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Biography and Memoir January 2026 |
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| Lucy & Desi: The Love Letters by Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz; Lucie Arnaz, compilerLucie Arnaz, daughter of America’s premier midcentury TV couple, has curated a selection of her parents’ letters to each other during the blossoming years of their relationship. The young lovers’ missives, many written during Arnaz's military service, intimately reveal their longing and affection while occasionally giving a glimpse of their quarrels and jealousies. For more candid couples' communication, try Kirk and Anne: Letters of Love, Laughter, and a Lifetime in Hollywood by Kirk and Anne Douglas. |
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| Joan Crawford: A Woman's Face by Scott EymanFilm historian Scott Eyman unveils a comprehensive and evenhanded biography of Joan Crawford, an original “femme fatale” of Hollywood’s golden age. Noted for her unfaltering work ethic over a five-decade career, Crawford was closely guarded about her private life. Eyman unearths sources that highlight her impoverished upbringing, multiple marriages, and the allegations of abuse of her adopted children in this “juicy Hollywood saga” (Library Journal). |
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| Grit, Spit, and Never Quit: A Marine's Guide to Comedy and Life by Rob RiggleComedian, actor, and Marine Corps veteran Rob Riggle debuts with a funny and energetic take on comedy, military life, and a career in showbiz. Sure, his path may have been unconventional – Riggle cut his teeth on the New York stand-up stage between deployments to Kosovo and Afghanistan – but he entertains by drawing surprising parallels between the two jobs. This is a great choice for readers who liked You’re on an Airplane: A Self-Mythologizing Memoir by Parker Posey. |
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Winning the Earthquake: How Jeannette Rankin Defied All Odds to Become the First Woman in Congress
by Lorissa Rinehart
The first major biography of Jeannette Rankin, a groundbreaking suffragist, activist, and the first American woman to hold federal office.Few members of Congress have ever stood more alone while being true to a higher honor and loyalty.--President John F. Kennedy on Jeannette Rankin Born on a Montana ranch in 1880, Jeannette Rankin knew how to ride a horse, make a fire, and read the sky for weather. But, most of all, she knew how to talk to people and unite them around a shared vision for America. It was this rare skill that led her to become the first woman ever elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. As her first act, Rankin put forth the legislation that would become the Nineteenth Amendment. During her two terms, beginning in 1917 and in 1941, she introduced and lobbied for legislation strengthening women's rights, protecting workers, supporting democratic electoral reform, and promoting peace through disarmament. As Congress's fiercest pacifist, she used her vote to oppose the declaration of war against the German Empire in 1917 and the Japanese Empire in 1941, holding fast to her belief that you can no more win a war than you can win an earthquake. A suffragist, peace activist, workers' rights advocate, and champion of democratic reform who ran as a Republican, Rankin remained ever faithful to her beliefs, no matter the price she had to pay personally. Despite overcoming the entrenched boys' club of oligarchic capitalists and career politicians to make enormous strides for women in politics, Rankin has been largely overlooked. In Winning the Earthquake, Lorissa Rinehart expertly recovers the compelling history behind this singular American hero, bringing her story back to life.
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| The Six Loves of James I by Gareth RussellHistorian Gareth Russell’s well-researched biography of England’s James I is a gossipy exposé of the first Stuart king. By detailing James’ loving relationships with both women (his wife Anna of Denmark) and men (royal favorite Lord George Villiers), Russell’s book normalizes the subject of homosexuality among British royalty while providing a riveting read. For more about the Stuart monarchs, check out Don Jordan and Michael Walsh’s The King’s Bed: Ambition and Intimacy in the Court of Charles II. |
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| Bread of Angels by Patti SmithPoet, musician, author, and all-around artist Patti Smith impresses with a life-spanning memoir. Smith’s writing is always lyrical, dreamlike, and filled with literary references, but here she uses it to reveal snippets of her restless, sickly childhood and intimate fragments of her marriage to the late Fred “Sonic” Smith. Somewhat of a return to form from her recent work, Bread of Angels is highly recommended for fans of Smith’s National Book Award-winning autobiography Just Kids. |
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Read into the NEW YEAR 2026 at ALPL |
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Avon Lake Public Library
32649 Electric Blvd.
Avon Lake, Ohio 44012
440-933-8128alpl.org |
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