Writing non-fiction

[percival]

I love reading non-fiction. A recent series on the Inverse Squares blog has been very enlightening - it discusses
the process of getting non-fiction published.

Currently, I have three books on the go: Lewis Wolpert's Malignant Sadness, Carl Honoré's Under Pressure and Bird and Sherwin's biography of J. Robert Oppenheimer, American Prometheus. Under Pressure is a journalisty book about why it's not a good idea to hothouse one's children. I will start reading Malignant Sadness again from the beginning - I lost track of where I am in the book, and it's a very lucid summary of research on all sorts of different aspects of depression. American Prometheus is fascinating - we're just about to get to the point where Oppenheimer is drawn into the bomb project.

Comments

[slowfox]

This reminds me that I, too, want to read an Oppenheimer biography. Is American Prometheus the one to go for?

[percival]

It is very comprehensive and looks in detail at the political and social context of his life.

[cynthia_black]

Totally off-topic, but I left you a Y!M earlier today - hope you get it, and if you don't, let me know!

[sidheag.livejournal.com]

What are you thinking of Under Pressure? I can't quite tell from his page and the reviews I can find whether I'd find it thought provoking or irritating in the extreme. (E.g. I regard it as too obvious to need saying that children should be treated as people not projects, allowed to choose their own directions, given space to make mistakes etc. - it doesn't follow that one should never guide/stretch/pressure them at all...Perhaps as backlash (against hothousing?), we seem to be in an environment where [ETA SOME!] people don't bat an eyelid at the idea that parents shouldn't ever interfere with their children's intellectual development at all, even though the same people would be horrified by parents who didn't interfere at all with their children's moral or social development.)

[perceval.livejournal.com]

It says very nice things about Cargilfield - I can pass it on to you when I'm done with it.

Essentially, Honore takes a middle ground. He argues that educators and parents should set up environments where children can learn and enjoy learning.

[sidheag.livejournal.com]

Gosh, does it? Thanks very much - I'd like to have a look at it, at least.