2024 Reading List
Format: Paperback
If You Only Knew: Navigating DNA Surprises and the *NPE (Not-Parent Expected) World
By Lezlee Lliljenberg
“DNA testing can be helpful to find long-lost relatives and create your genealogy tree, but can also reveal family secrets that can no longer be hidden. When this happened to Liljenberg, she was thrown into the world of being an NPE (Not-Parent Expected).
This book delves into Liljenberg’s experience of her DNA surprise, discovery, and research. She shares her stories and those of others as she helps the reader navigate the drama, joy, and acceptance of these very sensitive journeys.”
Format: E-book
The Hollywood Strangler: A Venator Cold Case #3
By Nathan Dylan Goodwin
I was fortunate to receive an advance copy of Nathan’s soon-to-be-published third entry in the Venator Cold Case series. Unfortunately, I can’t tell you anything about the book yet, except that it involves Hollywood. And a strangler. And Investigative Genetic Genealogy. And… you’re going to love it, I promise (I did)!
Format: Kindle
Co-Intelligence: Living and Working with AI
By Ethan Mollick
Like it or not, AI is here, probably to stay. In this book, Ethan Mollick, a Wharton professor and author, suggests that we learn to live and work with AI as if it is an alien “co-intelligence,” and he offers a variety of strategies and scenarios for making a successful switch to this “cyborg” existence. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and feel that I have a better understanding of how to use AI now, as well as in the future. If you plan to incorporate AI into your life, I strongly recommend giving this book a read.
Format: Kindle
American Child Bride: A History of Minors and Marriage in the United States
By Nicholas L. Syrett
As a researcher of Southern families, I often run into marriages of what we, as 21st-century genealogists, would consider “children.” By today’s standards, the idea of children marrying is unusual. But in the past, people as young as twelve often married.
Format: Kindle
The American Census: A Social History (Second Edition)
By Margo J. Anderson
I am fascinated by the political and social reasons behind the creation of documents we use as family historians. The U.S. census is one of our most frequently used documents, but how often do we think about WHY certain questions were asked? What was happening in the country? Which party was in power, and how did the answers benefit them politically? What were the current social concerns? How did technological advances affect the census? These questions – and more – are answered in Anderson’s book. If you are a census nerd like me, this book will be an interesting and enjoyable read!
Format: Kindle
I Know Who You Are: How an Amateur DNA Sleuth Unmasked the Golden State Killer and Changed Crime Fighting Forever
By Barbara Rae-Ventner
I was in high school in southern California when the man monster now known as the Golden State Killer began his crime spree. More than 40 years later, the man who thought he got away with it all is finally behind bars, thanks to Investigative Genetic Genealogy (IGG) and the tenacious Barbara Rae-Ventner. In the book, Rae-Ventner describes the techniques used to find him, as well as unidentified persons/bodies and other violent criminals. This is a must-read for anyone with an interest in IGG.
Format: Paperback
Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI
By David Grann
This book was gifted to me by the amazing Gena Philibert-Ortega, who said it was an important book that I NEEDED to read. And of course, she was right! Killers of the Flower Moon is an incredible – and horrifying – story about the murders of members of the Osage Tribe in the 1920s and how that mystery was eventually solved despite government screw-ups and coverups. You may have seen the movie, but you need to read the book. I couldn’t put it down!