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Biography & Memoir | Prepub Alert, October 2024 Titles

PREMIUM

A Good Bad Boy: Luke Perry and How a Generation Grew Up

A satisfying portrait of Luke Perry that’s presented as a hybrid narrative.
PREMIUM

American Diva: Extraordinary, Unruly, Fabulous

A poetic and inspiring treatment of the diva. Best paired with a discography and a playlist of music by the profiled divas.

MeatEater’s American History: The Long Hunters (1761–1775)

Compelling storytelling, animated narration, and well-researched information combine to create a superb listening experience for anyone interested in early American history.
PREMIUM

Tupac Shakur: The Authorized Biography

A captivating portrait of a rap icon who inspired artists and activists alike.
PREMIUM

Small Acts of Courage: A Legacy of Endurance and the Fight for Democracy

This family saga educates, entertains, and fascinates as a study of the Indian and Ismaili Muslim diasporas and of immigrants’ countless contributions to their new homelands.
PREMIUM

Leonard Cohen: The Man Who Saw the Angels Fall

This big biography of Cohen will appeal to a wide variety of readers, especially the philosophically minded.

The Fixer: Moguls, Mobsters, Movie Stars, and Marilyn

A fast-paced, fascinating tell-all that’s a previously untold account of the seamy side of Hollywood, politics, and mob activity.

Miss May Does Not Exist: The Life and Work of Elaine May, Hollywood’s Hidden Genius

The writing in this book is whip-smart and funny. It produces a fully realized portrait of a mysterious film genius.
PREMIUM

Marlon Brando: Hollywood Rebel

An entertaining and enlightening study of Brando’s impressive influence.

Biography & Memoir | Prepub Alert, September 2024 Titles

Mosquito Warrior: Yellow Fever, Public Health, and the Forgotten Career of General William C. Gorgas

This fascinating book is as much of an account of mosquito-borne illnesses, research, and treatment as it is the story of Gorgas’s life. Will draw biography, military history, and medical history readers.
PREMIUM

Daughter of the Dragon: Anna May Wong’s Rendezvous with American History

Cinema and history buffs alike will enjoy this engaging tale of a Chinese American cultural icon.
PREMIUM

God Save Benedict Arnold: The True Story of America’s Most Hated Man

A fascinating new look at this enigmatic American Revolution hero/traitor, delivered objectively.
PREMIUM

Unroyal: Three Women Who Shook the Monarchy

A richly rendered audiobook offering insight into the experiences of the women who shake (and are shaken by) the power of the Crown. Recommended for followers of British royalty and those seeking feminist cultural studies works.
PREMIUM

The Money Kings: The Epic Story of the Jewish Immigrants Who Transformed Wall Street and Shaped Modern America

A commanding group biography commemorating the lives of wealthy Jewish power brokers. This skillfully narrated audio is highly recommended for those seeking a lively account of American financial and cultural history.
PREMIUM

Overlooked: A Celebration of Remarkable, Underappreciated People Who Broke the Rules and Changed the World

An endlessly fascinating look into the lives of extraordinary individuals, this audiobook is a treat.

The Riddles of the Sphinx: Inheriting the Feminist History of the Crossword Puzzle

As a gripping study sprinkled with puns and puzzles, this book encompasses the reasoning behind Shechtman’s own search for meaning while describing the constraints and histories of women who changed the narrative about wordplay. The book also soundly cracks the code for feminists puzzling over how wordplay fits into gender politics.

Between Two Trailers: A Memoir

This debut is everything fans of memoirs could hope for: a beautifully written, searing and honest tribute to family.
PREMIUM

What Kind of Bird Can’t Fly: A Memoir of Resilience and Resurrection

A must have for readers interested in the consequences and transformation of mass incarceration, mass supervision, and inhumane policies and practices.

Us, After: A Memoir of Love and Suicide

Readers who have experienced grief will find comfort in this deeply moving memoir of love and loss.
PREMIUM

The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians: True Stories of the Magic of Reading

A noteworthy addition to the literature lauding the foot soldiers involved in getting books out to readers. A good complement to Debbie Berne’s The Design of Books.

