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Biography and Memoir October 2017
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Real American : a memoir
by Julie Lythcott-Haims
The author of the best-selling How to Raise an Adult shares the story of her biracial upbringing in an America where ubiquitous and socially accepted racist norms constantly challenged her self-esteem, prompting her award-winning career in education and her perspectives on wisdom and the healing power of community.
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Stan Lee : the man behind Marvel
by Bob Batchelor
A biography of the comic artist and pop culture icon traces his life from his Depression-era childhood to his years as an editor and his triumphs as the creator behind such superhero titans as Spider-Man and The Fantastic Four
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Man of the hour : James B. Conant, warrior scientist
by Jennet Conant
A portrait of the wartime scientist, Harvard University president and presidential advisor, written by his granddaughter, places his life against a backdrop of key historical events to offer particular insights into his oversight of the Manhattan Project and subsequent campaigns in support of atomic weapon control at the international level.
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| The Woman Who Smashed Codes: A True Story of Love, Spies, and the Unlikely Heroine... by Jason FagoneDuring World War I, Elizebeth Smith, a brilliant Shakespeare scholar, met her future husband, William Friedman, at the Riverbank research facility in Chicago. Both became highly successful codebreakers, breaking German codes during the war, cracking liquor smugglers' communications during Prohibition, and deciphering Nazi signals in World War II. Elizebeth's work was so top-secret, it was easy for male officials (notably J. Edgar Hoover) to take credit for her work, but journalist Jason Fagone has stripped away the secrecy that had obscured her contributions. If you enjoyed The Woman Who Smashed Codes, check out Liza Mundy's recently published Code Girls. |
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| The Kelloggs: The Battling Brothers of Battle Creek by Howard MarkelBrothers John Harvey and Will Kellogg made Battle Creek, Michigan famous for their work in promoting health (and healthy breakfast cereal) from the 1870s to the mid-20th century. Ironically, they hated each other! In The Kelloggs, Dr. Howard Markel, a professor of the history of medicine, details the brothers' lives, careers, and intra-family warfare. Business history, medical history, and legal history combine in this "superb warts-and-all" (Kirkus Reviews) presentation of two radically different personalities whose success depended on their sibling rivalry. |
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Award-Winning Biographies and Memoirs |
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| The Fry Chronicles by Stephen FryAcclaimed British actor and novelist Stephen Fry was a convicted criminal, an alcohol addict, and a failed suicide when he entered Cambridge University as an undergraduate. He thought he would be sent away immediately, but instead found his niche in acting, in addition to excelling academically. Revealing many of his personal struggles, praising his actor colleagues, especially comedy and writing partner Hugh Laurie, and wittily describing his student and professional triumphs, Fry's engrossing memoir won the 2010 Biography/Autobiography of the Year from the British Book Awards (the "Nibbies"). |
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| Jack London: An American Life by Earle LaborWidely celebrated American author Jack London was also a social activist who included some of his views on workers' rights in his stories and novels. In this Spur Award-winning biography, Earle Labor, curator of the Jack London Museum in Shreveport, Louisiana, explores London's life and philosophy in addition to his writing. Drawing on London's personal papers and those of his wife, as well as on interviews with people who were close to London, Labor distinguishes the legends about the larger-than-life man from the facts (which are equally impressive). Fans of American literature won't want to miss this impressive life study. |
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| The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo by Tom ReissIf you've ever wondered where the 19th-century French novelist Alexandre Dumas, père learned to swashbuckle, biographer Tom Reiss has the answer in The Black Count. The novelist's father, called Alex, was born in Santo Domingo to a black slave and a French aristocrat. Later brought to France, Alex rose through the ranks in the French Army and eventually served in Napoleon's Egyptian campaign. However, he was captured by enemies, languished in prison, and died before his son was four. Alexandre idolized his father and used parts of his life's story in his novels, including The Count of Monte Cristo. Reiss' Pulitzer Prize-winning biography completes the picture of Alex's actual life. |
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| The Year of Lear: Shakespeare in 1606 by James ShapiroWhile William Shakespeare's career first flourished in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, he continued writing and producing plays under her successor, James I. During this period, political tensions dominated thoughts of commoners and aristocrats alike, and Shakespeare took advantage of this turmoil in three major plays (Antony and Cleopatra, Macbeth, and King Lear). In The Year of Lear, Columbia University professor James Shapiro looks at Shakespeare's life in the historical context of 1606, when Lear first appeared on the stage. Offering scholarly and accessible insights into Shakespeare's handling of dangerous political opinions, this book won the 2015 James Tait Memorial Prize under its original title, 1606. |
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| Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? by Jeanette WintersonWhen English novelist Jeanette Winterson was a child, her adoptive mother limited her activities to a narrow religious framework. Winterson responded by finding ways to take refuge in creativity -- especially in writing, after her mother burned her books -- and by running away at age 16 to live on her own. Her first novel, Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit, won a Costa award and received acclaim for its depiction of a lesbian's coming of age. In her Lambda Literary Award-winning memoir Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?, Winterson reveals her own coming-of-age struggles -- which gradually led her to understand what it means to love. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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Harford County Public Library
1221-A Brass Mill Rd Belcamp, Maryland 21017 410-273-5600 hcplonline.org
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