New in nonfiction: 5 highly anticipated stories of real life debuting this fall

On the heels of a surprisingly healthy two years of book sales — especially for political nonfiction — one big question looms over the fall: Can books about nonpolitical topics grab the collective attention of readers? These five books have the best shot and most appeal. (And only one of them is about politics.)

Sept. 14

‘Unbound: My Story of Liberation and the Birth of the Me Too Movement’

By Tarana Burke (Flatiron, 272 pages, $29)

The #MeToo movement leader narrates her journey of healing from sexual assault, which inspired her to build one of the largest social forces in recent history. Oprah Winfrey called it “searing,” “powerful” and “needed.”

Sept. 21

‘Peril’

By Bob Woodward and Robert Costa (Simon & Schuster, 512 pages, $30)

Closing out his trilogy on Donald Trump (after “Rage” and “Fear: Trump in the White House”), Woodward is joined by the Washington Post’s Robert Costa to document not only the tumultuous downfall of 45 and the Jan. 6 insurrection, but also the early months of Joe Biden’s term. Details are locked down, but publisher Jonathan Karp promises “it will be newsworthy on an international scale.”

‘Vanderbilt: The Rise and Fall of an American Dynasty’

By Anderson Cooper and Katherine Howe (Harper, 336 pages, $30)

Journalist Anderson Cooper documents the trajectory of his mother’s family, the Vanderbilts. With historian Katherine Howe, Cooper explores his great-great-great grandfather Cornelius Vanderbilt’s insatiable hunger for money, which spawned an empire and built a fortune his heirs would spend in astonishing ways.

Sept. 28

‘Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography’

Compiled by Laurie Woolever (Ecco, 448 pages, $30)

The recent documentary “Roadrunner” reinforced the public’s fascination with the late food-travel writer and TV host, and much remains to be told. Laurie Woolever, Anthony Bourdain’s longtime assistant, interviewed nearly 100 of his friends and colleagues, constructing an intimate portrait by those who knew him best.

Nov. 16

‘Viral: The Search for the Origin of COVID-19’

By Matt Ridley and Alina Chan (Harper, 384 pages, $30)

Nearly two years after the COVID-19 pandemic upended our lives, the mystery of its origins remains unsolved. Journalist Matt Ridley joins molecular biologist Alina Chan, who helped tweet the lab-leak theory back to life, to explore animal markets and labs, dig through records and data, and analyze clues from the virus’s own DNA.

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