best of 2023: nonfiction

And now it's time for my favorite nonfiction books of the year!  I didn't read much nonfiction this year (only five books as of this writing), so it's a pretty short list and in preferential order.  As always, your mileage may vary.

1. Quietly Hostile by Samantha Irby:  This book includes essays with titles like "Two Old Nuns Having Amzing [Sic] Lesbian Sex", "I Like to Get High at Night and Think About Whales", and "Oh, So You Actually Don't Want to Make a Show About a Horny Fat Bitch with Diarrhea? Okay!" so of course it was going to be my favorite of the year.

2. Still, I Cannot Save You by Kelly S. Thompson:  The author's relationship with her sister Meghan was sorely tested by addiction and illness.  After Meghan became a mother, they started to rebuild their bond, but shocking news sent everything into a tailspin again.  Heartbreaking (I cried at least five times) but hopeful.

3. Tough Titties by Laura Belgray:  A collection of essays about growing up in the eighties, finding oneself in the nineties, and trying to figure out what the fuck is going on in the 2000s.  I found myself alternating between hysterical laughter and sympathetic cringing.  Perfect for fans of Samantha Irby and Jenny Lawson.