Some of my favourite non fiction reads of the last few years… I read a lot, but these are the ones that I find myself recommending to like minded people. My fiction list is way too long to list.
Just Kids - Patti Smith, memoir of her youth in NY living in the Chelsey hotel with Robert Mapplethorp
Disarmed, The Story of the Venus De Milo - Gregory Curtis, an interesting read of the early days of public museum curation, colonialism etc.
The Vanishing Velazquez - Laura Cumming, this one is before public art museums existed, and how dodgy provenance of old master paintings actually is, especially if relying on records that pre date modern curation and provenance practices. And obsession, life destroying obsession.
The Judgement of Paris - Ross King, story of the birth of Impressionism
The Feather Thief: Beauty, Obsession, and the Natural History Heist of the Century
Book - Kirk W. Johnson. A mind boggling story of the recent destruction of a priceless historical bird specimen collection, all for the purchase of a golden flute. Really. Includes a peek into the mind boggling world of Victorian fly tying.
Can You Ever Forgive Me? - Lee Israel, memoir of her life as a literary forger. This one was made into a movie.