Hummingbird is a 2022 middle-grade fiction novel by Natalie Lloyd that explores living with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI or “brittle bone disease”) using magical realism. Set in a Tennessee town with folkloric influences, Hummingbird follows 11-year-old Olive Martin as she pursues a legendary hummingbird said to grant a wish. Lloyd’s own experience with OI and life in Tennessee inform Olive’s story. This study guide refers to the 2022 Scholastic hardcover edition. Plot SummaryHummingbird takes place in... Read Hummingbird Summary

I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life is an in-depth introduction to the microbiome and how it interacts with humans and other species. Author Ed Yong is a science writer for The Atlantic. His writing has also appeared in many other publications, such as The New Yorker, Wired, The New York Times, and Nature. The book’s original hardcover edition was published in 2016; this guide is based on the... Read I Contain Multitudes Summary

Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life (2016) is a self-help book by Héctor García and Francesc Miralles. The book examines the Japanese concept of ikigai, or “a reason for being,” which the authors posit as a key factor in the longevity and life satisfaction observed in certain Japanese communities, particularly in Okinawa. It has been translated into numerous languages and has become an international bestseller. García, a former software engineer with... Read Ikigai Summary

Susan Sontag’s 1978 book Illness as Metaphor is an 87-page work of critical theory exploring the language we use to describe disease and its victims. The work was originally published in the New York Review of Books as three long-form essays. Sontag wrote Illness as Metaphor while undergoing treatment for breast cancer, though not mentioned in the text. This genre—critical theoretical examinations of social and cultural events or phenomena—was where Sontag established her reputation. Illness... Read Illness As Metaphor Summary

Inheritance: A Memoir of Genealogy, Paternity, and Love is a nonfiction book by Dani Shapiro, an American writer, teacher, and podcast host. The title refers to the myriad things Shapiro inherited from her parents, such as physical features, emotions, and trauma. A New York Times best seller, Inheritance is a meditation on the meaning of parenthood, the ethics of sperm donation, and the quandaries of genetic testing. This summary refers to the 2019 edition published... Read Inheritance Summary

Amy Bloom’s memoir In Love: A Memoir of Love and Loss traces Bloom and her husband’s, Brian Ameche, relationship after Brian is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Bloom’s first-person point of view lends the memoir a vulnerable, humorous, and emotional tone, but the memoir also shares many of the same narrative elements Bloom employs in her four novels (Love Invents Us, Away, Lucky Us, and White Houses), including imagery, symbolism, and a nonlinear structure. The memoir... Read In Love Summary

Sebastian Junger’s In My Time of Dying: How I Came Face-to-Face with the Idea of an Afterlife explores mortality, consciousness, and the nature of reality. As an acclaimed journalist and author known for his immersive reporting on dangerous situations, Junger brings a unique perspective to this deeply personal work. Published in 2024, the book draws its title from Junger’s own near-death experience, which serves as the catalyst for his wide-ranging investigation into near-death experiences, quantum... Read In My Time of Dying Summary

Gabor Maté’s In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addictions is an unconventional nonfiction book on how to treat addiction, how addicts can better assimilate into society, and how society can dispel many of the myths that surround addiction. Maté works as an addiction specialist at the Portland Hotel in Vancouver, Canada. Much of the book, published in 2010, focuses on Maté’s evidence that childhood stressors increase the likelihood that one will become an... Read In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts Summary

Into the Magic Shop: A Neurosurgeon’s Quest to Discover the Mysteries of the Brain and the Secrets of the Heart is a work of nonfiction by neurosurgeon and philanthropist Dr. James R. Doty. It is at once a memoir, a self-help book, and a work of popular science; Doty draws on his professional knowledge to explain the scientific underpinnings of meditative practices like visualization, while also exploring the transformative effect these practices can have on... Read Into the Magic Shop Summary

Originally published in 2019, Caroline Criado Perez’s Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men exposes the fact that despite differences in biology and societal roles, men are used as the standard default in virtually all matters from product design, to medical testing, to the tech industry, which creates algorithms that discriminate against women. Perez, a feminist activist and student of feminist economics, has the credibility to detail this problem in this work... Read Invisible Women Summary

