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Autobiographies

Find inspiration for a wide range of the best autobiographies and books about people themselves and their memories. Here are autobiographies about some of the world's most exciting people and how their life story has been. Autobiographies are stories written or told by the person themselves. It is not necessarily famous people who write books about themselves, but also quite ordinary people who have something important at heart to tell. But also if the person has experienced or achieved something unique in life that may be interesting to others. Find the best autobiographies below for your next reading.
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  • - The Story of the Pogues
    by James Fearnley
    £10.99

    October 1982: ABC, Culture Club, Shalamar and Survivor dominate the top twenty when the Pogues barrel out from the backstreets of King's Cross, a furious, pioneering mix of punk energy, traditional melodies and the powerfully poetic songwriting of Shane MacGowan. Reviled by traditionalists for their frequently fast, often riotous interpretations of Irish folk songs, the Pogues rose from the sweaty chaos of backroom gigs in Camden pubs to world tours with the likes of Elvis Costello, U2 and Bob Dylan, and had huge commercial success with everyone's favourite Christmas song, 'Fairytale of New York'. Yet, the exuberance of their live performances coupled with relentless touring spiralled into years of hard drinking and excess which eventually took their toll - most famously on Shane, but also on the rest of the band - causing them to part ways seven years later. Here, their story is told with beauty, lyricism and great candour by James Fearnley, founding member and accordion player. He brings to life the youthful friendships, the bust-ups, the amazing gigs, the terrible gigs, the fantastic highs and the dramatic lows in a hugely compelling, humorous, moving and honest account of life in one of our most treasured and original bands.

  • by Gordon Ramsay
    £8.99

    Not a sausage. That is what Gordon Ramsay had when he started out as a chef, working 16-hour days, 6 days a week. When he was struggling to get his first restaurant in the black, he didn't think he'd be famous for a TV show about how to run profitable eateries, or that he'd be head of a business empire. But he is and he did. Here's how."e;In the beginning there was nothing.Not a sausage - penniless, broke, fucking nothing - and although, at a certain age, that didn't matter hugely, there came a time when hand-me-downs, cast-offs and football boots of odd sizes all pointed to a problem that seemed to have afflicted me, my mum, my sisters, Ronnie and the whole lot of us. It was as though we had been dealt the 'all-time dysfunctional' poker hand.I wish I could say that, from this point on, the penny dropped and I decided to do something about it, but it wasn't like that. It would take years before the lessons of life, business and money began to click into place - before, as they say, I had a pot to piss in.This is the story of how those lessons were learned."e;This is Gordon Ramsay at his raw, rugged best. PLAYING WITH FIRE is the amazing story of Gordon's journey from sous-chef to superstar. In his no-holds-barred style, Gordon shares his passion for risk and adventure and his hard-won success secrets.

  • by Frank McCourt
    £8.99

    Frank McCourt's sequel to his Pulitzer Prize winning memoir Angela's Ashes, focussing on the "e;great country"e;, AmericaAngela's Ashes was a publishing phenomenon. Frank McCourt's critically acclaimed, lyrical memoir of his Limerick childhood won the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Critics' Circle Award, the Royal Society of Literature Award and the Los Angeles Times Award amongst others, and rapidly became a word-of-mouth bestseller topping all charts worldwide for over two years. It left readers and critics alike eager to hear more about Frank McCourt's incredible, poignant life.'Tis is the story of Frank's American journey from impoverished immigrant with rotten teeth, infected eyes and no formal education to brilliant raconteur and schoolteacher.

  • by Frank McCourt
    £9.49

    McCourt's Pulitzer Prize winning look back at his childhood. "e;It was, of course, a miserable childhood: the happy childhood is hardly worth your while..."e;"e;When I look back on my childhood, I wonder how I survived at all. It was, of course, a miserable childhood: the happy childhood is hardly worth your while. Worse than the ordinary miserable childhood is the miserable Irish childhood, and worse yet is the miserable Irish Catholic childhood.People everywhere brag or whimper about the woes of their early years, but nothing can compare with the Irish version: the poverty; the shiftless loquacious father; the pious defeated mother moaning by the fire; pompous priests; bullying shcoolmasters; the English and the terrible things they did to us for eight hundred long years. Above all we were wet..."e;So begins Frank McCourt's stunning memoir of his childhood in Ireland and America, a recollection of unvarnished truth and no self pity, of grinding poverty and indomitable spirit that will live in the memory long after the tape has ended.Now a major film directed by Alan Parker and starring Robert Carlyle and Emily Watson.

