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  1. Genres
  2. ›Biography

Best Biography Books

Life stories of notable people

451 summaries

Showing 361–384 of 451

  1. The Return of Martin Guerre

    Natalie Zemon Davis

    ★ 3.7 (3k) average on GoodreadsHistory

    A limping man's dramatic courtroom entrance shatters a meticulously crafted deception, unmasking a cunning imposter and reclaiming the identity, property, and wife of the true Martin Guerre.

  2. Curfewed Night

    Basharat Peer

    ★ 4.0 (3k) average on GoodreadsPolitics

    In a land where ancient Sufi shrines are destroyed and temples become army bunkers, a Kashmiri's firsthand account exposes the brutality and 'painful romances' that draw youth into a separatist movement, changing paradise into a curfewed night.

  3. Let Us Now Praise Famous Men

    James Agee

    ★ 4.0 (3k) average on GoodreadsHistory

    Through stark prose and haunting photographs, Agee and Evans show the desperate dignity of Depression-era sharecroppers, turning a journalistic assignment into an enduring, empathetic American epic.

  4. My Life in Dog Years

    Gary Paulsen

    ★ 4.1 (3k) average on GoodreadsMemoir

    From the loyal sled dog Cookie who saved his life to the brilliant Border Collie Josh, Gary Paulsen's memoir is a heartfelt tribute to the dozens of extraordinary canine companions who shaped his journey.

  5. Do They Hear You When You Cry

    Fauziya Kassindja

    ★ 4.2 (3k) average on GoodreadsMemoir

    Fauziya Kassindja's memoir tells of her escape from forced marriage and genital mutilation in Togo, her fight for asylum in American detention, and a legal battle that changed human rights for women globally.

  6. The Education of Henry Adams

    Henry Adams

    ★ 3.6 (3k) average on GoodreadsPolitics

    Haunted by the gap between his 19th-century Brahmin upbringing and the dizzying, fragmented start of the 20th, Henry Adams explores his own intellectual obsolescence and an education that left him unprepared for the modern world.

  7. My Life and Hard Times

    James Thurber

    ★ 4.1 (3k) average on GoodreadsMemoir

    James Thurber's memoir is a funny look at his eccentric family, peculiar pets, and the absurdities of life in Columbus, Ohio.

  8. The Long Goodbye

    Raymond Chandler

    ★ 3.9 (3k) average on GoodreadsPsychology

    Philip Marlowe's quiet act of friendship with a troubled war veteran spirals into murder, deceit, and a relentless pursuit by both the law and a ruthless gangster, all while he grapples with what loyalty means in Los Angeles's shadowy underworld.

  9. Elena Vanishing

    Elena Dunkle

    ★ 3.9 (3k) average on GoodreadsPsychology

    Trapped in the relentless grip of anorexia, seventeen-year-old Elena meticulously starves herself, transforming her body into a battleground where anxiety's armor becomes self-destructive artillery.

  10. Autobiography of a Geisha

    Sayo Masuda

    ★ 3.9 (3k) average on GoodreadsMemoir

    Sayo Masuda's direct memoir reveals the harsh realities of forced labor and sex work within the geisha system, offering a clear contrast to romanticized portrayals and showing a lifelong struggle for survival and truth in wartime Japan.

  11. Anything Goes

    John Barrowman

    ★ 4.0 (3k) average on GoodreadsMemoir

    John Barrowman's memoir traces his life from a childhood move across the Atlantic to West End stardom and 'Torchwood' fame, chronicling his journey of self-discovery, professional success, and finding love, all while in the public eye.

  12. Microbe Hunters

    Paul de Kruif

    ★ 4.1 (3k) average on GoodreadsHistory

    Follow the scientists who, with early microscopes and strong curiosity, explored the unseen world of microbes, fighting disease and uncovering life's smallest secrets.

  13. Biology

    Neil A. Campbell

    ★ 4.1 (3k) average on GoodreadsReference

    Explore the world of life through the basic ideas and experiments that have taught millions of students about biology.

  14. Dove

    Robin Lee Graham

    ★ 4.2 (3k) average on GoodreadsLifestyle

    A 16-year-old sails solo around the world in a 24-foot sloop, finding love, fatherhood, and self-discovery over five years and 33,000 miles of ocean.

  15. In an Antique Land

    Amitav Ghosh

    ★ 3.8 (3k) average on GoodreadsLifestyle

    Amitav Ghosh searches for a medieval Indian slave in Egypt, only to find himself connected to a modern Egyptian village's life and customs.

  16. A Friend Like Henry

    Nuala Gardner

    ★ 4.1 (3k) average on GoodreadsPsychology

    Henry, a devoted Golden Retriever, helps an autistic boy, Dale, connect with his family and the world, turning a daily struggle into a journey of connection and progress.

  17. Survival in the Killing Fields

    Haing Ngor

    ★ 4.5 (3k) average on GoodreadsMemoir

    Haing Ngor's memoir describes the horrors of forced labor camps and the loss of his family under the Khmer Rouge, showing the human spirit's resilience during Cambodia's genocide.

  18. Escape from Sobibor

    Richard Rashke

    ★ 4.3 (3k) average on GoodreadsMemoir

    Based on the accounts of eighteen survivors, "Escape from Sobibor" tells the story of the uprising and mass escape from the Nazi extermination camp.

  19. Mercury and Me

    Jim Hutton

    ★ 4.0 (3k) average on GoodreadsMemoir

    From an anonymous barber to the steadfast gardener and intimate confidant, Jim Hutton offers an unvarnished, poignant look into the private world and final years of rock legend Freddie Mercury, revealing the quiet devotion behind the flamboyant icon.

  20. After Auschwitz

    Eva Schloss

    ★ 4.3 (3k) average on GoodreadsMemoir

    Eva Schloss, Anne Frank's stepsister, recounts her survival of Auschwitz and the lifelong effort to honor those lost, finding purpose in remembrance.

  21. Catherine the Great

    Henri Troyat

    ★ 4.0 (3k) average on GoodreadsHistory

    From a minor German princess to the formidable empress who embodied Russia's might, Catherine the Great masterfully navigated a court of seduction and intrigue, wielding men as instruments of power while condemning millions to serfdom.

  22. A Language Older Than Words

    Derrick Jensen

    ★ 4.3 (2k) average on GoodreadsMemoir

    Jensen's memoir explores the ancient roots of violence, from childhood abuse to societal structures, urging us to find a language of connection older than our destructive habits.

  23. Colors of the Mountain

    Da Chen

    ★ 4.0 (2k) average on GoodreadsMemoir

    In a memoir of resilience and mischievous defiance, Da Chen navigates the brutal Cultural Revolution in rural China, transforming the scorn of his 'landlord' heritage into a quest for education and a hopeful future.

  24. The Secret History

    Donna Tartt

    ★ 3.9 (2k) average on GoodreadsPolitics

    Under their charismatic Classics professor's influence, a group of eccentric Hampden College students fall into a world of ancient rituals, moral ambiguity, and murder.

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