New York Times Hardcover Nonfiction Bestsellers
July 19, 2020

1. The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir
by John Bolton

The former national security advisor gives his account of the
17 months he spent working for President Trump.
 
Also available in eBook on CloudLibrary
2. How to Be an Antiracist
by Ibram X. Kendi

A primer for creating a more just and equitable society through identifying and opposing racism. 
 
Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on OverDrive
 
Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on CloudLibrary
3. Untamed
by Glennon Doyle

The activist and public speaker describes her journey of listening
to her inner voice.
 
Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on OverDrive
 
Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on CloudLibrary
4. Between the World and Me
by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Winner of the 2015 National Book Award for nonfiction. A meditation
on race in America as well as a personal story, framed as a letter to
the author's teenage son.
 
Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on OverDrive
 
Summaries in eBook & eAudiobook available on Hoopla
 
Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on CloudLibrary
5. Begin Again: James Baldwin's America
and Its Urgent Lessons for Our Own
by Eddie S. Glaude, Jr.

An appraisal of the life and work of James Baldwin and their
meaning in relation to the Black Lives Matter movement and
the Trump presidency.
6. The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz
by Erik Larson

An examination of the leadership of the prime minister Winston Churchill.
 
Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on OverDrive
 
Summary in eBook available on Hoopla
 
Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on CloudLibrary
7. Becoming
by Michelle Obama

The former first lady describes how she balanced work, family and her husband's political ascent.
 
Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on OverDrive
 
Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on CloudLibrary
8. Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor
by Layla F. Saad

Ways to understand and possibly counteract white privilege.
 
Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on OverDrive
 
Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on Hoopla
 
Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on CloudLibrary
9. I'm Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness
by Austin Channing Brown

A Black woman who was given a white man's name by her parents shares her journey to finding her own worth and what stands in the way of racial justice.
 
Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on OverDrive
 
Summary in eBook available on Hoopla
 
Also available in eAudiobook on CloudLibrary
10. Countdown 1945: The Extraordinary Story of the Atomic Bomb and the 116 Days That Changed the World
by Chris Wallace with Mitch Weiss

The Fox News Sunday anchor gives an account of the key people involved in and events leading up to America's attack on Hiroshima in 1945.
11. Educated
by Tara Westover

The daughter of survivalists, who is kept out of school, educates
herself enough to leave home for university.
 
Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on OverDrive
 
Summaries in eBook & eAudiobook available on Hoopla
 
Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on CloudLibrary
12. Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art
by James Nestor
(currently unavailable at the Kern County Library)

A re-examination of a basic biological function and a look at the science behind ancient breathing practices.
13. Blitz: Trump Will Smash the Left and Win
by David Horowitz
(currently unavailable at the Kern County Library)

The author of Big Agenda explains why he thinks President Trump will be re-elected.
14. Hood Feminism: Notes From the Women That a Movement Forgot
by Mikki Kendall

A critique of how today's mainstream feminism overlooks basic needs such as access to food, education, living wages and medical care.
 
Also available in eBook on CloudLibrary
15. United States of Socialism: Who's Behind It. Why It's Evil. How to Stop It.
by Dinesh D'Souza
(currently unavailable at the Kern County Library)

The conservative commentator makes his case that identity politics are woven into what he considers socialism in America.
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A version of this list appears in the July 19, 2020 issue of The New York Times Book Review. Rankings reflect sales for the week ending July 4, 2020.