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Biography and Memoir December 2025 |
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| Book of Lives: A Memoir of Sorts by Margaret AtwoodIn Book of Lives, Canadian author Margaret Atwood brings readers a long-awaited, “marvelously witty” (Kirkus Reviews) memoir. Writing as much about her craft as her life story, Atwood reveals how both have influenced one another, for instance explaining how the dystopian setting for The Handmaid’s Tale was in part inspired by a stint in 1980s Berlin. For another memoir that ruminates on the writing life, try Novelist as a Vocation by Haruki Murakami.
*If you'd like to request this book, please visit your library and ask for assistance! |
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Independent: A Look Inside a Broken White House, Outside the Party Lines
by Karine Jean-Pierre
A groundbreaking, revelatory assessment of America's broken two-party system. Rachel Maddow calls it a brave firecracker of a book. In a country obsessed with blind loyalty to a two-party democratic system, Karine Jean-Pierre, former White House press secretary to the Biden-Harris administration, shares why Americans must step beyond party lines to embrace life as Independents. Jean-Pierre didn't come to her decision to be an Independent lightly. She has served two American presidents, Obama and Biden. In 2020, she joined Biden's campaign as a senior adviser, becoming Harris's chief of staff and then two years later, White House press secretary. She takes us through the three weeks that led to Biden's abandonment of his bid for a second term and the betrayal by the Democratic Party that led to his decision. In an urgent, timely analysis, Independent asks all Americans to vote their values and maintain their individuality within party lines. She presents clear arguments and provocative evidence from her time as an insider about the importance of dismantling the torrent of disinformation and misinformation that has been rampant during recent elections and provides passionate insight for ways to move forward. In a hard-hitting-yet-hopeful critique, Jean-Pierre defines what it means to be part of the growing percentage of our fractured electorate that is Independent, explains why it can be worthwhile to carve oneself a political ideology true to personal beliefs rather than a party affiliation, and provides the questions you need to ask yourself to determine where you fit politically. As a history maker, veteran public servant, political analyst, and independent thinker, she urges Americans to think outside of the blue-and-red box as we consider what's next to save our democracy.
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What a Fool Believes: A Memoir
by Michael McDonald
* INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER *A sweeping and evocative memoir from the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, Grammy Award-winning, platinum selling singer-songwriter Michael McDonald, written with his friend, Emmy Award-nominated actor, comedian, and #1 New York Times bestselling author Paul Reiser.Doobie Brothers. Steely Dan. Chart topping soloist. Across a half-century of American music, Michael McDonald's unmistakably smooth baritone voice defined an era of rock and R&B with hit records like What A Fool Believes, Takin' It to the Streets, I Keep Forgettin', Peg, It Keeps You Running, You Belong to Me, and Yah Mo B There.In his candid, freewheeling memoir, written with his friend, the Emmy Award-nominated actor and comedian Paul Reiser, Michael tells the story of his life and music. A high school dropout from Ferguson, Missouri, Michael chased his dreams in 1970's California, a heady moment of rock opportunity and excess. As a rising session musician and backing vocalist, a series of encounters would send him on a wild ride around the world and to the heights of rock stardom--from joining Steely Dan and becoming a defining member of The Doobie Brothers to forging a path as a breakout solo R&B artist.Interwoven with the unforgettable tales of the music, Michael tells a deeply affecting story of losing and finding himself as a man. He reckons with the unshakeable insecurities that drove him, the drug and alcohol addictions that plagued him, and the highs and lows of popularity. Along the way he relays the lessons he's learned, and that if he's learned anything at all it's that there's often little correlation between what you get and what you deserve.Filled with unbelievable stories and a matchless cast of music greats including James Taylor, Ray Charles, Carly Simon, and Quincy Jones, What a Fool Believes is a moving and entertaining memoir that is sure to be a classic.