  • - All the Songs. All the Stories. All the Lyrics.
    by Paul Du Noyer
    £18.99

    This book examines and assesses all of John Lennon's solo work.

  • - The Nas Daily Journey-1,000 Days. 64 Countries. 1 Beautiful Planet.
    by Nuseir Yassin
    £15.49

    Based on the Nas Daily video series with over 13 million dedicated followers comes the surprising, moving 1,000-day journey of a lifetime in book formIn 2016, Nuseir Yassin quit his job to travel for 1,000 consecutive days.

  • - A Life Story
     
    £8.99

    This book tells Laura''s story about the travels and experiences they had during one of the most tumultuous periods in American history. Her family was not wealthy. They were an ordinary family, ordinary folk whose desire was to farm, hunt game, and live a normal life. In search of a better life, they would move from one town to the other, and each time Laura''s experience would inspire her to create new content for a different book in her series.

  • by Page Fox & Minaker
    £17.99

    One Thousand Ways to Make $1000 is the book that Warren Buffett's biographers credit with shaping the legendary investor's business acumen and giving him his trademark appreciation of compound interest. After pulling a copy of One Thousand Ways off a library shelf at age eleven and devouring the practical business advice, Buffett declared that he would be a millionaire by the time he was 35. Written in the immediate, conversational style of Dale Carnegie's How to Win Friends and Influence People, this book is full of inventive ideas on how to make money  through excellent salesmanship, hard work, and resourcefulness. While  some of the ideas may seem quaint today-goat dairying, manufacturing  motor-driven chairs, and renting out billiard tables to local establishments are among the money-making ideas presented- the underlying fundamentals of business explained in these pages remain as solid as they were over seventy years ago. Covering a wide spectrum of topics including investing, marketing, merchandising, sales, customer relations, and raising money for charity, One Thousand Ways to Make $1000 is both a durable, classic business book and a fascinating portrait of determined entrepreneurship in Depression-era America. Everyeffort has been made to reproduce the content exactly as it was originally presented. “I like numbers, it started before I can remember,”” Buffett tells a group of Omaha Central High School students in the film.  A voracious reader his entire life, at age seven he read a book he borrowed from the library, One Thousand Ways to Make $1000, and, inspired by its lessons, began selling Coca-Cola, gum and newspapers.  His father, a salesman who survived the Depression, was elected to Congress when Buffett was 12, moving the family to Washington. Displaced and unhappy, Buffett lost interest in academics, attending the University of Nebraska at his father’s insistence; he was turned down for admission by the Harvard Business School. This rejection was propitious: Buffett discovered that two of his financial idols, Ben Graham and David Dodd, taught at the Columbia Business School; he wrote them a letter and was accepted there. From Graham he learned what he calls the “two rules of investing”: “Rule #1: Never lose money. Rule #2: Never forget Rule #1.”

  • - The Soviet Weightlifting System
    by Ivan Rojas & Gwendolyn Sisto
    £20.99

  • - with a new introduction from Dolly Alderton
    by Nora Ephron
    £8.99

    Nora Ephron was an Academy Award-winning screenwriter and film director of When Harry Met Sally, Sleepless in Seattle, You've Got Mail and Julie & Julia. She was also a bestselling novelist (Heartburn, made into a film starring Jack Nicholson and Meryl Streep), and journalist. Her last books I Feel Bad About My Neck and I Remember Nothing were both huge international bestsellers. She died in 2012.