Biography & Memoir | Prepub Alert, August 2024 Titles

PREMIUM

Jean Peters: Hollywood’s Mystery Girl

The author clearly did an incredible amount of research, but much of Peters’s personal life remains a mystery.
PREMIUM

The Fabulist: The Lying, Hustling, Grifting, Stealing, and Very American Legend of George Santos

Chiusano’s case study succeeds in revealing the roots of Santos’s shameless behavior and never-ending lies. This account of how an accomplished scammer rose in national politics is both compelling and sickening. Highly recommended, and an essential purchase for all New York libraries.
PREMIUM

The Rulebreaker: The Life and Times of Barbara Walters

A definitive and deeply researched biography, likely to be in high demand at all libraries, especially those with book clubs. Perfect for future journalists and young people who may not know what women went through to break into careers that were traditionally unwelcoming to them.
PREMIUM

Candy Darling: Dreamer, Icon, Superstar

A richly detailed and thoughtful portrait of Candy Darling, an innovator during an era that, although on the cusp of change, had not yet evolved far enough beyond the limited boundaries of conformity.
PREMIUM

No Bullet Got Me Yet: The Relentless Faith of Father Kapaun

Readers interested in military and Korean War history and faith-based stories will enjoy this book about a man whose simple yet profound piety influenced all who came in contact with him, regardless of their faith or background.

Bones Worth Breaking: A Memoir

This memoir is a poignant portrait of the love between two brothers and a shared life, with descriptions of traumatic experiences and the resulting scars. The relevance of the book’s themes and topics, alongside Martinez’s openness and exceptional writing skill, will undoubtedly connect with many readers.

The Wives: A Memoir

A fearless, engaging, and important memoir about how one person’s decision to serve in the military affects their entire family. Readers will learn the true meaning of military service through the wider lens of its impact on families and communities.
PREMIUM

Power and Glory: Elizabeth II and the Rebirth of Royalty

Highly recommended for Larman’s fans and for readers seeking a royal history that is appropriately critical.
PREMIUM

The Translator’s Daughter: A Memoir

A compelling and poignant story that sheds light on Taiwanese culture and recent history. Essential for readers interested in Taiwan in specific or immigration memoirs in general. Will also appeal to fans of Two Trees Make a Forest by Jessica J. Lee.

Biography & Memoir | Prepub Alert, July 2024 Titles

PREMIUM

Greasepaint Puritan: Boston to 42nd Street in the Queer Backstage Novels of Bradford Ropes

A well-researched and thorough illumination of a writer who deserves to be better known. For fans, performers, and creators of musical theater.
PREMIUM

Bitter Crop: The Heartache and Triumph of Billie Holiday’s Last Year

Ultimately, this book achieves a successful and accurate tribute to Lady Day and her immense talent while also painting a stark and honest portrait of her life and hardships. Recommended for fans of jazz and the legendary Holiday.
PREMIUM

Vagabond Princess: The Great Adventures of Gulbadan

An important portrait of a 16th-century Muslim woman that stresses the active role royal women played in politics, religion, and the arts. For readers interested in Islamic and Asian history.
PREMIUM

Royal Audience: 70 Years, 13 Presidents—One Queen’s Special Relationship with America

An intriguing narrative that’s remarkable reading about Queen Elizabeth II, her diplomacy, and her relationships with U.S. presidents over the years.
PREMIUM

Secrets of the Sun: A Memoir

Moving and beautifully written. This poignant memoir is about a daughter’s hunt for answers and understanding about her father, his battles, and the complexities of their relationship.

