Sunday, May 26, 2024

iTunes Store: Top 25 Books in Biographies & Memoirs 2024-05-26

Paul Seward M.D. - Patient Care artwork Patient Care
Death and Life in the Emergency Room
Paul Seward M.D.
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $15.99
Publish Date: July 03, 2018
Publisher: Catapult
Seller: Penguin Random House Canada

Experience the real-life, high-stakes drama of emergency room care in 21 fascinating vignettes by a longtime ER physician. “Sad yet joyful, moving yet lighthearted . . . In the increasingly popular medical–memoir genre, this one stands out.” — Booklist Told in fast–paced, stand–alone chapters that recall unforgettable medical cases, Patient Care offers the fascination of medical mysteries, wrapped in the drama of living and dying. A snap judgment about a child nearly kills him, and a priest who may be having a heart attack refuses treatment. An asthmatic man develops air bubbles in his shoulders, and a pharmacist is haunted by a decision he makes. But the book goes beyond these stories. Each chapter explores ethical questions that remind us of the full humanity of patients, nurses, coroners, pharmacists, and, of course, doctors. How do they care for strangers in their moments of crisis? How do they care for themselves? Dr. Seward rejects doctor–as–God narratives to write frankly about moments of failure, and champions the role of his colleagues in health care. And, for all the moral dilemmas here, there is plenty of wit and humor, too. (See the patient who punches our doctor.) Readers of Patient Care will find themselves thinking along with Dr. Seward: “What is the right thing to do? What would I do?”



Jaycee Dugard - A Stolen Life artwork A Stolen Life
A Memoir
Jaycee Dugard
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $11.99
Publish Date: July 12, 2011
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Seller: Simon & Schuster Canada

In the summer of 1991 I was a normal kid. I did normal things. I had friends and a mother who loved me. I was just like you. Until the day my life was stolen. For eighteen years I was a prisoner. I was an object for someone to use and abuse. For eighteen years I was not allowed to speak my own name. I became a mother and was forced to be a sister. For eighteen years I survived an impossible situation. On August 26, 2009, I took my name back. My name is Jaycee Lee Dugard. I don’t think of myself as a victim. I survived. A Stolen Life is my story—in my own words, in my own way, exactly as I remember it. --- The pine cone is a symbol that represents the seed of a new beginning for me. To help facilitate new beginnings, with the support of animal-assisted therapy, the J A Y C Foundation provides support and services for the timely treatment of families recovering from abduction and the aftermath of traumatic experiences—families like my own who need to learn how to heal. In addition, the J A Y C Foundation hopes to facilitate awareness in schools about the important need to care for one another. Our motto is “Just Ask Yourself to . . . Care!” A portion of my proceeds from this memoir will be donated to The J A Y C Foundation Inc. www.thejaycfoundation.org



Georgeanne Brennan - A Pig in Provence artwork A Pig in Provence
Good Food and Simple Pleasures in the South of France
Georgeanne Brennan
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $1.99
Publish Date: July 27, 2012
Publisher: Chronicle Books LLC
Seller: OpenRoad Integrated Media, LLC

A woman and her family give up life in 1970s America for a farmhouse in southern France in this memoir peppered with delicious French recipes. From the publisher of Under the Tuscan Sun comes another extraordinary memoir of a woman embarking on a new life—this time in the South of France. In 1970, James Beard Award–winning author Georgeanne Brennan set out to realize the dream of a peaceful, rural existence en Provence . She and her husband, with their young daughter in tow, bought a small farmhouse with a little land, and a few goats and pigs and so began a life-affirming journey. Filled with delicious recipes and local color, this evocative and passionate memoir describes her life cooking and living in the Provençal tradition. Praise for A Pig in Provence “You can almost smell the lavender as you follow Brennan’s love affair with the province that became her second home and shaped the culinary persona of this cooking teacher and food author. Brennan is a talented storyteller.” — San Francisco Chronicle “Georgeanne Brennan’s captivating memoir reminds me of why I, too, was enchanted by Provence. She beautifully captures the details of living in a place where the culture of the table ties a community together—where everyone knows the butcher and the baker, and everyone depends on the farmers.” —Alice Waters, owner, Chez Panisse “Fascinating . . . Brennan revels equally in the preparation and consumption of the regional cuisine You can almost hear her lips smacking.” — The New York Times Book Review “Georgeanne Brennan’s romance with Provence continues to deepen, and the result of her long residence there is an intimacy with local people, food, and folkways. I would love to pull up a chair to her table.” —Frances Mayes, author of Under the Tuscan Sun



Crystal Hefner - Only Say Good Things artwork Only Say Good Things
Surviving Playboy and Finding Myself
Crystal Hefner
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $3.99
Publish Date: January 23, 2024
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Seller: Hachette Digital, Inc.

AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A JANUARY 2024 APPLE BOOKS STAFF PICK AND AUDIBLE EDITORS SELECT NAMED A BEST BOOK TO READ THIS JANUARY BY  THE GLOSS A raw and unflinching look at the objectification and misogyny of the Playboy mansion, a woman’s stolen young adulthood and her journey to self-acceptance, and a rare look inside Hugh Hefner’s final days. At just twenty-one years old, Crystal Harris’ life changed forever when she attended a party at the notorious Playboy mansion. Picked out of the crowd by Hugh Hefner, she became one of his infamous “girlfriends,” attending glamorous Hollywood parties and traveling the world. Yet this seemingly alluring lifestyle had a dark side. Hef controlled his girlfriends with strict rules regarding everything from their hair and makeup to their curfews, and Crystal was forced to compete with other women for her spot in the highly hierarchal system. Living at the mansion, she felt more like a fixture than a resident.    She quickly rose to the top, but being Hef’s number one girlfriend came at the cost of Crystal’s identity outside her role in the Playboy universe. Her fate seemed sealed when Hef surprised her with a marriage proposal she could not imagine refusing. But as Crystal Hefner, she grew increasingly restless to understand who she truly was away from what she saw as Playboy’s toxic culture. In ONLY SAY GOOD THINGS, Crystal offers a vulnerable and clear-eyed look at how her experience with Hugh Hefner catalyzed her transformative journey from someone who prized external validation over all else to a person who finally recognizes her true worth. This candid memoir provides a fascinating look behind the scenes at a powerful cultural icon and brand, and an equally empowering perspective on hard-won lessons about who we allow to determine our value.



Elizabeth Beller - Once Upon a Time artwork Once Upon a Time
The Captivating Life of Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy
Elizabeth Beller
Genre: Arts & Entertainment
Price: $20.99
Publish Date: May 21, 2024
Publisher: Gallery Books
Seller: Simon & Schuster Canada

The life and legacy of Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, wife of John F. Kennedy Jr., are reexamined in this captivating and effervescent biography that is perfect for fans of My Travels with Mrs. Kennedy , What Remains , and Fairy Tale Interrupted . A quarter of a century after the plane crash that claimed the lives of John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife Carolyn, and her sister Lauren, the magnitude of this tragedy remains fresh. Yet, Carolyn is still an enigmatic figure, a woman whose short life in the spotlight was besieged with misogyny and cruelty. Amidst today’s cultural reckoning about the way our media treats women, Elizabeth Beller explores the real person behind the tabloid headlines and media frenzy. When she began dating America’s prince, Carolyn was increasingly thrust into an overwhelming spotlight filled with relentless paparazzi who reacted to her reserve with a campaign of harassment and vilification. To this day, she is still depicted as a privileged princess—icy, vapid, and drug-addicted. She has even been accused of being responsible for their untimely death, allegedly delaying take-off until she finished her pedicure. But now, she is revealed as never before. A fiercely independent woman devoted to her adopted city and career, Carolyn relied on her impeccable eye and drive to fly up the ranks at Calvin Klein in the glossy, high-stakes fashion world of the 1990s. When Carolyn met her future husband, John was immediately drawn to her strong-willed personality, effortless charm, and high intelligence. Their relationship would change her life and catapult her to dizzying fame, but it was her vibrant life before their marriage and then hidden afterwards, that is truly fascinating. Based on in-depth research and exclusive interviews with friends, family members, teachers, roommates, and colleagues, and featuring never-before-seen family photos, this comprehensive biography reveals a multi-faceted woman worthy of our attention regardless of her husband and untimely death.



Matthew Perry - Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing artwork Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing
A Memoir
Matthew Perry
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $16.99
Publish Date: November 01, 2022
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Seller: Macmillan

INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER #1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER The BELOVED STAR OF FRIENDS takes us behind the scenes of the hit sitcom and his struggles with addiction in this “CANDID, DARKLY FUNNY...POIGNANT” memoir ( The New York Times ) A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK by Time , Associated Press, Goodreads, USA Today , and more! “Hi, my name is Matthew, although you may know me by another name. My friends call me Matty.” So begins the riveting story of acclaimed actor Matthew Perry, taking us along on his journey from childhood ambition to fame to addiction and recovery in the aftermath of a life-threatening health scare. Before the frequent hospital visits and stints in rehab, there was five-year-old Matthew, who traveled from Montreal to Los Angeles, shuffling between his separated parents; fourteen-year-old Matthew, who was a nationally ranked tennis star in Canada; twenty-four-year-old Matthew, who nabbed a coveted role as a lead cast member on the talked-about pilot then called Friends Like Us . . . and so much more. In an extraordinary story that only he could tell—and in the heartfelt, hilarious, and warmly familiar way only he could tell it—Matthew Perry lays bare the fractured family that raised him (and also left him to his own devices), the desire for recognition that drove him to fame, and the void inside him that could not be filled even by his greatest dreams coming true. But he also details the peace he’s found in sobriety and how he feels about the ubiquity of Friends , sharing stories about his castmates and other stars he met along the way. Frank, self-aware, and with his trademark humor, Perry vividly depicts his lifelong battle with addiction and what fueled it despite seemingly having it all. Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing is an unforgettable memoir that is both intimate and eye-opening—as well as a hand extended to anyone struggling with sobriety. Unflinchingly honest, moving, and uproariously funny, this is the book fans have been waiting for.



Paul Wells - Justin Trudeau on the Ropes artwork Justin Trudeau on the Ropes
Governing in Troubled Times
Paul Wells
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $16.99
Publish Date: May 07, 2024
Publisher: Sutherland House Books
Seller: Ingram DV LLC

The worst decade in the history of the Liberal Party of Canada came to an end on October 19, 2015. Justin Trudeau swept to power, ending the ten-year rule of Stephen Harper’s Conservatives. Trudeau’s vision was relentlessly optimistic: the word "positive" was heard eight times in his victory speech, along with references to "sunny ways" and "hope and hard work." But the fates decreed that he would govern in darker times. His rookie government, itself mainly staffed by rookies in federal politics, had to learn on the job in an age of polarization, misinformation, and pandemic, while dealing with the rise of Trump and Brexit, a newly belligerent China, and wars in Ukraine and the Middle East. The moment needed more than a young PM's abundant charm. And almost from the outset, Trudeau struggled to rise to the occasion. A decade after he published The Longer I’m Prime Minister, the definitive portrait of Stephen Harper in power, Paul Wells, one of Canada’s all-time great political writers, turns his attention to Justin Trudeau, a man of talent, ambition, and trust issues in a time of mistrust.



