Biography and Memoir

Discover the stories of their lives, in recent biographies, autobiographies, and memoirs.
Updated January 10, 2026
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Class clown : the memoirs of a professional wiseass : how I went 77 years without growing up
Barry, Dave
Paper Book
America's most beloved wiseass finally tells his life story with all the humor you'd expect from a man who made a career out of making fun of pretty much everything. How does the son of a Presbyterian minister wind up winning a Pulitzer Prize for writing a wildly inaccurate...
The harder I fight the more I love you : a memoir
Case, Neko
Paper Book
A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER AN APPLE BEST BOOK OF THE MONTH Singer-songwriter Neko Case paints a vivid portrait of an extraordinary life--one forged through a poverty-stricken childhood, obsessive desire, bursts of comedy, and...
The house of my mother : a daughter's quest for freedom
Franke, Shari
Paper Book
INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER "Heart-wrenchingly personal...dizzying." --Rolling Stone From eldest daughter Shari Franke, the shocking true story behind the viral 8 Passengers family vlog--now the subject of a new Hulu...
Hope : the autobiography
Francis, Pope
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * Pope Francis originally intended this exceptional memoir to appear only after his death, but the needs of our times and the 2025 Jubilee Year of Hope moved him to make this precious legacy available sooner. Now, the book stands as his testament; the spiritual,...
Crumb : a cartoonist's life
Nadel, Dan
Paper Book
Named a Best Book of the Year by The Washington Post "A definitive and ideal biography--pound for pound, one of the sleekest and most judicious I've ever read." --Dwight Garner, The New York Times A critical darling, Crumb...
The dry season : a memoir of pleasure in a year without sex
Febos, Melissa
Paper Book
From Melissa Febos, the national bestselling author of Girlhood, comes an examination of the solitude, freedoms, and feminist heroes she discovered during a year of celibacy and a wise and transformative look at relationships and self-knowledge. "Only Melissa Febos could...
Say everything : a memoir
Skye, Ione
Paper Book
In this instant New York Times bestselling memoir, Gen X icon Ione Skye shares her "delightfully juicy" (People) and achingly vulnerable story about chasing fame, desire, and true love in the shadow of her famous, absent father. In 1987, sixteen-year-old Ione Skye...
Ordinary time : : lessons learned while staying put
Jones, Annie B.
Paper Book
In her first book, the popular From the Front Porch podcast host and independent bookstore owner challenges the idea that loud lives are the ones that matter most, reminding us that we don't have to leave the lives we have in order to have the lives of which we've always dreamed.<...
Homework : a memoir
Dyer, Geoff
Paper Book
Named a most anticipated book of 2025 by Vulture | The Guardian | Financial Times | The Observer | The Times (London) | Literary Hub "A picture of postwar England unlike any other . . . A highly original memoir that will provoke,...
The loves of my life : a sex memoir
White, Edmund
Paper Book
A VULTURE BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR From the legendary author Edmund White, a stunning, revelatory memoir of a lifetime of gay love and sex. "In his panoply of sexual encounters, Edmund White's love of sex makes us proud to be human. And the story of...
Lorne : the man who invented Saturday Night Live
Morrison, Susan
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * The definitive biography of Lorne Michaels, the man behind America's most beloved comedy show "The kind of biographical monument usually consecrated to founding fathers, canonical authors and world-historical scientific geniuses."--The New York...
The rebel Romanov : Julie of Saxe-Coburg, the empress Russia never had
Rappaport, Helen
Paper Book
From the New York Times bestselling author of The Romanov Sisters comes the story of a courageous young Imperial Grand Duchess who scandalized Europe in search of freedom. In 1795, Catherine the Great of Russia was in search of a bride for her grandson...
I regret almost everything : a memoir
McNally, Keith
Paper Book
New York Times Bestseller The entertaining, irreverent, and surprisingly moving memoir by the visionary restaurateur behind such iconic New York institutions as Balthazar and Pastis. A memoir by the legendary proprietor of Balthazar, Pastis, Minetta Tavern,...
Good soil : the education of an accidental farmhand
Chu, Jeff
Paper Book
A profound meditation on nature, heritage, and belonging, from an accomplished journalist who left New York City for life on a working farm "I needed this book. I think you need it, too."-Maggie Smith, New York Times bestselling author of You Could Make This Place Beautiful...
