Nonfiction selection autumn 2026

From the remote wilderness of Alaska to the fault lines of the Middle East, from disappearing landscapes to forgotten experiences of slowness, the books in this autumn’s nonfiction selection map a world in transition. These six authors grapple with questions of violence, power, resilience, loss and attention, while searching for new ways of understanding the present. The result is a rich and timely collection of books that illuminate both the challenges of our era and the opportunities to imagine a different future.

Flemish city-dweller Matthias Declercq has been fascinated by the idea of the wilderness ever since he was a child. What would it be like to live far away from everything, in the heart of nature? He decides to follow in the footsteps of a fellow villager who emigrated to Alaska in the 1960s and ends up in Tanana, a tiny village on the River Yukon, where he witnesses the endurance, the destructive impulses and the enormous resilience of human beings in this extreme, rapidly changing world.

To break free from his own screen addiction, author Johannes De Breuker set out in search of the ultimate remedy. He found it in everyday boredom. As a film critic, he immersed himself in the slow-moving films of Sofia Coppola, Richard Linklater and many others, in the hope of reacquainting himself with the forgotten experience of boredom and slowness. 

From Cain and Abel to Noel and Liam Gallagher, from the Dassler brothers to Kim Jong-un and Kim Jong-nam, from Romulus and Remus to Jake and Logan Paul: fraternal rivalry and violence are common threads in our history, culture and narratives.

‘On Brothers’ is a personal and playful essay on masculinity, desire, power, fear, fury and beauty, but also on the struggle to be allowed to tell the story. Drawing on six iconic pairs of brothers, Rossel explores both the allure and the destructive power of brotherly bonds.

This book succeeds in making a complex reality understandable. In a concise and accessible manner, Debeuf outlines the historical developments, political fault lines and ideological currents that shape the Middle East today. This clear overview is essential background reading for anyone who wants to understand the region better and look beyond simplistic explanations.

Hens writes about animals, plants and environments that were once taken for granted: lapwings, eels, elms, cornflowers, snow. What are we in danger of losing unless we transform the destruction of living things into restoration and care? ‘Archive of Possible Loss’ is an intimate and timely book about what is at stake in our rapidly evolving world. It is both a recipe for wonder and a bulwark against forgetting. Above all, it nourishes a deep love for the life that surrounds us.

Gescinska’s focus rests on ten remarkable women, among them well-known figures such as Hannah Arendt, Simone Weil, Etty Hillesum and Rosa Luxemburg. Through their words and actions, these women resisted the oppression, dehumanisation and destructive impulses of their era. They became beacons of light in humanity’s darkest hours – often at great personal cost, from death in concentration camps to a life in exile.