Manjit Virk - Reena artwork Reena
A Father's Story
Manjit Virk
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $8.99
Publish Date: February 01, 2011
Publisher: Heritage House
Seller: eBOUND Canada

Shortlisted for the 2009 George Ryga Award. This is the story of an average family that has never been the same . . . since its eldest child was swarmed and killed by her peers on a moonlit night, November 14, 1997 . . . It is the story of what sudden and horrific violence can do to a family, and how a family somehow remains intact in the face of such events. —from the prologue by Lynne Van Luven At the time of their 14-year-old daughter Reena’s murder, Manjit and Suman Virk had already been let down by both social-services and law-enforcement authorities. They had struggled with the challenges of conflicting cultures and religions and child-rearing ideologies, and with the anguish of allegations of wrongdoing and the tarnished reputations that resulted. Now Manjit speaks for the first time about life before and after the murder of Reena, a tragedy that remains one of the most widely discussed crimes of our time. It is a book about what was and what was not, about his immigration to a new land and his attempts to raise his family in a safe and simple fashion, about the events that forever derailed those efforts.



Jesse Thistle - From the Ashes artwork From the Ashes
My Story of Being Métis, Homeless, and Finding My Way
Jesse Thistle
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $4.99
Publish Date: August 06, 2019
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Seller: Simon & Schuster Canada

*#1 NATIONAL BESTSELLER *Winner, Kobo Emerging Writer Prize Nonfiction *Winner, Indigenous Voices Awards *Winner, High Plains Book Awards *Finalist, CBC Canada Reads *A Globe and Mail Book of the Year *An Indigo Book of the Year *A CBC Best Canadian Nonfiction Book of the Year In this extraordinary and inspiring debut memoir, Jesse Thistle, once a high school dropout and now a rising Indigenous scholar, chronicles his life on the streets and how he overcame trauma and addiction to discover the truth about who he is. If I can just make it to the next minute...then I might have a chance to live; I might have a chance to be something more than just a struggling crackhead. From the Ashes is a remarkable memoir about hope and resilience, and a revelatory look into the life of a Métis-Cree man who refused to give up. Abandoned by his parents as a toddler, Jesse Thistle briefly found himself in the foster-care system with his two brothers, cut off from all they had known. Eventually the children landed in the home of their paternal grandparents, whose tough-love attitudes quickly resulted in conflicts. Throughout it all, the ghost of Jesse’s drug-addicted father haunted the halls of the house and the memories of every family member. Struggling with all that had happened, Jesse succumbed to a self-destructive cycle of drug and alcohol addiction and petty crime, spending more than a decade on and off the streets, often homeless. Finally, he realized he would die unless he turned his life around. In this heartwarming and heart-wrenching memoir, Jesse Thistle writes honestly and fearlessly about his painful past, the abuse he endured, and how he uncovered the truth about his parents. Through sheer perseverance and education—and newfound love—he found his way back into the circle of his Indigenous culture and family. An eloquent exploration of the impact of prejudice and racism, From the Ashes is, in the end, about how love and support can help us find happiness despite the odds.



Prince Harry - Le Suppléant artwork Le Suppléant
Prince Harry
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $18.99
Publish Date: January 10, 2023
Publisher: Fayard
Seller: Hachette Livre

Traduit de l’anglais par Nathalie Bru et Santiago Artozqui C’est l’une des images les plus marquantes du XXe siècle : deux jeunes garçons, deux princes, marchant derrière le cercueil de leur mère sous les regards éplorés – et horrifiés – du monde entier. Alors que Diana, princesse de Galles, rejoignait sa dernière demeure, des milliards de personnes se demandaient à quoi pouvaient bien penser les princes à cet instant, ce qu’ils ressentaient – et quelle tournure allait prendre leur vie désormais. Pour Harry, voici enfin venu le moment de raconter son histoire. Avant de perdre sa mère, le prince Harry, douze ans, était un enfant insouciant, un Suppléant rieur au côté d’un Héritier plus réservé. Le deuil a tout changé : difficultés à l’école, difficultés à gérer sa colère, à supporter la solitude – et, parce qu’il tenait la presse pour responsable de la mort de sa mère, difficultés à accepter que sa vie se déroule sous les feux des projecteurs. À vingt et un ans, il rejoint l’armée britannique. La discipline lui donne un cadre, et deux déploiements en opération extérieure font de lui un héros dans son pays. Bientôt pourtant, il se sent plus perdu que jamais, victime de stress post-traumatique et d’attaques de panique qui le paralysent. Par-dessus tout, il attend toujours le grand amour. Puis il rencontre Meghan. Le monde s’est passionné pour leur histoire d’amour digne d’Hollywood ; il s’est réjoui lors de leur mariage de conte de fées. Mais dès le début, Harry et Meghan sont harcelés par la presse, contraints de faire face, vague après vague, aux abus, au racisme et aux mensonges. Témoin des souffrances de sa femme, conscient du danger pour leur sécurité et leur santé mentale, Harry n’a pas trouvé meilleur moyen d’empêcher l’histoire de se répéter qu’en fuyant son pays natal. À travers les siècles, rares sont ceux qui ont osé quitter la famille royale. La dernière à avoir essayé, à vrai dire, fut sa mère… Pour la première fois, le prince Harry raconte sa propre histoire. D’une honnêteté brute et sans fard, Le Suppléant est un livre qui fera date, plein de perspicacité, de révélations, d’interrogations sur soi et de leçons durement apprises sur le pouvoir éternel de l’amour face au chagrin.   Le prince Harry, duc de Sussex, est mari, père, acteur dans l’humanitaire et vétéran de guerre. Il milite pour l’écologie et s’engage pour la sensibilisation au bien-être mental. Il vit à Santa Barbara, en Californie, avec sa famille et leurs trois chiens.



