Episode 22: Nonfiction
Summary: Welcome to Nonfiction November! Holly and Devin are kicking off this month by diving into two very different nonfiction books: Holly’s, a deep dive into serial killer Ted Bundy, and Devin’s, a deep dive into the full spectrum of human emotion and how they can enrich our lives. Couldn’t be more different, but Holly and Devin unite over the place of nonfiction in their lives and how books like these can impact them both inside and outside their wheelhouses.
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Topics Discussed:
The Dagger (3:47): Holly discussed The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule, an in-depth, journalistic approach to the story of Ted Bundy and the murder spree he went on between 1973 - 1978. Rule, who had been a journalist investigating the murders and disappearances of women in Washington State in the early 70s, worked with Bundy at a crisis call center and was contracted to write her book before the killer was identified. Holly’s key takeaways were:
Bundy’s murders spanned 4 states but always involved a similar profile for victim; young, brunette women with long hair parted down the middle (As a curly-haired blonde, Devin felt comforted by this - even though he died in 1989). He would routinely fake a broken arm or a broken-down car to engage with them.
The most impactful and interesting aspect of the book was Ann Rule’s own personal connection to Ted and the cases. Her journey discovering that her friend was a suspect, denial and confusion, and eventual horrifying realization and acceptance as the situation turned ever more dire and damning carried the reader through the book in a unique way.
Holly also wants to underline: never hitchhike, keep your doors and windows locked, avoid walking alone esp at night, look like you know where you’re going when walking (even if you don’t), and never go to someone’s car with them.
The Heart (32:26): Devin discussed Atlas of the Heart by Brené Brown, a gorgeously formatted book that archives the eighty-seven emotions and experiences that define what it means to be human. Brown uses descriptions and overviews of these emotions as a conduit to drive home a wider message; the better we can understand and articulate how we feel about our lives, the more deeply we can connect to those around us. Devin’s key takeaways were:
Applying qualitative research to something as elusive and difficult to understand as the spectrum of human emotion allows the reader to more deeply inspect their own experiences, unconscious drivers, and relationships with others with both passion and scientific precision.
Brown categorizes emotions into buckets that also serve to augment the reader’s experience and sense of unification across feelings and experiences all humans have. Devin’s favorites were “Places we go when it’s beyond us” (awe, wonder, confusion, curiosity, interest, surprise) and “Places we go with others” (compassion, pity, empathy, sympathy, boundaries, comparative suffering)
The foundational takeaway from Devin from this book is being able to articulate not just four emotions (happy, sad, angry, horny) but many more and how the simple act of being self-aware enough to name a nuanced emotion will revolutionize our relationships.
Hot On the Shelf (54:51):
What’s Making Our Hearts Race (57:13):
Devin: Delta Airlines’ flight experience
Holly: Los Angeles Haunted Hayride
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