August 2025 list by Donalee Jacobs
 
The Bird Singers
by Jean Boucault

This captivating book brings together two birds of a feather: Jean and Johnny, boys from very different worlds, whose lives converge when they compete on the bird-calling circuit in Europe. At the annual bird festival, both boys are standouts, and a long, admiring rivalry develops between them, eventually culminating in the European championships. The chapters, which bounce back and forth between the two narrators, are woven through with descriptions of colorful characters in the bird-calling competition circuit and the kind of ornithological detail that can only come from a true passion for birds. Unique, evocative, and cinematic, The Bird Singers is the story of an unlikely friendship, sparked by a desire to speak with the avian world.

The Carpool Detectives
by Chuck Hogan

In 2020, four moms discover they share a passion for true crime that crystalizes around a cold case they feel they can solve. A married couple in their 60s vanished from their home and their bodies were later discovered inside their car at the bottom of a ravine. The women have no connection to the case and no law-enforcement background, but the determined group find themselves in incredible and often dangerous situations–digging for evidence in prohibited ravines, scouring potential crime scenes for blood splatter, and sifting through pages and pages of dense police files. As they get more and more entangled in the investigation, they also find themselves in real danger—and with information that could blow the case wide open.

The Colonel and the King
by Peter Guralnick

Draws on unpublished correspondence to examine the complex, evolving relationship between Elvis Presley and Colonel Tom Parker, tracing their bond of trust through rising fame and eventual decline, while offering new insight into the personal and professional dynamics behind Presley's meteoric career.

Dinner With King Tut
by Sam Kean

We have a good idea of what the past looked like. But what about our other senses? History often neglects the tastes, textures, sounds, and smells that were part of our ancestors' lives, but a new generation of researchers is resurrecting those details, pioneering an exciting new discipline called experimental archaeology. These are scientists gone rogue. They build perilous boats and plunge out onto the open sea--all in the name of experiencing history as it was, with all its dangers, disappointments, and unexpected delights. Author Sam Kean joins them on their adventures across the globe, from the Andes to the South Seas--and, in novelistic interludes, spins gripping tales about the lives of our ancestors.

The Enduring Wild
by Josh Jackson

Josh Jackson had never heard of "BLM land" before a recommendation from a friend led him to a free campsite in the desert—and the revelation that over fifteen million acres of land in California are owned collectively by the people. In The Enduring Wild, he takes us on a road trip spanning thousands of miles, crisscrossing the Golden State to seek out every parcel of public wilderness belonging to the federal Bureau of Land Management. Along the way, Jackson tells of the Indigenous peoples who call them home, the threats that imperil them, and of the grassroots organizers and political champions who have rallied to protect these natural treasures for generations to come.

The Fifth Season
by Mark Nepo

Now in his seventies, poet and philosopher Mark Nepo explores the rhythms of aging in the second half of life. The Fifth Season offers Mark's wise and gentle insights on growing older, helping readers identify the second half of life as a turning point, a time of integration and transformation that guides us in making sense of our experiences. All seasons lead to this season; all experiences lead to this understanding of experience. In truth, Mark writes, we each must face living and dying from the inside of the one life we are given. But we can share the journey, which is the purpose of this book, to be a companion in your effort to enter thefifth season of your life.

Flashes of Brilliance
by Anika Burgess

Today it's routine to take photos from an airplane window, use a camera underwater, watch a movie, or view an X-ray. But the photographic innovations more than a century ago that made such things possible were experimental, revelatory, and sometimes dangerous—and many of the innovators, entrepreneurs, and inventors behind them were memorable eccentrics. In Flashes of Brilliance, writer and photo editor Anika Burgess engagingly blends art, science, and social history to reveal the most dramatic developments in photography from its birth in the 1830s to the early twentieth century.

The Headache
by Tom Zeller

Veteran science journalist Tom Zeller Jr. takes readers on an odyssey, through his own decades-long struggle with cluster headaches and across the scientific landscape of a group of disorders that is-to the chagrin of sufferers-as much a curse as a cultural punchline. Along the way, Zeller traces the longer arc of mystery around headaches to reveal how headaches became one of the most under-researched afflictions in medicine-and how that is slowly starting to change. With warmth, wit, and infectious curiosity, Zeller's search for the origins of his own headaches becomes a journey into the inner workings of the human nervous system, and an illuminating look at the nature of pain itself.

The Jailhouse Lawyer
by Calvin Duncan

A searing and ultimately hopeful account of Calvin Duncan, and his thirty-year path through Angola after a wrongful murder conviction, his coming-of-age as a legal mind while imprisoned, and his continued advocacy for those on the inside. Prison reform advocate Sophie Cull met Duncan after he was released from prison and began working at her firm; Calvin began to tell her his story. Together, they've written a bracing condemnation of the criminal legal system, and an intimate portrait of a heroic and brilliant man and of his resilience in the face of injustice.

Joseph Smith
by John G. Turner

Joseph Smith Jr. was one of the most successful and controversial religious leaders of nineteenth-century America, publishing the Book of Mormon and starting the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In this vivid biography, John G. Turner presents Smith as a religious entrepreneur and innovator, a man both flawed and compelling. His teachings prompted people to gather into communities, evoking fierce opposition from those who saw those communities as theocratic threats to republicanism. With insights from newly accessible diaries, church records, and transcripts of sermons, Turner illuminates Smith's stunning trajectory, from his beginnings as an uneducated, impoverished farmhand to his ultimate fall at the hands of a murderous mob.

King of Kings
by Scott Anderson

From the author of the bestseller Lawrence in Arabia comes a stunningly revelatory narrative history of the Iranian Revolution, one of the most momentous events in modern times. This groundbreaking work reveals a dictator blind to the disdain of his subjects and a superpower blundering into disaster. It exposes the jaw-dropping mistakes of the American government and traces the rise of religious nationalism, offering essential insights into today's global unrest.

