Episode Overview
Podcast: From the Front Porch
Episode: 555 – Annie Recommends: Nonfiction
Airdate: November 13, 2025
Host: Annie Jones, owner of The Bookshelf, Thomasville, GA
Annie Jones shares five of her favorite nonfiction reads for Nonfiction November, covering a range of topics and genres, from memoirs and true crime to journalistic and personal essays. She emphasizes both frontlist and backlist titles, aiming to recommend books that will inspire, challenge, and comfort readers—whether they're seasoned nonfiction fans or dabbling in the genre at year’s end.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
The Joy of Curated Book Lists
- Annie explains her process of building themed book stacks for customers seeking recommendations (04:00).
- She draws parallels between in-store experiences and these curated podcast episodes, aiming for discovery rather than overwhelm.
The Selections: Five Nonfiction Recommendations
1. Cherished Belonging by Gregory Boyle
(08:10 – 17:40)
- About the Book: Written by Father Gregory Boyle, Jesuit priest and founder of Homeboy Industries. This book, subtitled “The Healing Power of Love in Divided Times,” focuses on seeing others through belonging and tenderness.
- Annie's Take:
- She listened to the audiobook, narrated by Boyle, and describes his voice as “a pleasure to listen to...gravelly…and quiet, thoughtful wisdom.”
- Countercultural Message:
- “What Boyle is proposing in this book feels radical. Upside down. Everyone is unshakably good. That’s the line that I still remember. Everyone is unshakably good and we all belong to each other.” (12:30)
- Annie found the book both comforting and convicting:
- “In a world where...I already fit or my ideas are the norm, it was refreshing to read a book that was both comforting and convicting.” (15:45)
- Highly recommends it for its accessibility and timeliness.
- Notable Quote (from Boyle via Annie):
- “You choose to cherish with every breath you take and you choose to delight in the person in front of you. That's hard to do because you have to decide today and then you have to decide tomorrow. And it's never once and for all, but it's the practice.” (11:30)
2. Awake by Jen Hatmaker
(17:42 – 27:55)
- About the Book: Memoir by Jen Hatmaker, detailing her divorce and journey of self-discovery, moving beyond her role as a Christian writer into a more universal story of loss and reckoning.
- Annie’s Perspective:
- Compares it to Elizabeth Gilbert’s “All the Way to the River”—both released around the same time; prefers Hatmaker’s for its mix of humor, honesty, and restraint.
- Addresses issues like divorce, midlife, evangelical upbringing, and friendship.
- “This is definitely her most personal work, but it did not read as an expose. It was reflective and hopefully gut wrenching. I thought, pretty gracious all things considered.” (24:30)
- She recommends it as a fast, engaging read, ideal for finishing in one sitting.
- Notable Moment:
- Annie emphasizes Hatmaker’s skill:
- “She’s always been funny, she’s always been witty… but this to me showcases it in a way that it hasn’t been showcased before.” (22:00)
- Annie emphasizes Hatmaker’s skill:
3. Things in Nature Merely Grow by Yuyun Li
(29:20 – 37:45)
- About the Book: Finalist for the National Book Award for Nonfiction. Memoir reflecting on motherhood and profound grief following the deaths of her sons by suicide.
- Annie’s Remarks:
- Encountered Yuyun Li through her fiction (“Book of Goose”) but this memoir is much more fragmented, poetic, and “jarringly blunt.”
- Not just a “grief book”: Focuses on maternal love and survival in the aftermath of tragedy.
- “If you want to wail and gnash your teeth and live to fight another day, this is the book for you.” (33:34)
- She notes the book’s importance in fostering empathy and understanding, especially in a time of heightened mental health awareness.
- Recommends with a content warning for suicide.
