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Biography and Memoir May 2020
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| Good Boy: My Life in Seven Dogs by Jennifer Finney BoylanWhat it is: a funny and moving ode to the dogs that have helped author Jennifer Finney Boylan navigate pivotal moments in her life, including the death of her father and her gender transition.
Want a taste? "Everything I know about love I learned from dogs."
Is it for you? Readers unfamiliar with Boylan's life and work may want to start with her bestselling memoir She's Not There, which chronicles her transition in greater depth. |
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| I Want You to Know We're Still Here: A Post-Holocaust Memoir by Esther Safran FoerWhat it's about: As the child of Holocaust survivors reticent to discuss their experiences, Esther Safran Foer grew up with lingering questions about her family history. After learning that her father's first family (including Esther's half-sister) had been killed by Nazis, Esther traveled to Ukraine in search of answers -- and catharsis.
Read it if: you liked Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer, a fictionalization of his mother's heartwrenching journey to Ukraine. |
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| Hidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family by Robert KolkerWhat it is: a haunting and compassionate family biography that explores the relationship between biology and mental illness.
Starring: the Galvins, a Colorado family with 12 children, six of whom were diagnosed with schizophrenia in the 1970s.
Book buzz: This "exceptional, unforgettable, and significant work" (Booklist) was recently named an Oprah's Book Club Pick. |
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| Hello I Want to Die Please Fix Me: Depression in the First Person by Anna Mehler PapernyWhat it is: journalist Anna Mehler Paperny's candid memoir about her experiences with depression.
What's inside: a well-researched investigation that explores stigma, treatment, and mental health care biases.
Who it's for: This informative guide will resonate with readers who have grappled with depression, though discussions of the author's suicide attempts may be triggering. |
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| Always Home: A Daughter's Recipes & Stories by Fanny SingerWhat it's about: author Fanny Singer's coming of age as the daughter of famed Chez Panisse restaurateur and food activist Alice Waters.
Read it for: Singer's lush writing and heartwarming relationship with her mother.
Recipes include: egg fettuccine; garlicky noodle soup; persimmon pudding; quince meringue ice cream. |
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| Modern HERstory: Stories of Women and Nonbinary People Rewriting History by Blair Imani; foreword by Tegan and SaraWhat it is: an inspiring illustrated collection celebrating 70 change-making women and nonbinary people from the 20th and 21st centuries.
What sets it apart: Blair Imani's commitment to spotlighting lesser-known figures like disability advocate Vilissa Thompson and social worker Feminista Jones. |
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| Jefferson's Daughters: Three Sisters, White and Black, in a Young America by Catherine KerrisonWhat it is: a richly detailed portrait of Thomas Jefferson's daughters and the tumultuous times in which they lived.
Reviewers say: "Incisive and elegant, Kerrison's book is at once a fabulous family story and a stellar work of historical scholarship" (Publishers Weekly).
You might also like: Virginia Scharff's The Women Jefferson Loved, which explores how Jefferson was shaped by the women in his life. |
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| Ray & Joan: The Man Who Made the McDonald's Fortune and the Woman Who... by Lisa NapoliStarring: McDonald's founder Ray Kroc and his third wife, Joan, a philanthropist who supported his entrepreneurial efforts and donated $3 billion to various charitable causes after Ray's death.
Why you might like it: This well-researched portrait of a complicated yet loving partnership will "cause readers to never look at McDonald's the same way again" (Library Journal). |
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| Mad, Bad, Dangerous to Know: The Fathers of Wilde, Yeats and Joyce by Colm TóibínWhat it's about: how 19th-century Irish authors Oscar Wilde, William Butler Yeats, and James Joyce grappled with their respective daddy issues in their lives and work.
Book buzz: Written by the award-winning author of Brooklyn, this concise group biography of three bad dads was originally a series of lectures presented at Emory University. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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