Spellbound : my life as a dyslexic wordsmith
Hanley, Phil
Paper Book
National Bestseller An Amazon Best of Biography/Memoir Comedian and severe dyslexic Phil Hanley reveals his unlikely path to success in a story that is equal parts hilarious and heartbreaking. When Phil Hanley...
The woman who knew everyone : the power of Perle Mesta, Washington's most famous hostess
Gordon, Meryl
Paper Book
A TOWN & COUNTRY MUST READ BOOK OF 2025 AN AMAZON BEST BOOK OF THE MONTH - BIOGRAPHIES & MEMOIR A deeply researched biography of the socialite, political hostess, activist and United States envoy to Luxembourg, Perle Mesta, from New York Times...
Clodia of Rome : champion of the republic
Boin, Douglas
Paper Book
One of Rome's most powerful women, Clodia has been maligned over two thousand years as a promiscuous, husband-murdering harlot--thanks to her starring role in one of Cicero's most famous speeches in the Forum. But Cicero was lying, in defense of his own property and interests. Like so many women...
Making the best of what's left : when we're too old to get the chairs reupholstered
Viorst, Judith
Paper Book
From the bestselling author Judith Viorst comes a witty and poignant exploration of the joys and sorrows of life's twilight years--one that leaves us laughing, pondering, and grateful for the moments we have left. In a career that has spanned more than fifty years, Judith Viorst...
This dog will change your life
Friedman, Elias Weiss
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER . A uniquely insightful, uplifting, emotional, and informative book that shows us how dogs make our lives better by making us better people, from the Dogist The stunning hardcover of This Dog Will Change Your Life features a custom...
How to share an egg : a true story of hunger, love, and plenty
Reichert, Bonny
Paper Book
An "absolutely transformative" (People) culinary memoir about the relationship between food and family-sustenance and survival-from a chef, award-winning journalist, and daughter of a Holocaust survivor. "Beautifully written, heartbreaking and hopeful."-Ruth Reichl, New...
Sister, sinner : the miraculous life and mysterious disappearance of Aimee Semple McPherson
Hoffman, Claire (Journalist)
Paper Book
A Los Angeles Times Best Book of the Year A Must-Read: The New Yorker, The New York Times Book Review, The Millions, Alta Long-listed for the National Book Critics Circle Award for Biography "Magnificent."<...
Written in the waters : a memoir of history, home, and belonging
Roberts, Tara
Paper Book
One woman's epic journey to trace the global slave trade across the Atlantic Ocean in this searing memoir for fans of Cheryl Strayed's Wild and Jesmyn Ward's Men We Reaped. An adventurous blend of personal and cultural history from a star National Geographic Explorer...
Daughter of daring : the trick-riding, train-leaping, road-racing life of Helen Gibson, Hollywood's first stuntwoman
O'Meara, Mallory
Paper Book
From LA Times bestselling author Mallory O'Meara, the story of America's first professional stuntwoman, Helen Gibson, who rose to fame during a time when women ruled Hollywood. Helen Gibson was a woman willing to do anything to give audiences a thrill. Advertised as "The...
Looking at women looking at war : a war and justice diary
Amelina, Viktorii a
Paper Book
WINNER, THE ORWELL PRIZE FOR POLITICAL WRITING SHORT LIST, THE 2025 MOORE PRIZE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS WRITING WITH A FOREWORD BY MARGARET ATWOOD A NATIONAL BESTSELLERNPR BOOKS WE LOVE, 2025 "Remarkable...powerful, eloquently testifying to the...
Motherland : a feminist history of modern Russia, from revolution to autocracy
Ioffe, Julia
Paper Book
FINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD NAMED ONE OF THE 10 BEST BOOKS OF 2025 BY THE WASHINGTON POST NAMED ONE OF THE 100 NOTABLE BOOKS OF 2025 BY THE NEW YORK TIMES A GUARDIAN BEST BOOK OF 2025 NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF FALL...
Do not cry when I die : a Holocaust memoir of a mother and daughter's survival in Jewish ghettos, Auschwitz, and Bergen-Belsen
Salt, Renee
Paper Book
One of the oldest living Holocaust survivors recounts her family's imprisonment at Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen in this moving memoir of love, loss, courage, and hope. "A deeply moving memoir, beautifully written and researched." --Lucy Adlington, New York Times bestselling...

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