The Best of Everything Nonfiction for 2009
Here is my list of the very best books, films, and documentaries that I’ve seen or read this past year. Only books or films that got a four star rating or higher made the list. Anything getting a five star rating is indicated with an asterisk. The items in this list do not necessarily have to have been released in 2009.
Review of Fordlandia by Greg Grandin
The title Fordlandiais not the catchiest title, but it is an appropriate title because it accurately reflects what this book is about. Fordlandia is the name given to a large parcel of land in Brazil purchased by Henry Ford for the purpose of growing rubber trees with the hope of using that rubber in his expanding automotive empire. It is also a story about what happens when Henry Ford tries to transplant a midwestern town in the middle of the Amazon.