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Biographies

A good biography invites you into someone else’s life. It takes you on fascinating journeys through the ups and downs of the life of legendary film stars, talented musicians, inspiring athletes, visionary politicians and many more. A good biography lets you get under the skin of your biggest idols, and you feel collected when reading their story - maybe even in the form of their own words. You will find both biographies and autobiographies in Tales’ selection, in addition to diaries and memoirs. So are you ready to be inspired by some of the world’'s most extraordinary individuals?
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  • Save 20%
    - The War Memoirs of Major Dick Winters
    by Cole C Kingseed & Dick Winters
    £11.99

    On D-Day, Dick Winters took off with 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment and prepared to parachute into German-held north France. Ground troops landing on Utah beach were relying on Easy Company to secure one of the causeways that were vital if the troops were to get off the beaches and reach the solid ground of Normandy. The plane carrying many of the commanding officers was shot down, leaving Dick Winters suddenly in command of his company. But during the drop he, and many of his men, had been separated from his equipment and was unarmed except for a trench knife.In this remarkable World War 2 memoir, Dick Winters tells the tales left untold by Stephen Ambrose in his 1992 epic Band of Brothers. Starting with an account of the gruelling training designed to make the 506th the most elite unit in the US Army, Beyond Band of Brothers is fascinating account of one man's experience of commanding Easy Company from D-Day, to the Battle of the Bulge and into Germany. Dick Winters gives real insight into leadership under the most difficult conditions - every man in the company had been injured by the time they reached Germany - and tells the real story of the Allies' final defeat of Hitler, from the point of view of someone who was really there.

  • Save 21%
    by Brene Brown
    £14.99

    'Thanks to Brene Brown I learned how to be vulnerable... a life changer' Miranda HartThe physics of vulnerability is simple: If we are brave enough often enough, we will fall. Struggle can be our greatest call to courage and Rising Strong, our clearest path to deeper meaning, wisdom and hope.

  • Save 20%
    - The World War Two Pacific Classic
    by Eugene B Sledge
    £11.99

    The inspiration behind the HBO series THE PACIFICThis was a brutish, primitive hatred, as characteristic of the horror of war in the Pacific as the palm trees and the islands...Landing on the beach at Peleliu in 1944 as a twenty-year-old new recruit to the US Marines, Eugene Sledge can only try desperately to survive. At Peleliu and Okinawa - two of the fiercest and filthiest Pacific battles of WWII - he witnesses the dehumanising brutality displayed by both sides and the animal hatred that each soldier has for his enemy.During temporary lapses in the fighting, conditions on the islands mean that the Marines often can't wash, stay dry, dig latrines, or even find time to eat. Suffering from constant fear, fatigue, and filth, the struggle of simply living in a combat zone is utterly debilitating.Yet despite horrendous conditions Sledge finds time to keep notes that he would later turn into a book. Described as one of the finest memoirs to emerge from any war, With the Old Breed tells with compassion and honesty of the cruelty, bravery and deaths of the men he fought alongside, and of his own journey from patriotic innocence to battle-scarred veteran.'Eugene Sledge became more than a legend with his memoir, With The Old Breed. He became a chronicler, a historian, a storyteller who turns the extremes of the war in the Pacific - the terror, the camaraderie, the banal and the extraordinary - into terms we mortals can grasp' Tom Hanks

  • Save 20%
    - The Exclusive Biography
    by Walter Isaacson
    £11.99 - 21.99

    'This is a riveting book, with as much to say about the transformation of modern life in the information age as about its supernaturally gifted and driven subject' - Telegraph Based on more than forty interviews with Steve Jobs conducted over two years - as well as interviews with more than a hundred family members, friends, adversaries, competitors, and colleagues - this is the acclaimed, internationally bestselling biography of the ultimate icon of inventiveness. Walter Isaacson tells the story of the rollercoaster life and searingly intense personality of creative entrepreneur whose passion for perfection and ferocious drive revolutionized six industries: personal computers, animated movies,music, phones, tablet computing, and digital publishing. Although Jobs cooperated with this book, he asked for no control over what was written, nor even the right to read it before it was published. He put nothing off limits. He encouraged the people he knew to speak honestly. And Jobs speaks candidly, sometimes brutally so, about the people he worked with and competed against. His friends, foes, and colleagues provide an unvarnished view of the passions, perfectionism, obsessions, artistry, devilry, and compulsion for control that shaped his approach to business and the innovative products that resulted.

