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Biography and Memoir March 2018
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To Siri with love : a mother, her autistic son, and the kindness of machines
by Judith Newman
A full-length account of the viral New York Times op-ed column of the same name shares inspirational and laugh-out-loud stories about the author's life with her an autistic son, whose therapeutic use of Apple's electronic personal assistant became an unusual example of the power of technology.
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Halfway : a memoir
by Tom Macher
A first book by a young addict describes the painful family dynamics that compelled him to escape into alcohol, a choice that got him kicked out of school and his home before he embarked on a recovery effort in a series of halfway houses and boys' homes, where he encountered a diverse community of young men who were struggling with respective demons in order to survive.
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Shelved : a memoir of aging in America
by Sue Matthews Petrovski
Shelved provides readers with a personal account of what it is like to leave a family home and enter a new world where everyone is old and where decisions like where to sit in the dining room fall to low-level corporate managers. Showcasing the benefits of communal living as well as the frustrations of having decisions about meals, public spaces, and governance driven by the bottom line, Petrovski delivers compelling suggestions for the transformation of an elder care system that more often than not condescends to older adults into one that puts people first—a change that would benefit us all, whether we are forty, sixty, eighty, or beyond.
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When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir
by Patrisse Khan-Cullors and Asha Bandele
What it's about: Artist and social justice activist Patrisse Khan-Cullors divulges the story of her life, from her 1980s childhood in suburban Los Angeles to her involvement in founding the Black Lives Matter Movement.
Is it for you? This passionate and candid coming-of-age memoir is for readers with a strong interest in social activism, LGBT issues, and human rights.
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The Line Becomes a River: Dispatches from the Border
by Francisco Cantú
What it's about: Third-generation Mexican American Francisco Cantú writes eloquently of his time as a U.S. Border Agent in the American Southwest. Cantú shares how, during his four years on the job, he found himself on both sides of the immigration issue: he was as an enforcer of the law but also sympathetic to the plight of those trying to cross the border.
About the author: Cantú is a former Fulbright fellow who has received both a Whiting Award and the Pushcart Prize, and was featured on NPR's This American Life.
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Renoir's dancer : the secret life of Suzanne Valadon
by Catherine Hewitt
Describes how the illegitimate daughter of an impoverished linen maid in rural France became a famous model for Renoir and other impressionists of the era and was also a talented artist herself who refused to be confined by gender or tradition.
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| The Gambler: How Penniless Dropout Kirk Kerkorian Became the Greatest Deal... by William C. RempelWhat it is: the rags-to-riches life story of billionaire Kirk Kerkorian, who died at the age of 98 in 2015. Journalist William Rempel examines Kerkorian's activities as an aviator in World War II, his investments in the high-stakes world of Las Vegas real estate, and his complicated personal life, which became tabloid fodder despite his reclusive nature.
Reviewers say: "A remarkably detailed and fascinating look at the career of an idiosyncratic tycoon" (Booklist). |
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Tears of Salt: A Doctor's Story
by Pietro Bartolo
What it's about: Physician Pietro Bartolo, head of the only medical clinic on the Italian island of Lampedusa, describes 25 years of caring for the thousands of desperate Middle Eastern and African refugees who have arrived on the island in hopes of a better life.
Why you might like it: Through moving and poignant vignettes, Bartolo recounts the moments of life, hope, illness, and death that are at the heart of the European migrant crisis. Media buzz: Author Bartolo is featured in the 2016 Academy Award-nominated film Fire at Sea.
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Movie nights with the Reagans : a memoir
by Mark Weinberg
The former special advisor and press secretary to Ronald Reagan presents an intimate, behind-the-scenes look inside the Reagan presidency that reveals the iconic 1980s movies they watched during Camp David weekends, what the family was going through at the times of the viewings, what they thought of the films and how they shared laughter and free time together.
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I Can Only Imagine : A Memoir
by Bart Millard
The lead singer of a popular, contemporary Christian band, MercyMe, shares how growing up with an abusive father and having his dreams of being a professional athlete destroyed by a sports injury led him to music and healing through faith, in a book that inspired the motion picture set to released in March 2018.