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How to Test Negative for Stupid: And Why Washington Never Will
by John Kennedy
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER One of the most distinctive and funny politicians, Senator John Kennedy (the one from Louisiana)--hailed by Politico as America's most quotable Senator--offers his perceptive (and hilarious) takes on the ridiculousness of political life in this scathingly witty takedown of Washington and its elite denizens.How to Test Negative for Stupid offers the Senator's tongue-in-cheek guidebook through Washington, punctuated by his thoughts on various issues and humorous stories about life from Louisiana politics and inside the Senate.From the mind--and mouth--of America's Most Quotable Senator Always be yourself . . . unless you suck.I say this gently: This is why the aliens won't talk to us.If you trust government, you obviously failed history class.I believe that our country was founded by geniuses, but it's being run by idiots.Always follow your heart . . . but take your brain with you.I'm not going to Bubble Wrap it: The water in Washington, D.C., won't clear up until you get the pigs out of the creek.I have the right to remain silent but not the ability.Common sense is illegal in Washington, D.C., I know. I've seen it firsthand.I believe that we are going to have to get some new conspiracy theories. All the old ones turned out to be true.
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Sonny Boy
by Al Pacino
In his candid debut memoir, iconic film actor Al Pacino details his life and career, from his fraught South Bronx childhood to his origins in avant-garde theater to roles in landmark films of the 1970s and beyond. Try this next: Take the Gun, Leave the Cannoli: The Epic Story of the Making of The Godfather by Mark Seal.
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Writing Creativity and Soul
by Sue Monk Kidd
INSTANT NATIONAL BESTSELLER - From the bestselling author of The Secret Life of Bees and The Book of Longings: an intimate work on the mysteries, frustrations, and triumphs of being a writer, and an instructive guide to awakening the soul. When Sue Monk Kidd was in high school, a home economics teacher wrote a list of potential occupations for women on the blackboard: teacher, nurse, librarian, secretary. Writer was nowhere to be found. On that day, Kidd shut the door on her writerly aspirations and would not revisit the topic until many years later when she announced to her husband and two children that she was going to become a writer. And so began her journey into the mysteries and methods of the writerly life... In Writing Creativity and Soul, Sue Monk Kidd will pull from her own life and the lives of other writers--Virginia Woolf, Maya Angelou, Harper Lee, and many others--to provide a map for anyone who has ever felt lost as a writer. At the heart of this book is the unwavering belief that writing is a spiritual act, one that draws inspiration from the soul, that wellspring of creativity between imagination and feeling. Once you tap into that part of yourself, said Maya Angelou, there are only three more things you need as a writer: something to say, the ability to say it, and, perhaps most difficult of all, the courage to say it. Equal parts memoir, guidebook, and spiritual quest, Writing Creativity and Soul is a pilgrimage and a touchstone, a journey into the transformational force of the imagination and the creative genius that lies in the unconscious.
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Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays the Rent
by Judi Dench with Brendan O'Hea
Academy Award-winning actress Judi Dench dishes on her seven-decade career (including roles in 20 of Shakespeare's plays) in this witty and engaging series of transcribed interviews with her longtime friend Brendan O'Hea, himself an actor at Shakespeare's Globe. Try this next: Making It So by Patrick Stewart.
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| John Candy: A Life in Comedy by Paul MyersPop culture writer Paul Myers documents beloved comedian and actor John Candy’s life and career, moving through his tenure on the cult classic program SCTV, his film appearances (Planes, Trains, and Automobiles; Uncle Buck), and his “lifelong struggle with anxiety, panic attacks, and body image” (Publishers Weekly). Candy broke countless hearts upon his death by heart failure at age 43, but Myers’ book is a life-affirming, heartwarming tribute.
*If you'd like to request this book, please visit your library and ask for assistance! |
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You Get What You Pay for: Essays
by Morgan Parker
Dubbed a voice of her generation, poet and writer Morgan Parker has spent much of her adulthood in therapy, trying to square the resonance of her writing with the alienation she feels in nearly every aspect of life, from her lifelong singleness to her battle with depression. She traces this loneliness to an inability to feel truly safe with others and a historic hyper-awareness stemming from the effects of slavery. In this collection of sharp, reflective essays, Parker examines America's cultural history and relationship to Black Americans through the ages, through such topics as the Church's role in propagating segregation through scriptural misreadings, the implications of Bill Cosby's fall from grace in a culture predicated on acceptance through respectability, and the pitfalls of visibility as seen through the mischaracterizations of Serena Williams as alternately iconic and too ambitious--
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Joyful Recollections of Trauma
by Paul Scheer
Paul Scheer's bittersweet yet uplifting memoir-in-essays explores how the actor/comedian overcame an abusive childhood to find a successful career and love with fellow comedian June Diane Raphael, with whom he cohosts the popular How Did This Get Made? podcast. Try this next: The World Deserves My Children by Natasha Leggero.
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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