Publisher: W.W. Norton
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 04/04/2011
ISBN-13: 9780393072419
ISBN-10: 039307241X

Author Diane Ackerman and her husband, novelist and memoirist Paul West, had been married for decades when he suffered a stroke that partly paralyzed him, severely damaged his vision, and caused severe aphasia. But the couple refused to give in to disability, and Ackerman proved to be the ideal partner in West's rehabilitation, having previously researched and written a book on neuroscience. Still, Ackerman's role as caregiver in addition to speech therapist was a huge challenge; Kirkus Reviews calls the resulting memoir a "satisfying, tender and humane celebration of love."

Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 03/22/2011
ISBN-13: 9780307268013
ISBN-10: 0307268012

French singer and songwriter Edith Piaf began her career singing on the streets of Paris and in gritty lower-class music halls. And as biographer Carolyn Burke observes, Piaf "kept her cheeky street sense and gaiety of spirit" as she became popular in many social settings and even in other countries--all the way to The Ed Sullivan Show. This engaging and thorough biography covers some of the more obscure details of Piaf's life in addition to her widely known love affairs and the evolution of her singing career. If you want more on Piaf in her own words, read her memoir The Wheel of Fortune.

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Publisher: One World Books
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 04/19/2011
ISBN-13: 9780345523280
ISBN-10: 0345523288

Tracy Marrow, better known as Ice-T to fans of rap, heavy metal, film, and television (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit), was orphaned at the age of 12 and moved from New Jersey to Los Angeles, where he became involved with gangs. Even after four years in the Army, he didn't give up crime entirely until he took up rap and became a nearly instant hit. His memoir includes observations on his widely varied experiences, as well as his opinions on the current music scene, Hollywood, his role as a parent, and what it's like to be rich and famous. Kirkus Reviews calls this a "boldly opinionated, bracingly street-tough memoir."

First Chapter  

Publisher: Scribner
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 04/19/2011
ISBN-13: 9781416591795
ISBN-10: 1416591796

Pulitzer Prize winner William Styron wrote novels that were both highly praised and controversial. Styron himself struggled with the contradiction between his fame as a writer and his tendency to depression and alcoholism. In this memoir of life with her intimidating and even psychologically abusive father, Alexandra Styron, herself a novelist, offers a poetically crafted portrait for which she did extensive research in his collected papers. Through this study she was able to go beyond her anger and achieve understanding of him as a man and a highly talented writer. For more on his life, read James West's official biography, William Styron.

Publisher: Collins
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 05/01/2006
ISBN-13: 9780060763428
ISBN-10: 0060763426

Robert ("Bob") Dole represented Kansas in the U.S. Senate for 27 years and ran for President of the United States in 1996, but this autobiography begins with an inspiring account of his pre-political life. During World War II he commanded a unit in the 10th Mountain Division, and near the end of the war he received life-threatening wounds in a battle he describes in detail. His injuries were so severe that his rehabilitation took a seemingly endless three years. Dole attributes his perseverance to his faith, his parents' support, and his sense of humor. Library Journal says this is a memoir of "hope and recovery that will resonate with its readers."

First Chapter  

Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 02/02/2010
ISBN-13: 9781416567486
ISBN-10: 1416567488

The first African-American woman soldier ever captured in war, Shoshana Johnson was taken by well-armed men dressed as civilians who ambushed her convoy in Iraq. Several in Johnson's group were killed and others captured; for the next 22 days Johnson and her fellow POWs were moved around without explanation, poorly fed, and subjected to extremely stressful conditions--though many Iraqis treated them humanely. After her rescue, she endured the unwanted celebrity spotlight without real support from the Army. Johnson tells her story vividly and with grace, providing significant information about military experiences of blacks and women, as well as about the Iraq War.

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Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 10/24/2006
ISBN-13: 9780812976168
ISBN-10: 0812976169

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Tracy Kidder is well known for writing books in which he describes in detail the experiences of people in difficult situations. Here, he turns his attention to his own memories of the war in Vietnam, where he served as an Army Intelligence officer. Kidder opposed the Vietnam War, yet this is not an anti-war memoir--it's an honest assessment of what really happened to him as a young lieutenant. While reflecting on the banality of his own story, he also vividly conveys the Vietnam experiences of others in this "demythologizing dose of reality" (Publishers Weekly).

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Publisher: Penguin Books
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 02/23/2010
ISBN-13: 9780143116875
ISBN-10: 0143116878

West Point graduate and Rhodes Scholar Craig Mullaney offers this memoir of his U.S. Military Academy training and his service in Afghanistan as a reflection on what it means to be a soldier and a man, and on how contemporary warfare redefines those concepts. West Point training is exacting and filled with details, but in combat Captain Mullaney encountered challenges never mentioned in the classroom or practiced in drills--such as the difficulty of carrying someone on a stretcher slippery with blood. Nor does the "unforgiving minute" in the heat of battle allow time to evaluate a situation before deciding how to react. Mullaney's vivid personal descriptions make this book "almost impossible to put down" (Booklist).