  • Save 20%
    by David Ogilvy
    £11.99

    A new edition of the timeless business classic featured on Mad Men--as fresh and relevant now as the day it was written "We admire people who work hard, who are objective and thorough. We detest office politicians, toadies, bullies, and pompous asses. We abhor ruthlessness. The way up our ladder is open to everybody. In promoting people to top jobs, we are influenced as much by their character as anything else." --David Ogilvy David Ogilvy was considered the "father of advertising" and a creative genius by many of the biggest global brands. First published in 1963, this seminal book revolutionized the world of advertising and became a bible for the 1960s ad generation. It also became an international bestseller, translated into 14 languages. Fizzing with Ogilvy's pioneering ideas and inspirational philosophy, it covers not only advertising, but also people management, corporate ethics, and office politics, and forms an essential blueprint for good practice in business.

  • Save 14%
    by Arnold Schwarzenegger
    £9.49

    Total Recall is a captivating book penned by the renowned Arnold Schwarzenegger. Published in 2013 by Simon & Schuster Ltd, this book transcends the conventional genre barriers to offer a unique reading experience. Arnold Schwarzenegger, known for his multifaceted career, has poured his heart into this book, making it a must-read for anyone interested in his life's journey. The book is a testament to his indomitable spirit and unyielding will to succeed. Regardless of whether you are a fan of his acting, politics, or bodybuilding, Total Recall provides a comprehensive look into the life of this extraordinary man. Don't miss out on this masterpiece from Simon & Schuster Ltd.

  • Save 15%
    - The Practice of Putting Yourself Back Together Again
    by Teal Swan
    £10.99

    Takes readers along on a restorative journey of healing and liberation. Suitable for anyone who has been fractured by trauma, this title presents a way to put you back together again, no longer inhibited by the past or terrified of the future. It offers a 20-step process for healing any past hurt or present problem.

  • Save 15%
    - My Autobiography
    by Mike Tyson
    £10.99

    One of the most talked-about and bestselling books of last year, this is the no-holds-barred autobiography of a sporting legend driven to the brink of self-destruction

  • Save 21%
    by Megan Hess
    £13.49 - 16.99

    Coco Chanel: The Illustrated World of a Fashion Icon is an illustrated biography of Coco's Chanels life from the internationally reknown illustrator and author, Megan Hess.Itfeatures key moments from Cocos amazing life and iconic items from the fashion empire that she built. Think an illustrated picture book for adults, told through Megans stylish and feminine illustrations with a fun, whimsical and magical bent.Coco Chanel takes us on a romp through the three distinct chapters of Cocos life: from Coco's early life and building the brand, to the empire she created, to the legacy she left behind, and how her style is still influential and iconic today.Hess'sbook literally paints apicture of the woman whoforever changed the waywomen dress.The AustralianCoco Chanel: The Illustrated World of a FashionIconis a beautifully presentedbiography of the designerBooks + Publishing NationalStyle lovers, unite! Thisamazing guided tour ofChanel's game-changingempire is made for coffeetablesCleoAustralian illustrator Megan Hess,whose work graces prestigious designers and brands including Chanel, Carrier andTiffany and Co., creates a whimsical adventure through the world of MademoiselleChanelPRIMOLife

  • Save 14%
    by Paul Kalanithi
    £9.49

    At the age of thirty-six, on the verge of completing a decade's training as a neurosurgeon, Paul Kalanithi was diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer. One day he was a doctor, the next he was a patient struggling to live. In this book, he offers a life-affirming reflection on facing our mortality and on the relationship between doctor and patient.

  • Save 15%
    - A Surfing Life
    by William Finnegan
    £10.99

    Winner of the Pulitzer Price and William Hill Sports Book of the Year: Barbarian Days is a deeply rendered self-portrait of a lifelong surfer looking for transcendence 'that recalls early James Salter' (Geoff Dyer, Observer)Surfing only looks like a sport. To devotees, it is something else entirely: a beautiful addiction, a mental and physical study, a passionate way of life.New Yorker writer William Finnegan first started surfing as a young boy in California and Hawaii. Barbarian Days is his immersive memoir of a life spent travelling the world chasing waves through the South Pacific, Australia, Asia, Africa and beyond. Finnegan describes the edgy yet enduring brotherhood forged among the swell of the surf; and recalling his own apprenticeship to the world's most famous and challenging waves, he considers the intense relationship formed between man, board and water.Barbarian Days is an old-school adventure story, a social history, an extraordinary exploration of one man's gradual mastering of an exacting and little-understood art. It is a memoir of dangerous obsession and enchantment. 'Reading this guy on the subject of waves and water is like reading Hemingway on bullfighting; William Burroughs on controlled substances; Updike on adultery. . . . a coming-of-age story, seen through the gloss resin coat of a surfboard' Sports Illustrated

  • Save 14%
    - Winning Hearts, Minds and Matches
    by Carlo Ancelotti
    £9.49

    Carlo Ancelotti is one of the greatest managers of all time, with five Champions League titles to his name. Yet his approach could not be further from the aggressive theatricals favoured by many of his rivals. His understated style has earned him the fierce loyalty of players like David Beckham, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Cristiano Ronaldo.In Quiet Leadership, Ancelotti reveals the full, riveting story of his managerial career - his methods, mentors, mistakes and triumphs - and takes us inside the dressing room to trace the characters, challenges and decisions that have shaped him. The result is both a scintillating memoir and a rare insight into the business of leadership.