Linda Leaming - Married to Bhutan artwork Married to Bhutan
How One Woman Got Lost, Said 'I Do,' and Found Bliss
Linda Leaming
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $13.99
Publish Date: April 01, 2011
Publisher: Hay House
Seller: Penguin Random House Canada

Tucked away in the eastern end of the Himalayas lies Bhutan: a tiny, landlocked country bordering China, India, and Nepal. One of the most remote places in the world, Bhutan is rich in natural beauty, exotic landscapes, and ancient wisdom, where people are genuinely happy with very few material possessions and the government embraces "Gross National Happiness" instead of Gross National Product. As one of the few Americans to have lived in Bhutan, Linda Leaming offers a rare glimpse at the peaceful mountain kingdom so many have only dreamed of. For over ten years, Leaming has lived and taught in the small town of Thimphu, where there are fewer than 100,000 people and no traffic lights. "If enlightenment is possible anywhere," she writes, "I think it is particularly possible here." The Bhutanese way of life—quieter, slower, and more tranquil—can seem daunting to most Westerners, consumed with time, dates, speed, and efficiency. In Bhutan, people rarely check their e-mail and take their time answering their telephones. But, as Leaming shows us, a little patience—over a cup of warm tea and friendly conversation—can help soothe the most distressed mind and soul. In this funny, magical memoir, Leaming takes us with her on her travels through South Asia, sharing her experiences as she learns the language, customs, and religion; folklore of a revered Tibetan holy man who gave blessings to the people by whacking them on the head with a big wooden phallus; her unlikely romance with a Buddhist artist; and her discoveries about the unexpected path to happiness and accidental enlightenment, where true bliss resides. Married to Bhutan is a reminder that following our dreams is the way to be truly happy.



Eti Elboim, Sara Leibovits & Esther Frumkin - The Girl Who Survived Auschwitz artwork The Girl Who Survived Auschwitz
Eti Elboim, Sara Leibovits & Esther Frumkin
Genre: Religious Bios & Memoirs
Price: $0.99
Publish Date: September 19, 2023
Publisher: One More Chapter
Seller: Harper Collins Canada Limited

‘You are no longer a number’ Poland, 1944 The train slowed and halted with a squeal of the breaks. It felt like we waited in the carriage for an eternity, but eventually, the heavy doors opened, directly into the chaos inside. Sara Leibovitz, a 16-year-old Jewish girl, was a passenger on the train with her family. They spent their final moments together on the platform in Auschwitz before their horrific fates were sealed. Sara’s mother and baby brothers were sent straight to their deaths. Her father was made to work in the Sonderkommando as one of the men forced to remove the bodies from the gas chambers, and was later executed. Sara survived. This is the powerful true story of Sara Leibovits and the incredible pain and hardships she went through during her time in the death camp. Yet despite the horrors she faced, she always tried to maintain her family’s values of courage, faith and kindness to others. In this compelling memoir, Sara’s story is intertwined with that of her daughter, Eti. Seventy years after the horrors of the Holocaust, Eti reveals the inherited trauma of the second generation and completes the Holocaust survivor’s tale. What readers are saying about The Girl Who Survived Auschwitz: ‘Let us never stop reading these novels. These memoirs are the ones that keep all the voices alive’ ‘Highly recommend… I finished reading it with a newfound sense of love and compassion’ ‘Reading this family’s memories is a rewarding experience in that it will ensure future generations will remember and learn. Many thanks to the author…for the trust in allowing me to review this life-changing memoir.’ ‘A raw and gripping Holocaust recount’ ‘What I loved most about this book is that it is a dual perspective…I was grateful to have a little glimpse into the mind of Eti and her absolute respect for her parents…together they learned, they grieved and they healed’ ‘It makes me really proud of my Jewish heritage and this story of perseverance. I highly recommend this book for any and all to read so we can keep survivor's stories alive and never let this type of tragedy happen again’ ‘Powerful, heartbreaking and inspiring. We need to know what happened. It will make your heart break. It is beyond horrific. But we need to know in memory of the six million innocents who died and of those who survived’ ‘A haunting and beautiful read…I give it a resounding 5 stars’ ‘We have the perspective of a woman who survived the holocaust as well as her daughter who had never known the horrrors her mother endured, yet asked…I feel honored to have read this memoir’ ‘Anyone who reads this book will not be left untouched…truly moving' ‘This is one of those books everyone should read' ‘Remarkable… a profoundly impactful book, one which should be required reading for everyone' 'Sara Leibovits is an amazing lady. She showed strength of character, resilience and maintained a kind heart, as she shared what little she had with those around her in Auschwitz'



Joanna Sprtel Walters - Girl at Sea artwork Girl at Sea
A Story of Courage, Strength, and Growth from One of the First Women to Serve on US Warships
Joanna Sprtel Walters
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $1.99
Publish Date: September 22, 2015
Publisher: Skyhorse
Seller: Simon & Schuster Canada

