Hi There
I love autobiographies but I can't think of who I would like to read about. Tell me which books you recommend. Which books made you go 'wow'.
Thanks
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Hi There
I love autobiographies but I can't think of who I would like to read about. Tell me which books you recommend. Which books made you go 'wow'.
Thanks
Fred Hollows
A Hospital By the River
Will think more and get back to you, Love a good autobiography
It's not about the bike by Lance Armstrong ...fantastic read and I"m not even remotely interested in cycling LOL.
Mao's last dancer - Li Cunxin
thanks MD - I was thinking about reading that :-)
I've read:
Lindy Chamberlains (800 pages, but I loved it)
Marilyn Monroe
Michael Hutchence
Victoria Beckham
Richard Branson
and I'm sure there are others but I can't think of them...
Oh, Nelson Mandela's too.
Lindy gets my top pick though!
The White Masai
Back from Africa
Reunion in Barasloi (all by Corrine Hofmann) awesome reads
Hospital by the river
Dr Chris O'briens is ment to be great
I agree the Lance Armstrong one is really good. I wanna read the Dr Chris O'Brien one too.
Sorry I don't have any to add. I'm getting ideas from this thread too. :)
I loved this book and highly recommend it. I was really disappointed in the movie version though.:
I'm currently reading this one and it's awesome!:
Wonderful! Thanks for the recommendations. I am ordering from a second hand bookstore and they don't have all the above but I have the Lance Armstrong book on order and Never Say Die by Chris O'Brien. I think the Lindy Chamberlain book might tip my shipping costs over :)
I will definitely keep this thread handy for future reference.
Nelson Mandela - Long Walk to Freedom
A Woman of Independance - Kirsty Sword Gusmao
Various versions of Marilyn Monroe
Vivien Leigh
I am a big autobiographer reader..love them!
"A Fortunate Life" by AB Facey is an Australian classic. Are you particularly after autobiographies, or do you life biographies as well? If you don't mind biographies, there is one about Germaine Greer which is a ripper!
I love autobios too! Some great recs in here that I haven't read- thanks!
I love some of the ones mentioned and some others to add:
Wild Swans -3 gens of women in china
The Glass Castle- a woman in the US about her family life growing up in poverty
A Child Called It- distressing story of extreme child abuse
I, Phoolan Devi - indian woman of low caste (not many books from this class of society- she dictated the story as she is illiterate)
Cave In The Snow- UK woman who becomes a buddist nun
When World's Collide - australian woman who survives a violent rape
Sunshine on my Shoulders - australian woman dealing with agrophobia
Man in Black - Johnny Cash
There were a couple about Princess Grace that I found interesting
Prairie Tale - Melissa Gilbert
True Colors - Adam Gilchrist (I am a cricket nut)
If you like older actors Cary Grant had an interesting life.
Oh we must have such similar tastes!!! I was going to write about Wild Swans - fantastic fantastic read. Although I'm not sure it's strictly a biography?:
I've also read Cave in the snow, so interesting!! Love when the snow leapord visits!
Also, if you enjoyed the Phoolan Devi story, you might be interested to know they did a movie about her about 15 years ago called "Bandit Queen" -- highly highly recommend it.
There's another that I'd like to read, something like Paper Cranes? Has anyone read that one?
I loved the Chris O'Brien story and hope someone will finish his next one.
I also am a huge fan of autobiographies.. a few of my favourites
Running with Scissors - Augustine Burrows
As nature made him - John Colapinto (might be a bio actually, about a boy raised as a girl)
Will there really be a morning - Frances Farmer (actress)
Sickened - Julie Gregory (memior of a munchausen by proxy childhood)
In my Skin - Kate Holden (australian woman who was a prostitute on streets of St kilda)
Grace (bio) by Robert Lacey about Grace Kelly
A piece of cake by Cupcake Brown
God's call Girl - Carla Van Raay
hmm I have heaps more!
I read Ray Martins and found that to be good,
My husband recently read Andre Agassi's bio titled Open, he isn't a big reader but he loved it and spent our 2 week holiday sneaking off from the kids so he could keep reading, so it must have been good.... either that or he just gave me an excuse as to why he wasn't watching them.
Shattered Dreams - My life as a polygamists wife by Irene Spencer
Loved it! Makes you realise the strength some women have.
That is a great story.:
Angela's Ashes, and Tis, by Frank McCourt.
measure of a man- sydney portier
Tweak- nick sheff (his father also wrote his version of events but havent read it yet)
April fools day -bryce courtney, not an autobiography persay, but its about his sons life living with heamophillia (sp?)
i know i have more, will go through the bookshelf later
Oh, April Fool's Day was another awesome one, sad but totally involving.
I figure the depiction of her grandmother and mother's lives falls under biography and then the section on her own life is autobio.:
I couldn't get into April Fool's Day- I don't think I like Courtney's writing style.
Also remembered:
Escape- life living in a polygamist sect
Bravo Two Zero- amazing story of an SAS guy being stranded behind enemy lines
Here is a few more..not all biographies, ture stories and all I could not put down.
Jesus Freaks- The true story of a boy by 'The Family/Children of God' and the son of the founder of these cult's.
Love in the driest season - The true story of a Journalist and his efforts in adopting a baby from South Africa.
It is no secret - The true story of a stolen child
The Assasination of Marilyn Monroe
Rosebud- George Orwell biography
Dalaia lama my son- A mother's story
Faithfull- Marianne Faithfull
Robert Sykes - Snake Cradle, Snake Dancing, Snake Circle. It's a trilogy and is about Roberta Sykes, the first Aboriginal woman to graduate from Harvard.
Aman
I love true stories!
Fantastic everyone. So happy to have this list. Heather72, I think you hit the nail on the head. I wasn't specifically after autobiographies but actually I should have said 'true stories' as this is what I love to get into.
Not sure what you're into - but I really enjoyed Life, Law & not enough shoes by Judith Fordham. She's was a single mum with 3 kids (i think) who decided to do a law degree and become a barrister. She is now one of the most reputable barristers in her field and now teaches in a WA University in forensic science (she had a science background also). Funny as hell.