  • Save 14%
    - A North Korean Girl's Journey to Freedom
    by Yeonmi Park
    £9.49

    'I am most grateful for two things: that I was born in North Korea, and that I escaped from North Korea.'Yeonmi Park was not dreaming of freedom when she escaped from North Korea. She didn't even know what it meant to be free. All she knew was that she was running for her life, that if she and her family stayed behind they would die - from starvation, or disease, or even execution. This book is the story of Park's struggle to survive in the darkest, most repressive country on earth; her harrowing escape through China's underworld of smugglers and human traffickers; and then her escape from China across the Gobi desert to Mongolia, with only the stars to guide her way, and from there to South Korea and at last to freedom; and finally her emergence as a leading human rights activist - all before her 21st birthday.'Clear-eyed and devastating' Observer

  • Save 15%
    - Stories from a South African Childhood
    by Trevor Noah
    £10.99

    One of the comedy world's fastest-rising stars ('SLICK, INTELLIGENT AND BLISSFULLY FUNNY' Time Out) tells his hilarious and moving coming-of-age story during the twilight of apartheid in South Africa and the tumultuous days of freedom that followed.

  • Save 15%
    by Maggie Nelson
    £10.99

    A raw, cerebral work devoted to the inextricability of pleasure and pain, and to the question of what role, if any, aesthetic beauty can play in times of great heartache or grief.

  • - His Life and Thought
    by John J. Stoudt
    £26.49

    Jacob Boehme, the German religious mystic of the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, had an astounding influence on the history of Western philosophy. The impact of his thought left its mark on such men as Hegel, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, Bergson, Heidegger, and especially through his ideas concerning creation and evil, he was a power in the speculative theology of the nineteenth century. This fresh study of Jacob Boehme's life and writings not only presents a concrete and vivid picture of Boehme's personal affairs and of the spiritual situation of Protestant Germany more than three hundred years ago; it also demonstrates for the first time the development and growth of Boehme's thought. Utilizing new biographical sources and newly discovered manuscripts, the author has, in addition, analyzed Boehme's speculative system in its mature form after he had worked through his strange symbolic language to a more traditional synthesis. This is an objective examination of Boehme's life and thought. It avoids depicting him either as a heaven-blessed saint or a Baroque Faust. On the basis of the evidence now available, Dr. Stoudt offers a new portrait of Boehme as the proponent of a theology that stresses feeling and intuition instead of reason and intellect. As Paul Tillich states in his Foreword to this volume: John Stoudt's book will be a help to all philosophers and theologians who desire an introduction to one of the most profound and strangest systems of Western thought - strange in comparison to the prevailing method of modern philosophy, profound in comparison with much theism in modern theology.

  • Save 14%
    - A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis
    by J. D. Vance
    £9.49

    SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE 'The political book of the year' Sunday Times 'You will not read a more important book about America this year' Economist

  • Save 27%
    - The Autobiography of the World's Greatest Formula 1 Designer
    by Adrian Newey
    £21.99

    'Adrian has a unique gift for understanding drivers and racing cars. He is ultra competitive but never forgets to have fun. An immensely likeable man.' Damon Hill

  • Save 14%
    - Inside the FBI Elite Serial Crime Unit (Now A Netflix Series)
    by John Douglas
    £9.49

    Mindhunter, a captivating book penned by the brilliant John Douglas, was published in 2017 by Cornerstone. This book falls under the genre of true crime, a category that Douglas excels in. Mindhunter takes you on a thrilling journey into the depths of the criminal mind. Based on Douglas' real-life experiences as a special agent for the FBI, the book explores the process of profiling serial killers and rapists. Douglas' expertise and gripping storytelling make this book a must-read for any true crime enthusiast. The publication of Mindhunter by Cornerstone in 2017 marked a significant contribution to the genre. The book has since been praised for its insightful and chilling exploration of criminal psychology.

  • Save 14%
    - Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor
    by Adam Kay
    £9.49

    The often hilarious, at times horrifying and occasionally heartbreaking diaries of a former junior doctor, and the story of why he decided to hang up his stethoscope.

  • Save 10%
    - A Father's Journey Through His Son's Addiction
    by David Sheff
    £8.99

    A teenager's addiction from the parent's point of view - a real-time chronicle of the shocking descent into substance abuse and the gradual emergence into hope.