A Naval officer’s memoir about finding one’s voice. Women have bravely served in the U.S. Navy for nearly a century, but they have only been allowed to serve in combat roles for the last twenty-five years. When the combat exclusion law was lifted in 1993, women in the Navy soon had a new range of opportunities available to them. The repeal of the law finally gave women the chance to serve on combatant ships for the first time. Among the first women to step onto these warships as a new crewmember was Joanna Sprtel Walters. In her memoir Girl at Sea, she shares her story beginning with training at the US Naval Academy through her service in the fleet aboard combatant warships. As a member of the class of 1994, she was among the first group of women out of the Academy to have selected warfare specialties. This real-life account sheds light on a ground-breaking time in our country’s history as gender barriers continue to be torn down within all divisions of our Armed Forces. Walters’s story will resonate with anyone who has ever had to bump their head against a glass ceiling and then fight their way through it. Her story covers difficult topics such as a sexual assault and extortion case at the end of her time at the Academy; struggling to prove herself on a ship where men felt women were invading their spaces; earning the hard-fought respect of her first division; recovering from the career suicide of engaging in a forbidden relationship; fighting to stay in the Navy and then thriving in the most difficult of environments; and her eventual blossoming into a strong Division Officer with an MBA under her belt. Through her successes and failures, Walter’s hopes to inspire others to reach beyond what they thought they were capable of and find their own inner strength. Skyhorse Publishing, along with our Arcade, Good Books, Sports Publishing, and Yucca imprints, is proud to publish a broad range of biographies, autobiographies, and memoirs. Our list includes biographies on well-known historical figures like Benjamin Franklin, Nelson Mandela, and Alexander Graham Bell, as well as villains from history, such as Heinrich Himmler, John Wayne Gacy, and O. J. Simpson. We have also published survivor stories of World War II, memoirs about overcoming adversity, first-hand tales of adventure, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.



Moshe Kasher - Kasher in the Rye artwork Kasher in the Rye
The True Tale of a White Boy from Oakland Who Became a Drug Addict, Criminal, Mental Patient, and Then Turned 16
Moshe Kasher
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $15.99
Publish Date: March 28, 2012
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Seller: Hachette Digital, Inc.

“The finest, most moving and powerful memoir I have ever read.”—MAYIM BIALIK Rising young comedian Moshe Kasher is lucky to be alive. He started using drugs when he was just 12. At that point, he had already been in psychoanlysis for 8 years. By the time he was 15, he had been in and out of several mental institutions, drifting from therapy to rehab to arrest to...you get the picture. But Kasher in the Rye is not an "eye opener" to the horrors of addiction. It's a hilarious memoir about the absurdity of it all. When he was a young boy, Kasher's mother took him on a vacation to the West Coast. Well it was more like an abduction. Only not officially. She stole them away from their father and they moved to Oakland , California. That's where the real fun begins, in the war zone of Oakland Public Schools. He was more than just out of control-his mother walked him around on a leash, which he chewed through and ran away. Brutally honest and laugh-out-loud funny, Kasher's first literary endeavor finds humor in even the most horrifying situations.



Glennon Doyle - Untamed artwork Untamed
Glennon Doyle
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $16.99
Publish Date: March 10, 2020
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Seller: Penguin Random House Canada

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • OVER TWO MILLION COPIES SOLD! “Packed with incredible insight about what it means to be a woman today.”—Reese Witherspoon (Reese’s Book Club Pick) In her most revealing and powerful memoir yet, the activist, speaker, bestselling author, and “patron saint of female empowerment” ( People ) explores the joy and peace we discover when we stop striving to meet others’ expectations and start trusting the voice deep within us. “ Untamed will liberate women—emotionally, spiritually, and physically. It is phenomenal.”—Elizabeth Gilbert, author of City of Girls and Eat Pray Love A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: Oprah Daily, The Washington Post, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Bloomberg, Parade This is how you find yourself. There is a voice of longing inside each woman. We strive so mightily to be good: good partners, daughters, mothers, employees, and friends. We hope all this striving will make us feel alive. Instead, it leaves us feeling weary, stuck, overwhelmed, and underwhelmed. We look at our lives and wonder: Wasn’t it all supposed to be more beautiful than this? We quickly silence that question, telling ourselves to be grateful, hiding our discontent—even from ourselves. For many years, Glennon Doyle denied her own discontent. Then, while speaking at a conference, she looked at a woman across the room and fell instantly in love. Three words flooded her mind: There She Is . At first, Glennon assumed these words came to her from on high. But she soon realized they had come to her from within. This was her own voice—the one she had buried beneath decades of numbing addictions, cultural conditioning, and institutional allegiances. This was the voice of the girl she had been before the world told her who to be. Glennon decided to quit abandoning herself and to instead abandon the world’s expectations of her. She quit being good so she could be free. She quit pleasing and started living. Soulful and uproarious, forceful and tender, Untamed is both an intimate memoir and a galvanizing wake-up call. It is the story of how one woman learned that a responsible mother is not one who slowly dies for her children, but one who shows them how to fully live. It is the story of navigating divorce, forming a new blended family, and discovering that the brokenness or wholeness of a family depends not on its structure but on each member’s ability to bring her full self to the table. And it is the story of how each of us can begin to trust ourselves enough to set boundaries, make peace with our bodies, honor our anger and heartbreak, and unleash our truest, wildest instincts so that we become women who can finally look at ourselves and say: There She Is . Untamed shows us how to be brave. As Glennon insists: The braver we are, the luckier we get.