  • - The Unique No-Holds Barred Autobiography
    by Tricky
    £8.99 - 18.99

  • - And Other Conversations
    by Anthony Bourdain
    £10.99

    The New York Times Bestseller The brilliant intellect and candor of Anthony Bourdain is on full display in this collection of interviews from throughout his remarkable career, with an introduction from The New Yorker's Helen Rosner. Anthony Bourdain always downplayed his skills as a chef (many disagreed). But despite his modesty, one thing even he agreed with was that he was a born raconteur-as he makes clear in this collection of sparkling conversations. His wit, passion, and deep intelligence shine through all manner of discussion here, from heart-to-hearts with bloggers, to on-stage talks before massive crowds, to intense interviews with major television programs. Without fail, Bourdain is always blisteringly honest-such as when he talks about his battles with addiction, or when detailing his thoughts on restaurant critics. He regularly dispenses arresting insight about how what's on your plate reveals much of history and politics. And perhaps best of all, the heartfelt empathy he developed travelling the world for his TV shows is always in the fore, as these talks make the "Hemingway of gastronomy," as chef Marco Pierre White called him, live again.

  • - The Creative Life of Poly Styrene
    by Celeste Bell
    £18.99

    Poly Styrene was many things: a pop star, a punk, a songwriter, a single mother, a woman of colour, a Hare Krishna convert and an artist, but she is best known as the singer of X-Ray Spex. Dayglo! is the definitive statement on Poly Styrene as an artist.

  • - My Life in Photos & Music
    by Ringo Starr
    £23.99

    Another Day In The Life is introduced and narrated by Ringo Starr, with forewords by legendary movie director David Lynch and rock photographer Henry Diltz. Ringo shows us the world as seen through a Starr's eyes, in more than 500 observational photographs and rare images from the archives, and an original text of nearly 13,000 words.

  • by Peter Reich
    £10.99

    A Book of Dreams, the inspiration behind Kate Bush's 1985 hit song 'Cloudbusting', and widely regarded as a classic of writing about childhood, is at last available in paperback again.

  • by Randee St. Nicholas
    £48.49

    The ultimate collection of stunning photographs documenting the career of one of the world's greatest superstarsThere has never been or will there ever be an artist like Prince. ?A 5' 3? Mastermind . . . satiated with virtuosity, controversy, stubbornness, and poise . . . His influence on Music transcended any and every category given titles by industry wizards and musicologists. Pop, Rock, Rhythm & Blues, Classical, Funk, Jazz, Soul, and Rap . . . He did it all and he did it well . . . and in his time . . . He did it first,? writes Randee St. Nicholas. For twenty-five years, this legendary photographer, with a storied career of her own, worked closely with Prince, capturing some of his most intimate and revealing moments both on and off stage. Now, the fruits of their numerous collaborations are on full display in My Name Is Prince, the largest collection of the most iconic photographs that will ever exist of one of the world's greatest superstars.In this dazzling collector's edition, readers are treated to a front-row seat to their innovative and awe-inspiring projects, from his music videos Gett Off and My Name Is Prince; to their impromptu photo shoots...just because; their adventures around the world from London to Tokyo to Prague, and his breathtaking, showstopping live concert appearances from great stages at Coachella and the 02 Arena to intimate nightclubs.Many of the trips, we will discover, are either unplanned or hastily arranged. And yet you will marvel at the results?as Prince expected nothing less than the best.When they met, Prince was ready for a change. The quixotic performer was known for seizing a moment and then on to the next.After their initial 1991 photo shoot in her Los Angeles studio, Prince assured St. Nicholas, ?Don't worry, I'll be back.?Over the next twenty-five years he would return again and again, challenging himself and St. Nicholas to reach higher and to go further with every original pursuit.My Name Is Prince is the story of that unique working relationship and artistic evolution that produced many stunning images and lasted from their first meeting until the end:He had incredible timing, not just musically but spiritually, emotionally, and creatively . . . that Prince rhythm fueled a spontaneity that was contagious, enabling you to be more fearless and flexible than you thought you ever could be. When he would call . . . you had to be ready for anything . . . to jump on a plane with an hour or two notice, to put together a crew in a city you had never worked in before without any preparation time . . . or to simply just go outside your house at four in the morning where he was parked in his car, waiting for you to get in and listen to new music he had just recorded. One never knew what to expect . . . but it was always an inspired adventure.Told through 384 pages of striking visuals and poignant, intimate stories, the insights revealed in My Name Is Prince show a side of the enigmatic megastar that few have ever seen.We go beyond the genius and meet the man?playful, moody, disciplined, sensual, serious, and soulful. And in hundreds of photographs, we see that incandescent light behind his hypnotic eyes; that sly smile, strong hands, and transformative and transcendent presence that connected people from every part of the globe through his music. As his sound lives on, My Name Is Prince is a visual testimony to his greatness and a space that can never be filled.

