Biography and Memoir
March 2026

Recent Releases
We Survived the Night by Julian Brave Noisecat
We Survived the Night
by Julian Brave Noisecat

Born to a Secwepemc father and Jewish-Irish mother, Julian Brave NoiseCat's childhood was full of contradictions. Despite living in the urban Native community of Oakland, California, he was raised primarily by his white mother. He was a competitive powwow dancer, but asked his father to cut his hair short, fearing that his white classmates would call him a girl if he kept it long. When his father, tormented by an abusive and impoverished rez upbringing, eventually left the family, NoiseCat was left to make sense of his Indigenous heritage and identity on his own. Now, decades later, Noisecat has set across the country to correct the erasure, invisibility, and misconceptions surrounding this nation's First Peoples, as he develops his voice as a storyteller and artist in his own right.
John Candy: A Life in Comedy by Paul Myers
John Candy: A Life in Comedy
by Paul Myers

From his humble beginnings in sketch comedy with the Toronto branch of Second City, to his rise to fame in SCTV and Hollywood film classics like Planes, Trains and Automobiles, The Great Outdoors, and Uncle Buck, John Candy captivated audiences with his self-deprecating humour, emotional warmth, and gift for improvisation. Now, for the first time since Candy's tragic death, bestselling biographer Paul Myers tells the full story of the man behind the laughs. Drawing on extensive research and exclusive interviews with many of Candy's closest friends and colleagues, including Dan Aykroyd, Chevy Chase, Tom Hanks, Ron Howard, Steve Martin, Catherine O'Hara, Martin Short, and many more, John Candy: A Life in Comedy celebrates the comedian's unparalleled talent, infectious charm, and generosity of spirit. Through ups and downs, successes and failures, and struggles with anxiety and self-doubt, Candy faced the world with a big smile and a warm demeanour that earned him the love and adoration of fans around the world.
Backstage: Stories of a Writing Life by Donna Leon
Backstage: Stories of a Writing Life
by Donna Leon

Celebrated mystery author and creator of the Guido Brunetti series Donna Leon gives her readers a peek into the workings of a prolific creative mind. In brief but gorgeously crafted essays, Leon relates memorable scenes from her life and talks about some of her inspirations, including Venice, the books of Ruth Rendell, and Baroque music.
Taylor's Version: The Poetic and Musical Genius of Taylor Swift by Stephanie Burt
Taylor's Version: The Poetic and Musical Genius of Taylor Swift
by Stephanie Burt

Taylor Swift has become a peerless superstar, ceaselessly productive and internationally beloved. From her teen country debut to her world tour as the chair of the tortured poets department, Swift's career and her creations have captivated and bewitched us, opening up new ways to see both her life and our own. In Taylor's Version, the poet and literary scholar Stephanie Burt offers [a] ... critical appreciation of Taylor Swift, her body of work, and the community that her art has fostered. Drawing from her 2024 Harvard course ... as well as from her years as a Swiftie, Burt examines the purposes, talents, and energies Swift brings to her music and to her persona.
Not My Type: One Woman vs. a President by E. Jean Carroll
Not My Type: One Woman vs. a President
by E. Jean Carroll

An autobiography of journalist and advice columnist E. Jean Carroll. Includes transcripts of testimony in the defamation trial against Donald Trump.
A Truce That is Not Peace by Miriam Toews
A Truce That is Not Peace
by Miriam Toews

A masterwork of non-fiction, A Truce That Is Not Peace explores the uneasy pact every creative person makes with memory. Wildly original yet intimately, powerfully precise; momentous, hilarious, wrenching, and joyful—this is Miriam Toews at her dazzling best, remaking her personal world and inventing a brilliant literary form to hold it.
Henry V: The Astonishing Triumph of England's Greatest Warrior King by Dan Jones
Henry V: The Astonishing Triumph of England's Greatest Warrior King
by Dan Jones

Bestselling historian Dan Jones (Powers and Thrones) offers a lively portrait of Henry V (1386-1422), detailing how he utilized his military exploits, diplomacy skills, and creative pursuits to craft his oft-imitated public image. 
Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays the Rent by Judi Dench
Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays the Rent
by Judi Dench

Taking a curtain call with a live snake in her wig. Cavorting naked through the Warwickshire countryside painted green. Acting opposite a child with a pumpkin on his head. These are just a few of the things Dame Judi Dench has done in the name of Shakespeare. For the very first time, Judi opens up about every Shakespearean role she has played throughout her seven-decade career, from Lady Macbeth and Titania to Ophelia and Cleopatra. In a series of intimate conversations with actor & director Brendan O'Hea, she guides us through Shakespeare's plays with incisive clarity, revealing the secrets of her rehearsal process and inviting us to share in her triumphs, disasters, and backstage shenanigans.
107 Days by Kamala Harris
107 Days
by Kamala Harris

Your Secret Service code name is Pioneer. You are the first woman in history to be elected vice president of the United States. On July 21, 2024, your running mate, Joe Biden, announces that he will not be seeking reelection. The presidential election will occur on November 5, 2024. You have 107 days. Written with candor, a unique perspective, and the pace of a page-turning novel, 107 Days takes you inside the race for the presidency as no one has ever done before.
Contact your librarian for more great books!
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www.cobourg.library.on.ca