Dear Sister: A Memoir of Secrets, Survival, and Unbreakable Bonds

An essential purchase. Through countless extensions of jail time without a bail hearing, changes in attorneys, depositions, and heartbreaking jail visits, this strong narrative points to the realities of the United States’ criminal justice system and how it can fail the most vulnerable.
PREMIUM

My Side of the River: A Memoir

Perfect for readers who want to learn more about how the U.S immigration system affects the families its laws separate. Also a great pick for fans of memoirs about people who overcome the odds against them.
PREMIUM

Dear Mom and Dad: A Letter About Family, Memory, and the America We Once Knew

This book about Davis’s relationship with her parents, Ronald and Nancy Reagan, unpacks a lot. Her eloquent writing and reassessment of her family bonds will keep readers intrigued.
PREMIUM

Drums & Demons: The Tragic Journey of Jim Gordon

This narrative of Gordon’s life, hugely influential drumming, and legacy is consistently compelling from start to finish.
PREMIUM

Jockey Queen: Lillian Jenkinson Holder, Horse Racing’s Fearless Lady

An amazing story of a woman jockey’s unwavering passion and talent, coupled with a refusal to be limited by societal constraints. Will appeal to readers interested in horse racing, women’s history, and stories of perseverance in the face of adversity.
PREMIUM

Young Rupert: The Making of the Murdoch Empire

An authoritative yet scattered history of the early Murdoch media empire. Readers will learn about his business decisions but not much about who Rupert Murdoch, 92, is as a human being.
PREMIUM

Zendaya: The Unauthorized Biography

This book is a comprehensive look into Zendaya’s life. Her star power will make this book a popular one, especially with tween to young adult audiences.
PREMIUM

The Bulldog Detective: William J. Flynn and America’s First War Against the Mafia, Spies, and Terrorists

Readers intrigued by recent FBI histories such as Beverly Gage’s G-Man: J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century should access this first comprehensive biography of one of Hoover’s predecessors. It has the rapid pace of a spy novel. For specialists and generalists alike.

Biography & Memoir | Prepub Alert, June 2024 Titles

PREMIUM

Splinters: Another Kind of Love Story

A literary memoir filled with humor, which alone is worth reading the book. This title offers insight and a look into the messy, magical drudgery of life, along with the beauty of art, love, and sex that often carry people through.
PREMIUM

Toxic: Women, Fame, and the Tabloid 2000s

This meticulously researched title devotes all of its attention to the sleazy ways in which women celebrities have been treated throughout contemporary history. It’s meticulously researched.
PREMIUM

Erotic Vagrancy: Everything About Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor

Casual celebrity bio fans might find this biography a rough and labyrinth-like read, but avid Taylor and Burton fans will certainly want to check it out.
PREMIUM

Tomlin: The Soul of a Football Coach

This recommended book will appeal to many kinds of sports fans, especially readers who have fought for the greater inclusion of people of color in coaching and management positions.

Invisible Wounds: Graphic Journalism

These dozen dramatized interviews speak for the uncountable war veterans throughout history who died with their PTSD, guilt, and pain undiagnosed and misunderstood. Highly recommended for readers willing to brave the wars inside veterans and thus better understand the wars outside them.
PREMIUM

Sensory: Life on the Spectrum; An Autistic Comics Anthology

Ollerton’s engaging collection makes a wide-ranging and emotionally rich introduction to the circumstances of people with autism. Useful for high schoolers as well as adults.

King: A Life

Though lengthy (clocking in at just under 21 hours), this gripping biography of a revolutionary leader flies by. Listeners interested in a new perspective of Martin Luther King Jr.’s life will be captivated.
PREMIUM

The Black Angels: The Untold Story of the Nurses Who Helped Cure Tuberculosis

Meticulous research paired with exceptional narration makes this timely account of a public health emergency, labor shortage, and enduring discrimination an essential addition to all nonfiction collections.
PREMIUM

Last Call at Coogan’s: The Life and Death of a Neighborhood Bar

This well-researched narrative history is a delightful listen and a reminder of the power and importance of community.
PREMIUM

This Exquisite Loneliness: What Loners, Outcasts, and the Misunderstood Can Teach Us About Creativity

A timely and sincere exploration of loneliness. Though it touches on occasionally heavy topics, this insightful book should resonate broadly.
PREMIUM

Jackie: Public, Private, Secret

Enhanced by Oppenheimer’s elegant narration, this absorbing account of an iconic woman’s tragic and lavish life is not to be missed.
PREMIUM

Profane Angel: The Life and Career of Carole Lombard

Great for collections that don’t have any books on Carole Lombard.
PREMIUM

Kubrick: An Odyssey

An admiring look at a fascinating figure. Likely to be the definitive word on Kubrick for years to come.