  • Save 14%
    - the bestselling guide to transforming your body by unlocking your lost evolutionary strength
    by Scott Carney
    £9.49

    What Doesn't Kill Us is a captivating book written by the talented author, Scott Carney. Published in 2019 by Scribe Publications, this book falls under the genre of non-fiction. The book takes the reader on an intriguing journey, exploring the boundaries of human endurance. The author challenges conventional wisdom and pushes the limits of the human body, showing how much we can endure, both physically and mentally. This book is not just a tale of survival, but also a testament to the extraordinary capabilities of the human body. It's a must-read for anyone interested in pushing their limits and understanding what the human body is truly capable of. Published by Scribe Publications, this book is a testament to their commitment to bringing quality literature to readers. Written in English, What Doesn't Kill Us is a remarkable exploration of human endurance.

  • Save 14%
    - A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland
    by Patrick Radden Keefe
    £9.49

    WINNER OF THE ORWELL PRIZE FOR POLITICAL WRITING 2019 SHORTLISTED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FOR NONFICTION 2019 TIME's #1 Best Nonfiction Book of 2019 A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER 'A must read' Gillian Flynn

  • Save 15%
    by Michelle Obama
    £10.99 - 18.99

  • Save 27%
    by Adam Horovitz & Michael Diamond
    £25.49

    Formed as a New York City hardcore band in 1981, Beastie Boys struck an unlikely path to global hip hop superstardom.

  • Save 14%
    - The Sunday Times Number-One Bestseller
    by Andrew Morton
    £9.49

    A reissue of this classic title with a new introduction by Andrew Morton reflecting on the extraordinary circumstances surrounding the original publication, and on the long term legacy of Diana.

  • Save 27%
    by Nigel Slater
    £21.99

    A Cook's Book is the story of Nigel Slater's life in the kitchen . . .

  • Save 20%
    by Russ
    £11.99

    A lover of books like The Alchemist and The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success, Russ delivers a short, potent, inspirational, raw, and honest book that gives readers a way to find self-belief and unlock their potential.

  • Save 14%
    by Deborah Levy
    £9.49

  • Save 14%
    by Michelle McNamara
    £9.49

Biographies
Biographies books are per definition a collection of someone’s life. That someone is mostly a celebrity and often comes from the world of entertainment for example a famous movie or television star. A good biography lets you under the skin of the subject. Biographies are mostly written by biography authors, who are specialized in capturing the life of another person through research and multiple interviews with both the individual and his or her relatives. The celebrity or icon can also choose to write his or her own story, which is what characterizes an autobiography. An autobiography can - if the writer is good - give you a more intimate picture of the subject. You can both find biographies and autobiographies in Tales’ wide selection of Biographies. 

Biographies best sellers
Tales’ selection contains most of the biographies best sellers. The biographies books are often about celebrities known from film, television or the music industry, but they can also be about inspiring trailblazers from the societal or political world like the biography best seller Becoming about Michelle Obama. The American first lady has inspired many Americans and people around the world. Her and her husband - the first black American first lady and President - made many extraordinary changes in the American society and advocated for more diversity and respect in the American people. Michelle Obama also fights for more equality, especially when it comes to girls and women. Read the inspiring story of how Michelle Obama became one of our times most popular, kind and obliging residents of the White House in her biography Becoming, and let it guide you to finding our own voice. 
Another best seller is Three Women by Lisa Taddeo. Taddeo has written an innovative biography that is a collection of three American women's lives. The biography is an investigation of the female lust in all its complexity. Many women have expressed that they can reflect their own life and feelings of desire in the book. 

Biographies about musicians
Take a look in our selection and find some of the best biographies about musicians. The selection has something for every taste, because you find accounts about musicians from every end of the spectre. Whether you like rock, jazz, classical music, pop or musicals you will find biographies about musicians representing every genre. 
Take for example the autobiography Me Elton John, who has gained extraordinary reviews and success all around the world making the Elton John biography an international best seller. The book is the only official biography made about the iconic musician and singer. Read the incredible and turbulent story about one of our biggest stars to date, and you might learn the secrets behind writing and performing hit after hit.
You can also dive into the fascinating story of the musical legend Julie Andrews. In the biography Home you can read about her journey from London to Broadway stardom. The triple threat is the woman behind legendary roles such as Mary Poppins and Maria from The Sound of Music, and you can follow her journey through Hollywood in the sequel Home Work. Julie Andrews is the writer of her own story and she writes in an intimate and heart-warming narrative. 

Biographies about artists
Are you an art lover, art student or an artist yourself? Then we would recommend you to find inspiration in our biographies about artists. Our collection of biographies contains among others the book Frida Kahlo - A Biography written by Claudia Schaefer. Schaefer gives an introduction to the beloved Latino artist. Frida Kahlo is one of modern times greatest female artists and her surrealist artworks are extraordinary. The biography introduces the reader to her unique form of art - Kahlo did not see herself as a surrealist - but it also gives a look into the artist behind the world famous works of art. If you want to dive into the lives of amazing artists, the story of Kahlo is just one of many wonderful biographies about artists. 

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