Irresistible: The Rise of Addictive Technology and the Business of Keeping Us Hooked (2017), a nonfiction book by Adam Alter, explores the relationship between humans and addictive technologies. Alter is a professor of marketing at New York University Stern School of Business and has written other nonfiction titles about human behavior, such as Drunk Tank Pink.The book begins with the assertion that people can easily become addicted to smartphones, video games, and other technologies. Many... Read Irresistible Summary

It Didn’t Start With You: How Inherited Family Trauma Shapes Who We Are and How to End the Cycle by Mark Wolynn explores the concept of intergenerational trauma by blending psychology, epigenetics, and storytelling. Published in 2016, the book bridges the gap between science and holistic healing, drawing from Wolynn’s expertise as a leading pioneer in inherited family trauma and the director of The Family Constellation Institute. Written in the self-help and psychology sub-genre, the... Read It Didn't Start with You Summary

It’s Not You: Identifying and Healing from Narcissistic People (2024) is by clinical psychologist Ramani Durvasula. It offers insight into the pervasive impact of narcissistic relationships, examining the psychological underpinnings and everyday realities of dealing with narcissistic individuals. Durvasula, an expert in the field of narcissistic abuse, draws from her clinical experience to guide readers through recognizing, understanding, and healing from toxic relationships. The book belongs to the self-help and psychology genre, focusing primarily on... Read It's Not You Summary

It Starts with the Egg (2014) is a self-help text that offers a science-based roadmap for those seeking to improve fertility by enhancing egg quality through targeted lifestyle, nutritional, and environmental changes. Aimed at those trying to conceive, whether naturally or through assisted methods like IVF, the book breaks down complex reproductive science into practical, evidence-informed strategies. Drawing on her background in molecular biology, author Rebecca Fett presents the latest research on egg development, supplements... Read It Starts with the Egg Summary

Just Medicine: A Cure for Racial Inequality in American Healthcare is a pioneering work written by Dayna Bowen Matthew, a legal scholar specializing in public health who draws on her extensive background in civil rights law and health policy to demonstrate the pervasiveness of racial disparities in the US healthcare system. Originally published in 2015, this book provides an in-depth analysis of how implicit bias, institutionalized discrimination, and structural inequalities shape health outcomes for marginalized... Read Just Medicine Summary

Killing the Black Body: Race, Reproduction, and the Meaning of Liberty (1997) by legal scholar Dorothy E. Roberts is a study on the history of reproductive rights in the US as they pertain to African American women. The book combines historical, sociological, and legal frameworks to examine how federal and state governments have infringed on Black women’s bodies from the antebellum era to the 1990s. Although the book was published 24 years ago, many of... Read Killing the Black Body Summary

Landscape with Invisible Hand is a satirical dystopian science fiction novel by M. T. Anderson, written for a young adult audience. A diverse author, Anderson writes both fiction and nonfiction for people of all ages. In 2023, Landscape with Invisible Hand was adapted for film, reflecting the novel’s popularity and relevance. The book depicts a future world in which an alien species, the vuvv, have sold their technology to humans, causing the collapse of the... Read Landscape with Invisible Hand Summary

Laziness Does Not Exist (2021) by Devon Price, Ph.D., is a work of nonfiction that challenges deeply ingrained societal beliefs about productivity and self-worth. Price is a social psychologist and professor at Loyola University of Chicago. Drawing from his expertise in social psychology and from his personal experiences, he argues against the concept of laziness, framing it as a harmful myth perpetuated by capitalism. He traces this myth to its roots in Puritan morality and... Read Laziness Does Not Exist Summary

League of Denial: The NFL, Concussions, and the Battle for Truth is a 2013 work of investigative nonfiction by brothers Mark Fainaru-Wada and Steve Fainaru. The book chronicles the National Football League’s concussion crisis, which came to light with a few career-ending head injuries in the 1990s and became an even more serious issue as numerous deceased former players were found to have developed chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). League of Denial won the PEN/ESPN Award... Read League of Denial Summary

First published in 1990, Martin E. P. Seligman’s Learned Optimism: How to Change Your Mind and Your Life synthesizes decades of research on depression, helplessness, and resilience. A pioneer in the field of positive psychology, Seligman shares his theories of learned helplessness to argue that pessimism is not an immutable trait but rather a cognitive habit that can be unlearned. In its place, individuals can cultivate optimism, a flexible, evidence-based mindset that enhances achievement, health... Read Learned Optimism Summary