Old Firehouse Books suggests a memoir and nonfiction titles

Each week as part of SunLit — The Sun’s literature section — we feature staff recommendations from book stores across Colorado. This week, the staff from Old Firehouse Books in Fort Collins recommends books with topics from religion to folklore to the power of place.

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From the publisher: Religion is distinctly human. We can’t help wondering about where we come from and why we are here. Did some all-powerful being make the universe? When we die, is there anything else to come? And what will it be like? Questions like these have occupied human minds across the ages. In our search for answers, we have come up with different stories.

Richard Holloway tells the history of the major religions from the dawn of belief to the 21st century. Ranging far beyond Judaism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism and Hinduism, he writes for those with faith and those without, and for those who might be making up their minds.

From Zane, bookseller: This is the first book I’ve read from Yale University Press’s Little Histories series, and I’d super recommend it for anyone who just, gosh dang it, loves learning. It’s 256 pages, which is little in terms of summarizing humanity’s religions history, but let it be known that it is not a “little” account. Holloway does a detailed and engaging job of spanning this massive subject, and for someone who was looking for a primer on the study, I was very, very pleased.

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From the publisher: A stunning narrative from one of the most powerful young writers at work today, this book  interweaves oral history with hard-hitting journalism and a deeply personal father-son journey into a searing portrait of Indigenous survival, love, and resurgence.

From Teresa, co-owner: Described by the author himself as speculative nonfiction and I couldn’t agree more. A blend of history and folklore (Coyote the trickster is a main character) but mostly a memoir of a man who is finding himself with the help of learning about his past.

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From the publisher: A stunning book by photographer Leah Gordon and bestselling art author Stephen Ellcock, illustrated with 100 incredible colour images from a diverse range of artists of different eras, exploring the enclosure of common land in England and the struggle over the centuries to regain access. In 1600, 50% of England was common land. It’s not 3 %. This is the story of how that happened.

From Julie, bookseller: Tells the history of the public’s “quiet” loss of land rights in England, and their own creative expression in art, protest, and customs.

Type of Story: Review

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