David Goggins - Can't Hurt Me artwork Can't Hurt Me
Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds
David Goggins
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $12.99
Publish Date: November 15, 2018
Publisher: Lioncrest Publishing
Seller: DIY Media Group DBA BookBaby

New York Times Best Seller Over 5 million copies sold For David Goggins, childhood was a nightmare - poverty, prejudice, and physical abuse colored his days and haunted his nights. But through self-discipline, mental toughness, and hard work, Goggins transformed himself from a depressed, overweight young man with no future into a U.S. Armed Forces icon and one of the world's top endurance athletes. The only man in history to complete elite training as a Navy SEAL, Army Ranger, and Air Force Tactical Air Controller, he went on to set records in numerous endurance events, inspiring Outside magazine to name him The Fittest (Real) Man in America. In Can't Hurt Me, he shares his astonishing life story and reveals that most of us tap into only 40% of our capabilities. Goggins calls this The 40% Rule, and his story illuminates a path that anyone can follow to push past pain, demolish fear, and reach their full potential.



Candice Bergen - A Fine Romance artwork A Fine Romance
Candice Bergen
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $1.99
Publish Date: April 07, 2015
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Seller: Simon & Schuster Canada

In this New York Times bestseller, acclaimed actress Candice Bergen “shows how to do a memoir right...The self-possessed, witty, and down-to-earth voice that made Bergen’s first memoir a hit when it was published in 1984 has only been deepened by life’s surprises” ( The New York Times Book Review) . “Candice Bergen is unflinchingly honest” ( The Washington Post ), and in A Fine Romance she describes her first marriage at age thirty-four to famous French director Louis Malle; her overpowering love for her daughter, Chloe; the unleashing of her inner comic with Murphy Brown ; her trauma over Malle’s death; her joy at finding new love; and her pride at watching Chloe blossom. In her decidedly nontraditional marriage to the insatiably curious Louis, Bergen takes readers on world travels to the sets where each made films. Pregnant with Chloe at age thirty-nine, this mature primigravida also recounts a journey through motherhood that includes plundering the Warner Bros. costume closets for Halloween getups and never leaving her ever-expanding menagerie out of the fun. She offers priceless, behind-the-scenes looks at Murphy Brown , from caterwauling with Aretha Franklin to the surreal experience of becoming headline news when Dan Quayle took exception to her character becoming a single mother. Bergen tackles familiar rites of passage with moving honesty: the rigors of caring for a spouse in his final illness, getting older, and falling in love again after she was tricked into a blind date. By the time the last page is turned, “we’re all likely to be wishing Bergen herself—funny, insightful, self-deprecating, flawed (and not especially concerned about that), and slugging her way through her older years with bemused determination—was living next door” ( USA TODAY ).



Malcolm X - The Autobiography of Malcolm X artwork The Autobiography of Malcolm X
Malcolm X
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $4.99
Publish Date: October 12, 1987
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Seller: Penguin Random House Canada

ONE OF TIME ’S TEN MOST IMPORTANT NONFICTION BOOKS OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY In the searing pages of this classic autobiography, originally published in 1964, Malcolm X, the Muslim leader, firebrand, and anti-integrationist, tells the extraordinary story of his life and the growth of the Black Muslim movement. His fascinating perspective on the lies and limitations of the American Dream, and the inherent racism in a society that denies its nonwhite citizens the opportunity to dream, gives extraordinary insight into the most urgent issues of our own time. The Autobiography of Malcolm X stands as the definitive statement of a movement and a man whose work was never completed but whose message is timeless. It is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand America. Praise for The Autobiography of Malcolm X “Extraordinary . . . a brilliant, painful, important book.” — The New York Times “This book will have a permanent place in the literature of the Afro-American struggle.” —I. F. Stone



Marsha M. Linehan - Building a Life Worth Living artwork Building a Life Worth Living
A Memoir
Marsha M. Linehan
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $11.99
Publish Date: January 07, 2020
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Seller: Penguin Random House Canada

Marsha Linehan tells the story of her journey from suicidal teenager to world-renowned developer of the life-saving behavioral therapy DBT, using her own struggle to develop life skills for others. “This book is a victory on both sides of the page.”—Gloria Steinem “Are you one of us?” a patient once asked Marsha Linehan, the world-renowned psychologist who developed Dialectical Behavior Therapy. “Because if you were, it would give all of us so much hope.”  Over the years, DBT had saved the lives of countless people fighting depression and suicidal thoughts, but Linehan had never revealed that her pioneering work was inspired by her own desperate struggles as a young woman. Only when she received this question did she finally decide to tell her story. In this remarkable and inspiring memoir, Linehan describes how, when she was eighteen years old, she began an abrupt downward spiral from popular teenager to suicidal young woman. After several miserable years in a psychiatric institute, Linehan made a vow that if she could get out of emotional hell, she would try to find a way to help others get out of hell too, and to build a life worth living.  She went on to put herself through night school and college, living at a YWCA and often scraping together spare change to buy food. She went on to get her PhD in psychology, specializing in behavior therapy. In the 1980s, she achieved a breakthrough when she developed Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, a therapeutic approach that combines acceptance of the self and ways to change. Linehan included mindfulness as a key component in therapy treatment, along with original and specific life-skill techniques. She says, "You can't think yourself into new ways of acting; you can only act yourself into new ways of thinking." Throughout her extraordinary scientific career, Marsha Linehan remained a woman of deep spirituality. Her powerful and moving story is one of faith and perseverance. Linehan shows, in Building a Life Worth Living , how the principles of DBT really work—and how, using her life skills and techniques, people can build lives worth living.