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Hiding out : a memoir of drugs, deception, and double lives
by Tina Alexis Allen
An actress and playwright reveals her struggle growing up as a gay woman amidst a strict Catholic upbringing, until, at 18, her dad found out she liked women—and revealed to her that he was gay as well—leading them to live their double lives together without their family's knowledge—until a dark secret about her father was revealed to the author.
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The monk of Mokha
by Dave Eggers
The best-selling author of Zeitoun traces his upbringing as a Yemeni-American in San Francisco and his dream of resurrecting the ancient art of cultivating, roasting and importing Yemeni coffee, an endeavor that is challenged by the brutal realities of Yemen's 2015 civil war.
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Nino and me : my unusual friendship with Justice Antonin Scalia
by Bryan A Garner
The influential legal scholar, author of Garner's Modern English Usage and editor-in-chief of Black's Law Dictionary shares the story of his close friendship with Antonin Scalia, sharing insights into the late Supreme Court Justice's character and controversial views on issues ranging from contraception to gun control.
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Without precedent : John Marshall and his times
by Joel R Paul
A portrait of the influential chief justice, statesman and diplomat illuminates his pivotal role in the establishment of the Constitution and Supreme Court, recounting his work as an advisor to multiple presidents and his establishments of the independence of the judiciary and the supremacy of the federal Constitution and courts.
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The cookie cure : a mother/daughter memoir of cookies and cancer
by Susan Stachler
The mother-and-daughter founders of Susansnaps, a nationally recognized cookie company, share the story of how, after 22-year-old Susan was diagnosed with cancer, they discovered that Laura’s homemade ginger cookies soothed the side effects of Susan’s chemo and how they set in motion a plan to share their gourmet gingersnap with the world.
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| Andre the Giant: Life and Legend by Box BrownWhat it's about: French-born André Roussimoff (better known as Andre the Giant -- famous for both his wrestling career and the movie The Princess Bride) was larger than life, measuring an astounding seven feet, four inches tall.
Why you might like it: In this "exquisitely rendered" (Kirkus Reviews) graphic novel, Box Brown chronicles André's complex life, from the medical condition that caused his gigantism to his roles in the ring and on screen.
Further reading: For another graphic biography on the legendary wrestler, try Andre the Giant by Brandon Easton. |
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| In the Country We Love: My Family Divided by Diane GuerreroWhat it's about: When actress Dianne Guerrero (Orange is the New Black; Jane the Virgin) was just 14 years old, she returned home from school one day to find that her parents and older brother -- undocumented Colombian immigrants -- had been deported. Guerrero, born in the U.S., could stay, but she was completely on her own, as she shares in this timely and heartbreaking memoir.
You might also like: Dreamers: An Immigrant Generation's Fight for Their American Dream by Eileen Truax. |
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| Yes, My Accent Is Real: And Some Other Things I Haven't Told You by Kunal NayyarWhat it is: a collection of charming, irreverent essays that answer the question "How did a London-born, New Delhi-raised student who came to the U.S. to get a degree in business administration end up playing an astrophysicist on The Big Bang Theory?" In answering that question, actor Kunal Nayyar also shares reminiscences about his life both on and off the small screen.
Don't miss: Nayyar's infatuation with the fictional Winnie Cooper; his marriage to a former Miss India. |
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| Silver Screen Fiend: Learning About Life From an Addiction to Film by Patton OswaltWhat it's about: the four-year period in comedian Patton Oswalt's life during which he compulsively watched new releases, classic films, and unknown movies -- more than 250 of them, to be exact, all in Los Angeles movie theaters. His entertaining analysis of his journey from wanna-be stand-up comic to on-screen success during that time is sure to appeal to film junkies and Oswalt's fans.
Reviewers say: Silver Screen Fiend is "downright impossible to put down" (Booklist). |
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| Her Again: Becoming Meryl Streep by Michael SchulmanWhat it's about: Nominated for 20 Academy Awards and the winner of three (at least as of this writing), Meryl Streep is undoubtedly one of the best actors of her generation. In Her Again, author Michael Schulman profiles the iconic star and examines her early achievements, from her time at Vassar College to her success on the New York Stage to her career-making performances in films like Kramer vs. Kramer.
Read it for: an entertaining, fast-paced celebrity biography bursting with gossipy tidbits. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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