Best Biography and Memoir Recommendations

For some readers, real life is much more compelling than fiction, and real people are far more interesting than any character an author could dream up. If you're one of those readers, then biographies, autobiographies and memoirs are for you.

The types of true stories are endless—there are romantic memoirs and tragic memoirs. There are short, essay-length memoirs that give you just a taste of an author’s writing. Perhaps you’re interested in a travel memoir that will make you feel as though you’ve walked the same steps as the writer, or you’re an American history buff looking for a bucket list of biographies on every American president. You could read a first-hand account from a former slave who became a dressmaker for Mary Todd Lincoln, or immerse yourself in Ruth Gruber’s own account of how she helped 1000 refugees find asylum.

From biographies of politicians, business leaders, artists and celebrities, to memoirs that tell unforgettable true stories with unflinching honesty, these are the books that let you fully step into someone else's shoes.

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A Wrinkle in Time Trailer is a Visual Feast

Watch the first trailer for the upcoming adaptation of Madeleine L’Engle’s time travel classic.

By Olivia Mason

Cooking

Food for the Soul: 10 Best Culinary Memoirs

Feast on these delicious and inspiring reads.

By Jessica Ferri

Fiction

Adult Books for Fans of A Wrinkle in Time

Charlotte Jones Voiklis and Lena Roy discuss their grandmother's incredible adult novels.

By Renata Sweeney

Nonfiction

Step Inside the White House With These Entertaining Reads

Learn what really goes on behind those closed Palladian doors.

By DeAnna Janes & Greta Shull

Book Excerpt

How Ruth Gruber Helped 1000 European Refugees Find Asylum in America

In Haven, the award-winning journalist recounts her incredible—and controversial—involvement in the rescue of thousands of Jews.

By Early Bird Books Staff

Nonfiction

The Donald Trump Biography That Spawned a $5 Billion Lawsuit

Before "Fire and Fury," there was "TrumpNation."

By Rachel Krupitsky

Nonfiction

7 Tragic Memoirs That Deserve Your Tears

Because everyone needs a good cry.

By DeAnna Janes

Special Report

Girl Squad: Fierce Females Throughout History

If girl squads were a thing in the past, these gals would put Taylor and her supermodels to shame.

By DeAnna Janes

Fiction

In Defense: Elizabeth Gilbert

Gilbert haters cite Eat, Pray, Love as proof of her failings, and in the process neglect her fantastic, near-perfect novel.

By Alison Currie

Cooking

Holidays Abroad: Kate Christensen’s Thanksgiving in Tuscany

Writer Kate Christensen shares a traditional Thanksgiving dinner in the Florentine hills—and her recipe for persimmon pudding.

By Kate Christensen

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11 Bizarre Facts From Robert Caro’s The Years of Lyndon Johnson

One writer listens to 150 hours of the four-volume LBJ biography so you don't have to.

By Miranda Popkey

Nonfiction

Life Lessons from a Warhol Superstar

Author and filmmaker Catherine O’Sullivan Shorr first met singer and Warhol star Nico one brief summer day, when she was making the biggest decision of her life.

By Catherine O’Sullivan Shorr