Jackson Adams and Anna Weir are publicists at UNP. Today they share their thoughts about a few upcoming titles they’re particularly excited about as readers. The books in this discussion will be published in January.

Anna Weir: Living so close to UNL’s campus, where agricultural research is so prominent, a book like One Size Fits None was bound to catch my eye. Stephanie Anderson takes the idea of sustainability one step further and argues that the agricultural industry should move to a regenerative system. She travels from Florida to New Mexico to the Daktoas, illustrating how specific farmers are already putting this idea into practice—and how, because of their differing regions, the same regenerative practices won’t work for every farm or crop. This investigative travel memoir is a brilliant way to show the benefits of giving as much as we take from the earth, a lesson we increasingly need to understand.

What are you looking forward to, Jackson?

Jackson Adams: As I alluded to earlier this month, Dan Bernstein’s Justice in Plain Sight is a book that’s awfully close to my heart. Having covered court proceedings many times as a reporter, reading Bernstein’s well researched account of the fight that allowed reporters to tell the most sensitive stories that impact their community is essential. In an age where journalists’ ability to tell stories is often called into question, Justice in Plain Sight isn’t just fascinating but essential.

Anna, what else are you enjoying?

AW: No matter how different our situations, every human being shares the experience of having a physical body, one that can be wounded, sickened, and grow old. Some bodies experience this to a greater degree than others. Bodies of Truth highlights and explains these varying degrees, exploring physical disability as well as mental illness and medicine. Doctors, patients, family members, and caregivers share their experiences in this collection, edited by Dinty W. Moore, Erin Murphy, and Renée K. Nicholson—professors and writers who specialize in polishing the creative work of others to a gleam. This collection shines.

JA: Watching the “yellow vest” protests in France has kept Daughters of 1968: Redefining French Feminism and the Women’s Liberation Movement by Lisa Greenwald fresh in my mind. Greenwald traces the women’s movement in France from the end of World War II to the 1980s, with most of the attention paid to the protests in May 1968 that redefined women’s roles in the home and workplace. Beyond analyzing the events of the memorable protests, Greenwald looks at the tensions between various forces in the movement, as well as the ways that the protests paved the way for a more modern inclusive France, one still straining under corporate and social tensions.

Tune in next month for more reading suggestions from your friendly neighborhood publicists!