True Story: A Nonfiction Book Club

Portland library users, we have heard your request for a non-fiction book club and are responding with True Story: A Non-Fiction Book Club. We will meet on the third Thursday of each month in meeting room 3 at the main branch from 12:00-1:00 (bring your lunch!). We will meet to discuss nonfiction of all sorts. Books about science, travel and exploration, food, health, relationships, memoir, business, civility, culture, math, society, history, poetry…the sky’s the limit! True Story will be facilitated by PPL Reference Staff.

Our first book will be A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail, by Bill Bryson. The Appalachian Trail stretches from Georgia to Maine and covers some of the most breathtaking terrain in America–majestic mountains, silent forests, sparking lakes. Many people have traveled this stretch of wonder but Bill Bryson is surely the most entertaining guide you’ll find. He has also done his research and provides great background information, introducing us to the history and ecology of the trail (as well as a couple of bears!). Already a classic, A Walk in the Woods will make you long for a great adventure of your own.

Two of us here at the library read this book while on our own adventure in Guatemala to visit and work in a library. It was an great read with many laugh out loud moments. This line from the book really summarizes our adventure:

“Life takes on a neat simplicity, too. Time ceases to have any meaning. When it is dark, you go to bed, and when it is light again you get up, and everything in between is just in between. It’s quite wonderful, really.”

Unfortunately all of our copies are checked out but there are still many available copies through MaineCat. Hope to see you next Thursday at noon!

• October 15 – A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson
• November 19 – Living With Guns by Craig R. Whitney
• December 17 – H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald
• January 21, 2016 – Madison’s Music: On Reading the First Amendment by Burt Neuborne
• February 18, 2016 – The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
• March 17, 2016 – Citizen: An American Lyric by Claudia Rankine
• April 21, 2016 – Capital in the twenty-first century  by Thomas Piketty
• May 19, 2016 – Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness by Susannah Cahalan

Readers are encouraged to call the Readers’ Advisory desk (871-1700 x705), email (hartsig@portlandpubliclibrary.org) or come into the library to reserve copies of the books. If you have trouble finding the book in the Portland library system, please contact us and we can locate a book through MaineCat.