Charlie Chaplin and the Nazis: The Long German Campaign Against the Artist

An incredibly detailed and successful book about Charlie Chaplin that does not lose film fans. More general readers can skip over much of the thorough analysis but still benefit from the book.
PREMIUM

Becoming Ella Fitzgerald: The Jazz Singer Who Transformed American Song

Best for jazz scholars or readers who are superfans of Fitzgerald.
PREMIUM

John Ford: Revised 2nd Ed.

An excellent early work on a legendary filmmaker. The update gives a more complete portrait of Ford and his films.
PREMIUM

Goodbye Russia: Rachmaninoff in Exile

Music specialists and casual readers will find this an absorbing account of Rachmaninoff’s years in exile.

More: A Memoir of Open Marriage

An honest look at how an open marriage can work, an excellent read for people interested in self-discovery or ethical non-monogamy. Recommended for readers of Dossie Easton and Janet Hardy’s The Ethical Slut and Eve Rickert and Franklin Veaux’s More Than Two.
PREMIUM

Rental Person Who Does Nothing: A Memoir

A fascinating and oddly endearing memoir.
PREMIUM

An American Dreamer: Life in a Divided Country

A beautifully rendered, sensitively told story about a veteran who returns home to a nation where many things are changing or already altered forever. A good choice for public libraries.
PREMIUM

The Girls Who Fought Crime: The Untold True Story of the Country’s First Female Investigator and Her Crime Fighting Squad

A solid purchase for libraries seeking to broaden their coverage of women in history. Share with readers of Katherine Sharp Landdeck’s The Women with Silver Wings, which offers a similarly heartening account of women’s accomplishments in the military.
PREMIUM

Finding Waypoints: A Warrior’s Journey Toward Peace and Purpose

A must for readers interested in stories about overcoming adversity and learning about the power of faith and perseverance.

Biography & Memoir | Prepub Alert, May 2024 Titles

PREMIUM

An Uncommon Woman: The Life of Lydia Hamilton Smith

An important contribution to Civil War discourse, women’s studies, and Black history.

Transitions: A Mother’s Journey

Anne’s family and acquaintances model a range of responses to a trans relative’s coming out, illustrating common difficulties while showing that acceptance and joy become possible with care and diligence. An excellent graphic novel and resource for families and others who experience the unexpected transition of a loved one.
PREMIUM

Fallen Angel: The Life of Edgar Allan Poe

This biography will renew an interest in Poe’s life and writings and is an excellent addition to the vast collection of Poe scholarship.

Brave the Wild River: The Untold Story of Two Women Who Mapped the Botany of the Grand Canyon

This will be a hit with adventure and popular-science readers, as well as those interested in gender studies.
PREMIUM

The Path to Paradise: A Francis Ford Coppola Story

This demanding book might appeal more to screenwriters and producers than to serendipitous consumers of film culture.
PREMIUM

Gilded Youth: A History of Growing Up in the Royal Family, from the Tudors to the Cambridges

Scholarly in tone, yet gossipy at times. A solid but lackluster history of childrearing in the royal family over the centuries.

Milton Friedman: The Last Conservative

One of the most brilliant biographies of Friedman to date. For both general readers and economics scholars.
PREMIUM

Connery, Sean Connery

A fresh perspective on Bond and Connery that fans will enjoy.
PREMIUM

Lowell L. Bennion: A Mormon Educator

A powerful example of faith in action. Readers seeking more knowledge about this type of spiritual approach will come away wondering why there aren’t more people like Bennion. Highly recommended for its clear prose.