Andrew Kirsch - I Was Never Here: My True Canadian Spy Story of Coffees, Code Names and Covert Operations in the Age of Terrorism artwork I Was Never Here: My True Canadian Spy Story of Coffees, Code Names and Covert Operations in the Age of Terrorism
Andrew Kirsch
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $9.99
Publish Date: March 01, 2022
Publisher: Andrew Kirsch
Seller: Draft2Digital, LLC

An ex-spy lifts the lid on life in the secret serviceAndrew Kirsch didn’t grow up watching spy movies, or dreaming about being a real-life James Bond. He was hardly aware that Canada even had its own intelligence service—let alone knew what its officers did. But when a terrorist attack occurred near the office of his financial services job, all of a sudden fighting terrorism meant a lot more to him than the markets. Within 18 months he had landed a job with the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS)—where he spent the next decade of his life.In I Was Never Here, Kirsch (now an in-demand security consultant) spills the secrets of what life as an intelligence officer is really like, and dispels a few myths along the way. With humour, honesty, and candour, Kirsch shares his on-the-ground experience (or as much of it as he’s allowed to) of becoming a member of CSIS: from his vetting and training, to his initial desk job as a policy analyst, to his rise up the ranks to leading covert special operations missions. If you’ve ever wondered whether spies can have real dating lives, how they handle family responsibilities, or how they come up with cover stories or aliases, you’re in luck.From the time he tried to get the code names “Burgundy” and “Anchorman” assigned to human sources (with no luck), to the night a covert operation was almost thwarted by a flyer delivery man, Kirsch takes you behind the scenes with an authentic view of Canada’s spy agency, and the intricate intelligence-sharing apparatus that works day and night to keep us safe. I Was Never Here is also a testament to one man’s drive to serve his country, and the sacrifices, big and small, that he made along the way.



Amy Poehler - Yes Please artwork Yes Please
Amy Poehler
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $11.99
Publish Date: October 28, 2014
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Seller: Harper Collins Canada Limited

#1 New York Times Bestseller #1 Globe and Mail Bestseller A Globe Best Book of the Year A smart, pointed, and ultimately inspirational read from one of our most beloved funny folk. In a perfect world . . . We’d get to hang out with Amy Poehler, watching dumb movies, listening to music, and swapping tales about our coworkers and difficult childhoods. Unfortunately, between her Golden Globe–winning role on Parks and Recreation, work as a producer and director, place as one of the most beloved SNL alumni and cofounder of the Upright Citizens Brigade, involvement with the website Smart Girls at the Party, frequent turns as acting double for Meryl Streep, and her other gig as the mom of two young sons, she’s not available for movie night. Luckily, we have the next best thing: Yes Please, Amy Poehler’s hilarious and candid book. A collection of stories, thoughts, ideas, lists, and haiku, Yes Please took the world by storm, going straight to #1 on the New York Times bestseller list and dominating lists on both sides of the border for over 17 weeks—including multiple weeks at #1 on the Globe and Mail bestseller list. Widely acclaimed as one of the best books of the year, Yes Please cemented Amy Poehler’s place in our hearts as one of our most beloved entertainers, and in our minds as a sharp, insightful, and provocative writer. Oh, and did we mention hilarious? Truly hilarious. Yes Please will make you think as much as it will make you laugh. Honest, personal, real, and righteous, Yes Please is full of words to live by.



Martin Short - I Must Say artwork I Must Say
My Life As a Humble Comedy Legend
Martin Short
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $11.99
Publish Date: November 04, 2014
Publisher: Harper
Seller: Harper Collins Canada Limited

“Short’s endearing memoir is, of course, funny, but it’s also a rare thing: the tale of a genuine human being who’s thrived on planet Hollywood.” — Washington Post In this engagingly witty, wise, and heartfelt memoir, Martin Short tells the tale of how a showbiz-obsessed kid from Canada transformed himself into one of Hollywood's favorite funnymen, known to his famous peers as the "comedian's comedian." Short takes the reader on a rich, hilarious, and occasionally heartbreaking ride through his life and times, from his early years in Toronto as a member of the fabled improvisational troupe Second City to the all-American comic big time of Saturday Night Live, and from memorable roles in such movies as ¡Three Amigos! and Father of the Bride to Broadway stardom in Fame Becomes Me and the Tony-winning Little Me. He reveals how he created his most indelible comedic characters, among them the manic man-child Ed Grimley, the slimy corporate lawyer Nathan Thurm, and the bizarrely insensitive interviewer Jiminy Glick. Throughout, Short freely shares the spotlight with friends, colleagues, and collaborators, among them Steve Martin, Tom Hanks, Gilda Radner, Mel Brooks, Nora Ephron, Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara, Paul Shaffer, and David Letterman. But there is another side to Short's life that he has long kept private. He lost his eldest brother and both parents by the time he turned twenty, and, more recently, he lost his wife of thirty years to cancer. In I Must Say, Short talks for the first time about the pain that these losses inflicted and the upbeat life philosophy that has kept him resilient and carried him through. In the grand tradition of comedy legends, Martin Short offers a show-business memoir densely populated with boldface names and rife with retellable tales: a hugely entertaining yet surprisingly moving self-portrait that will keep you laughing—and crying—from the first page to the last.



