A poster promoting the “Between Two Covers” segment stands out at The Bookworm bookstore in Omaha, celebrating local readers and literary voices.
By Gabriel Escalera
Between Two Covers: New Nonfiction Reads
August 5th, 2026
As students head back to school and lifelong learners look for their next great read, Carl Erickson of the Bookworm Bookstore recommends three recent nonfiction titles that blend history, investigation and reporting.
In Neptune’s Fortune by Julian Sancton, readers follow archaeologist Roger Dooley, whose chance discovery in a Spanish archive leads to the centuries-old mystery of the San José, a Spanish treasure ship that sank off the coast of Cartagena after a fierce naval battle with the British. The book traces Dooley’s search from archives in Seville to the Caribbean, weaving together maritime history, treasure hunting and modern archaeology.
Patrick Radden Keefe’s London Falling begins with a mysterious death outside the headquarters of Britain’s intelligence service. What appears to be a suicide becomes something far more complicated as grieving parents uncover their son’s secret identity as the fictional heir to a Russian fortune. Their search for answers reveals a hidden world of organized crime, deception and unanswered questions.
In How to Rule the World, 17-year-old journalist Theo Baker recounts how, as a freshman at Stanford University, he uncovered allegations of research misconduct involving the university’s president. Baker’s investigation offers an inside look at higher education, institutional power and the role young journalists can play in holding influential leaders accountable.
Carl Erickson says these titles are ideal for readers looking to learn something new as another school year begins.
More information about these books and upcoming author events is available at the Bookworm Bookstore.