Biography & Memoir | Prepub Alert, April 2024 Titles

PREMIUM

The Dissident: Alexey Navalny; Profile of a Political Prisoner

Herszenhorn expertly portrays Navalny as a resilient figure and as a “prisoner of conscience” who evolves from a crusader to a political leader symbolizing democratic Russia.
PREMIUM

Gwen John: Art and Life in London and Paris

Recommended for readers interested in women artists and modern art.
PREMIUM

The Migrant Chef: The Life and Times of Lalo García

Tillman’s spellbinding story of this extraordinary chef and his journey is not to be missed. For fans of uplifting biographies highlighting food, culture, and history.
PREMIUM

Chasing Bright Medusas: A Life of Willa Cather

For ardent Cather fans only.

Charlie Chaplin vs. America: When Art, Sex, and Politics Collided

Distinguished research, featuring the over 1,900-page FBI report, media accounts, and interviews with family members, coworkers, and historians, propels this excellent biography that captures Chaplin, both the person and his work.

Lena Horne: Goddess Reclaimed

An immensely enjoyable and comprehensive look at one of the most glamorous stars of her time.

Madonna: A Rebel Life

Impressive in size and scope, the 880 pages of this tome might deter some readers. However, casual and hardcore fans of Madonna (or of pop music in general) will still benefit from making a beeline for this book. A vital pick for public libraries and institutions with collections on women artists or 20th- and 21st-century music and pop culture.

A.K.A. Lucy: The Dynamic and Determined Life of Lucille Ball

This perfectly supplements the many books about Ball by contributing new insights with heart and humor.
PREMIUM

White House Wild Child: How Alice Roosevelt Broke All the Rules and Won the Heart of America

A highly recommended exploration of Alice Roosevelt Longworth’s life.

Longstreet: The Confederate General Who Defied the South

This biography offers a fresh and balanced appraisal of Longstreet’s life and postwar career. Readers interested in American history, the Civil War, and biographies will enjoy this well-written treatment.
PREMIUM

Hitchcock’s Blondes: The Unforgettable Women Behind the Legendary Director’s Dark Obsession

A well-written book, but some readers may find the premise a little too narrow.
PREMIUM

Queer Arrangements: Billy Strayhorn and Midcentury Jazz Collaboration

A thought-provoking book best suited to students of musicology or queer studies.
PREMIUM

Lou Reed: The King of New York

With a stupendously long notes section, a more than 22-page index, chapters headed thesis-style, with the subjects covered therein, and street addresses of practically everywhere Reed went, this title is for mega-fans and those wishing they could’ve lived in New York when it was all going down.
PREMIUM

Mabel Normand: The Life and Career of a Hollywood Madcap, 2nd Ed

Enlightening reading for silent-film aficionados and social-history scholars.
PREMIUM

Head over Heels: Joanne Woodward and Paul Newman; A Love Affair in Words and Pictures

A heartfelt and charming photobook from a daughter who obviously loves her parents.
PREMIUM

Prince in Comics!

Prince fans won’t learn anything new, but they’ll treasure the reminders of how the genius operated. Others will appreciate the art and lessons about the legend.
PREMIUM

George Harrison: The Reluctant Beatle

Readers who are not extremely familiar with Beatles history or who are seeking a Harrison-focused biography will want this. They’ll gain more insight into the most enigmatic member of the Beatles.
PREMIUM

Bridge and Tunnel Boys: Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, and the Metropolitan Sound of the American Century

Fans will appreciate Cullen’s insight and respect for Springsteen’s and Joel’s music in this highly entertaining book.

The Life and Times of Hannah Crafts: The True Story of The Bondwoman’s Narrative

Interspersed with photos, descriptions of pertinent historical events, drawings, and digitized archival documents, this excellent biography will appeal to many readers, especially those interested in genealogy, literature, and African American history.
PREMIUM

Ferocious Ambition: Joan Crawford’s March to Stardom

This skillfully written, engaging, and carefully referenced biography will appeal to fans of old Hollywood glamour and to readers interested in the social construction of gender, especially within the context of the film industry.
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