- Notable Quote:
- “It is about life after her two sons, years apart, both die by suicide. And so her writing here is so different from Book of Goose...it's fragmented, it feels poetic, it’s blunt and disjointed.” (30:48)
- “She’s almost academic in how she’s trying to analyze the deaths of these two beloved people in her life. And then you can also see her realize, ‘Wait, I don’t want to be analytical about this. I want to be a mother about this.’” (34:35)
4. Bone Valley by Gilbert King
(39:00 – 45:40)
- About the Book: True crime/journalistic nonfiction. Focuses on Leo Schofield, a man convicted in 1980s Polk County, Florida for his wife’s murder, who maintains his innocence.
- Annie’s Comments:
- Audiobook narrated by King—excellent in delivery.
- King is known for writing on criminal justice, civil rights, and wrongful convictions; previously won the Pulitzer for “Devil in the Grove.”
- The story is gripping, beginning with a mysterious business card at a conference.
- “Gilbert King should be read in Florida schools... I would suggest strongly that high schools, colleges in Florida should be reading Gilbert King” (41:19)
- Recommends for fans of Bryan Stevenson, true crime, or narrative nonfiction.
- Notable Moment:
- “The book opens with Gilbert King’s encounter…a sitting judge approaches him with a business card that basically says something like ‘Leo Schofield should not be in jail or in prison or Leo Schofield is innocent.’ Something like that. It sounded so cryptic and weird and fictional. It sounded like something that could not possibly have happened. But it did.” (43:00)
5. Blessings and Disasters by Alexis Okeowo
(45:45 – 53:30)
- About the Book: Personal essays and history by Alexis Okeowo, daughter of Nigerian immigrants, reflecting on growing up in Alabama and societal perceptions of the South.
- Annie’s Point of View:
- Okeowo uses her experiences to examine Alabama’s past and future—touches on immigration, farming, civil rights, and more.
- The book offers both a personal lens and a deep historical perspective; suitable for readers in and out of the South.
- Annie sent it to her Shelf Subscription readers, confident that “people wouldn’t read it unless I put it in their hands.”
- “This is a fascinating book to me because it doesn’t really fit soundly in one genre... I would shelve it in nonfiction, but it equally could find its home in history politics.” (51:45)
- Strongly recommends it for understanding complicated histories and contemporary Southern identity.
- Memorable quote:
- “She is talking about their past, but she’s also talking about the state’s future. And she is talking about the immigration crisis through the lens not only of her parents, but of the large farming population in Alabama.” (48:45)
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (with Timestamps)
- Annie on the power of a good nonfiction read:
- “I love a book that makes me think, that challenges the ideas that keep me comfortable.” (13:53)
- On reading tough books:
- “I do think it’s important for us to read books like this to expand our empathy and our understanding of our fellow human and the griefs, the intense griefs that a lot of us are walking around with.” (36:50)
- On the unique Southern experience:
- “Southerners have, like, a weird pride and hierarchy, like, Georgia is better than Alabama, Alabama thinks it's better than Mississippi, et cetera.” (47:55)
Book List
Annie's Nonfiction November Recommendations:
- Cherished Belonging by Gregory Boyle
- Awake by Jen Hatmaker
- Things in Nature Merely Grow by Yuyun Li
- Bone Valley by Gilbert King
- Blessings and Disasters by Alexis Okeowo
Timestamps for Key Segments
- [04:00]: Annie explains the joy of book lists & episode format
- [08:10]: Cherished Belonging by Gregory Boyle
- [17:42]: Awake by Jen Hatmaker
- [29:20]: Things in Nature Merely Grow by Yuyun Li
- [39:00]: Bone Valley by Gilbert King
- [45:45]: Blessings and Disasters by Alexis Okeowo
Tone & Final Thoughts
Annie's recommendations are thoughtful, personal, and crafted with her signature warmth and insight. She uses her lived experience and bookselling expertise to offer a list that’s approachable and stimulating, serving both emotionally nourishing reads and those that push readers into new territory. This episode is ideal for anyone looking to expand their nonfiction reading or dive deeper into the genre with heartfelt, well-curated picks.