April Simpkins & Cheslie Kryst - By the Time You Read This artwork By the Time You Read This
The Space between Cheslie's Smile and Mental Illness—Her Story in Her Own Words
April Simpkins & Cheslie Kryst
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $14.99
Publish Date: April 23, 2024
Publisher: Forefront Books
Seller: Simon & Schuster Canada

By the Time You Read This is the story former Miss USA Cheslie Kryst was about to publish before her tragic suicide. Her mother, April, wraps up the narrative by exploring the mental illness and depression that took her daughter’s life. The text read, “By the time you get this . . .” This is the story of Cheslie Kryst, a former Miss USA, in her own words. When the world awoke on the morning of January 30, 2022, many were shocked to learn of the tragic death of former Miss USA Cheslie Kryst. For most people, the news was unfathomable. How could a young woman in the prime of her life—a pageant queen, accomplished attorney, Extra correspondent, and tireless advocate for charity organizations—have been lost to the world so suddenly? By the Time You Read This shares the manuscript Cheslie wrote before her passing, her story in her own words—from the highest highs of passing two bar exams, winning Miss USA, and beginning an exciting career as an entertainment journalist to the lowest lows of heartbreak, betrayal, and persistent depression. When Cheslie’s mother, April Simpkins, picks up the narrative, she shares for the first time what she experienced in the aftermath of Cheslie’s suicide. When faced with such a devastating loss, how does a mother find a way to carry on? Whether you are someone who struggles to maintain your mental health, or you love someone who does, this book will share insight into a reality that impacts thousands of families every year—as well as provide hope for those who are left behind. Net proceeds from the book will be used to support the Cheslie C. Kryst Foundation, which is being founded in Cheslie’s honor.



David Yaffe - Reckless Daughter artwork Reckless Daughter
A Portrait of Joni Mitchell
David Yaffe
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $11.99
Publish Date: October 10, 2017
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Seller: Harper Collins Canada Limited

NATIONAL BESTSELLER "She was like a storm." ―Leonard Cohen "The definitive biography of a gifted songwriter and musician." ―Publishers Weekly (starred review) With an inimitable sound and unmistakable voice, Joni Mitchell is one of the most iconic performers and storytellers of any generation. Reckless Daughter tells the remarkable, heart-wrenching story of how the blonde girl from Saskatchewan with the guitar became a superstar of folk music in the 1960s, a key figure in the Laurel Canyon music scene of the 1970s, and the songwriter who spoke resonantly to, and for, audiences around the world. In this intimate biography, composed of dozens of unprecedented in-person interviews with Mitchell, her childhood friends, and a cast of famous characters that includes Leonard Cohen, Joan Baez, Judy Collins, and David Crosby, David Yaffe reveals the backstory behind the famous songs―from Mitchell’s youth in Canada, her pre-vaccine bout with polio at age nine, her early marriage, and the child she gave up for adoption, through the quintessential love affairs that inspired masterpieces, and up to the present―and shows us why Mitchell has so enthralled her listeners, her lovers, and her friends. Drawing on musical expertise and a reverence for and deep understanding of Mitchell’s work, Yaffe offers insightful analyses of her famous lyrics, exploring their imagery, their style, and their reflection of the woman herself. A Canadian prairie girl, a free-spirited artist, Mitchell never wanted to be a pop star. She was nothing more than “a painter derailed by circumstances,” she would explain. And yet, she went on to become a talented self-taught musician and a brilliant band leader, releasing album after album, each distinctly experimental, challenging, and revealing. Her lyrics captivated listeners with their poignant, perceptive language and naked emotion, born out of Mitchell’s life, loves, complaints, and prophecies. As an artist whose work deftly balances narrative and musical complexity, she was admired by such legendary lyricists as Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen and was a beloved collaborator of jazz musicians Jaco Pastorius, Wayne Shorter, and Herbie Hancock, among others. Her hits—from “Big Yellow Taxi” to “Both Sides, Now” to “A Case of You”—endure as timeless favorites. Mitchell’s influence on the generations of singer-songwriters who would follow her is undeniable. Reckless Daughter is the story of Joni Mitchell, and of the fertile, exciting musical time of which she was an integral part. It is the story of an artist and an era that have left an indelible mark on our music and our culture.



Michael Jackson - Moonwalk artwork Moonwalk
A Memoir
Michael Jackson
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Price: $16.99
Publish Date: May 01, 1988
Publisher: Crown
Seller: Penguin Random House Canada

In this #1 New York Times bestseller, Michael Jackson tells the story of his life, in his words. In this intimate and often moving personal account of Michael Jackson’s public and private life, he recalls a childhood that was both harsh and joyful but always formidable. Michael and his brothers played amateur music shows and seamy Chicago strip joints until Motown’s corporate image makers turned the Jackson 5 into worldwide superstars. He talks about the happy prankster days of his youth, traveling with his brothers, and of his sometimes difficult relationships with his family over the years. He speaks candidly about the inspiration behind his music, his mesmerizing dance moves, and the compulsive drive to create that has made him one of the biggest stars in the music business and a legend in his own time. Jackson also shares his personal feelings about some of his most public friends…friends like Diana Ross, Berry Gordy, Quincy Jones, Paul McCartney, Fred Astaire, Marlon Brando, and Katharine Hepburn. He talks openly about the crushing isolation of his fame, of his first love, of his plastic surgery, and of his wholly exceptional career and the often bizarre and unfair rumors that have surrounded it. Illustrated with rare photographs from Jackson family albums and Michael’s personal photographic archives, as well as a drawing done by Michael exclusively for this book, Moonwalk is a memorable journey to the very heart and soul of a modern musical genius.