A Light in the Northern Sea
by Tim Brady

In 1940, Germany coerced the Danish government into a "cooperative" agreement that lasted three years until the increasing brazenness of the Resistance movement prompted a crackdown. Denmark's nearly 8000 Jews, now became the focus of his rage. A roundup was ordered to begin on October 1st, 1943. The only passage to safety was across the Oresund to Sweden. Until the last moment, Sweden didn't agree to allow the refugees into the country; and the strait was swarming with Gestapo. What happened next was a miracle. Here are the riveting true accounts of ordinary Danes who, using their modest resources, wiles, remarkable courage, and camaraderie, quietly orchestrated their escape.

Like
by Megan C. Reynolds

Few words in the English language are as misunderstood as "like." Indeed, excessive use of this word is a surefire way to make those who pride themselves on propriety, both grammatical and otherwise, feel compelled to issue correctives. In this book, culture writer and editor for Dwell magazine Megan C. Reynolds takes us through the unique etymology and usage of this oft-reviled word, highlighting how it is often used to undermine people who are traditionally seen as having less status in society—women, younger people, people from specific subcultures—and how, if thought about differently, it might open up a new way of communication and validation.

My Good Side
by Scheana Shay

Before a decade of record-breaking TV, two Emmy nominations, and a chart-topping podcast, Scheana thought signing on to the Real Housewives' spin-off show, Vanderpump Rules, was a steppingstone to reaching her ultimate goal of becoming a successful actress in Hollywood. From the first season, Scheana clashed with her fellow cast members. Barbs were thrown, friendships dissolved, and Scheana was left in the rubble trying to navigate the complexities of having her life and relationships filmed for a television audience. In My Good Side, Scheana pulls back the layers of who she really is and shares all sides of her-the good, bad, and messy.

Robin Hood Math
by Noah Giansiracusa

Award-winning mathematician Noah Giansiracusa explains how the rich and powerful use formulas to get ahead-and how the rest of us can use these same formulas in our everyday lives to make better decisions, act in our own best interests, and thrive.

The Roma
by Madeline Potter

The word Roma conjures images of free-spirited nomads who choose to eschew social conformity for personal independence. Few know the long, tortuous history of being harassed, expelled, deported, demonized, enslaved, and murdered. Madeline Potter does not overlook the racism and oppression they have endured, she instead celebrates the Roma's strength and endurance, their ability to resist and survive. Blending memoir and archival research, her sweeping, heartfelt traveling history moves across Europe to uncover the interwoven stories and struggles of Romani communities past and present, and what the future may hold for both nomadic, and settled, families on the continent.

The Science of Scaling
by Dr. Hardy, Benjamin

Are you stuck growing 10–20% a year while dreaming of bigger impact—and wondering why scale feels out of reach? Here’s the hard truth: linear growth isn’t just slow—it’s a sign your business is heading toward stagnation. Research shows that businesses that don’t scale quickly usually fail altogether. Why? Because most leaders are focused on the wrong things, operating from the wrong assumptions, and setting the wrong goals. In The Science of Scaling, organizational psychologist and author Dr. Benjamin Hardy, and Blake Erickson, co-founders of Scaling.com, reveal a revolutionary framework that helps companies scale bigger and faster than they ever thought possible.

Secrets of the Killing State
by Corinna Lain

In the popular imagination, lethal injection is a slight pinch and a swift nodding off to forever-sleep. It is performed by well-qualified medical professionals. It is regulated and carefully conducted. And it usually provides a "humane" death. In reality, however, not one of those things is true. Death penalty expert Corinna Lain pulls back the curtain on the dark reality of lethal injection to shine a light on the American death penalty more broadly and show that the state at its most powerful moment is also the state at its worst. 

Sedition
by Marcus Alexander Gadson

The foundational tenets of American democracy seem to be endangered, and many citizens believe this danger is unprecedented in our history. But Americans have weathered many constitutional crises, especially at the state level. In Sedition, Marcus Alexander Gadson uncovers these episodes of civil unrest and examines how state governments handled them. As he addresses constitutional breakdown, Gadson urges Americans to pay increased attention to the risk of constitutional instability in their home states. His sweeping historical analysis provides new insights on the fight to protect democracy today.

The Simulation Hypothesis 
by Rizwan Virk

The Simulation Hypothesis is the definitive book on simulation theory and is now completely updated to reflect the latest developments in artificial intelligence and virtual reality. Whether you are a computer scientist, a fan of science fiction like the Matrix movies, a video game enthusiast, a spiritual seeker, or simply a fan of mind-bending thought experiments, you will never look at the world the same way again.

Sonita
by Sonita Alizada

Nearly 15 million girls, including many in the U.S., are forced into marriage each year. Each of these girls has a price tag—and a story. Sonita Alizada was almost sold twice. Her price tag was $9,000. The Afghan rap artist and activist shares the story of how she fled Afghanistan to pursue her dreams and evolved into a woman who is changing the world. She shares incredible highs, like winning the song writing contest that gave her the opportunity of a lifetime, and unimaginable lows, like when the cruel Taliban regained control of Afghanistan. This book is more than Sonita's story. It is a love letter for anyone who has ever dreamed of more and held onto hope that their story would be different than the ones that came before them.

A Year With the Seals
by Alix Morris

It might be their large, strangely human eyes or their dog-like playfulness, but seals have long captured people's interest and affection, making them the perfect candidate for the subject of study. Alix Morris spends a year with seals and brings them to life on the page, season by season, as she learns about their intelligence, their relationships with each other, their ecosystems, and the changing climate. But it's also a gripping year-long adventure story of a journalist determined to understand seals and our relationship with them for herself.