.…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• I'm Glad My Mom Died

  McCurdy, Jennette, 1992-

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  Funny, awful, and eye-opening. This had a huge hold list for ages for a reason. McCurdy's story is brutal in places, inspiring in others.

• I'm So Happy You're Here

  a Little Book About Why You're Great

  Climo, Liz

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  Very cute. Very kind. An uplifting little tome.

• Misfits

  a Personal Manifesto

  Coel, Michaela

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  A short read on the power and challenges of creating in the entertainment industry. Be that voice. Tell your stories.

• My Child and Other Mistakes

  Taylor, Ellie

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  I laughed, I cried, I was envious of her yellow nail polish. Funny, touching, and honest. Parenting is no joke except for when it is.

• Strong Female Character

  Brady, Fern, 1986-

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  Fern Brady's turn in Taskmaster left me with the impression that she was something of an "odd bird". Turns out some of that might have been due to the autism. Brady's matter of fact account of constantly being misunderstood, misdiagnosed,…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Survival of the Thickest

  Buteau, Michelle

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  This is one of those books where hearing the person reading it in audiobook adds a whole extra level of enjoyment. I really want Michelle Buteau to be my sassy friend even though in this book she complains about only getting acting parts…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• There's a Cure for This

  a Memoir

  Espiner, Emma

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  There's much about Emma's life that differs from mine, but where it hits it hits hard, like someone, a surgical registrar perhaps, grabbing something inside and squeezing it. Her observations about being Māori, a mother, and someone…Read moreRead more of this annotation