  • by Michael R. Bloomberg
    £17.99

    Michael Bloomberg rose from middle-class Medford, Massachusetts to become a pioneer of the computer age, mayor of New York, one of the world's most generous philanthropists, and one of America's most respected--and fearless--voices on gun violence, climate change, public health, and other issues. And it all happened after he got fired at the age of 39.This is his story, told in his own words and in his own candid style.After working his way through college and graduating from Harvard Business School, Bloomberg landed on the bottom rung of a Wall Street firm and worked his way up to partner. But in 1981, he was forced out of the firm. With an idea for computerizing financial data, Bloomberg started his own company. And, since personal computers barely existed, he built his own. Specially designed for Wall Street traders and analysts, the Bloomberg Terminal revolutionized the world of finance. Under Bloomberg's leadership, his company grew rapidly, playing David to the Goliaths of finance and media--and making Bloomberg one of the world's wealthiest men.Bloomberg by Bloomberg offers an intimate look at the creative mind and driven personality behind the Bloomberg brand. He describes in vivid detail his early Wall Street career, both the victories and frustrations, including a personal account of what it was like to be fired and given $10 million on the same day.He combines personal stories with penetrating insights into business and technology, while also offering lessons from his unique approach to management. There is no one in business or politics quite like him--or who has had more success in both areas.

  • by Dylan Stance
    £9.99

  • - Jim Jones and Peoples Temple
    by Jeff Guinn
    £10.99

    Synopsis coming soon.......

  • - The Classic Exploration of Christian Community
    by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
    £13.49

    After his martyrdom at the hands of the Gestapo in 1945, Dietrich Bonhoeffer continued his witness in the hearts of Christians around the world. His Letters and Papers from Prison became a prized testimony to Christian faith and courage, read by thousands. Now in Life Together we have Pastor Bonhoeffer's experience of Christian community. This story of a unique fellowship in an underground seminary during the Nazi years reads like one of Paul's letters. It gives practical advice on how life together in Christ can be sustained in families and groups. The role of personal prayer, worship in common, everyday work, and Christian service is treated in simple, almost biblical, words. Life Together is bread for all who are hungry for the real life of Christian fellowship.

  •  
    £7.99

    Have you ever kept a diary? This is the diary of a young girl growing up in sixties America - an honest account of teenage life. This book was first published several decades ago as the shocking real diary of a young woman.

  • by Clifford Whittingham Beers
    £5.99

  • - A Biography
    by Tom Wright
    £18.99

    A historical biography, which will appeal to believer and non-believer alike, of the life and thought of St Paul.

  • - The Seal Team Operative And The Mission That Changed The World
    by Robert O'Neill
    £8.99

    A stirringly evocative, thought-provoking, and often jaw-dropping account of SEAL Team Operator Robert O'Neill's awe-inspiring four-hundred-mission career.

  • by Charlotte & Peter Fiell
    £11.99

    William Morris was a polymath designer, writer, artist, and socialist activist, associated with England's Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood as well as Arts and Crafts movement. His prolific design work included tiles, embroidery, tapestries, wallpaper, and carpets and championed handcraftsmanship, natural dyes, "art for all", and beautiful patterns of...

  • - Shortlisted for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year 2017
    by Jonathan Eig
    £10.99

    The first truly definitive biography of Muhammad Ali, the most iconic and significant sporting figure of the twentieth century

  • - The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg
    by Irin Carmon
    £10.99

    New York Times BestsellerFeatured in the critically acclaimed documentary RBG"It was beyond my wildest imagination that I would one day become the 'Notorious RBG."

  • - A Harrowing True Story of Adventure, Danger and Survival
    by Yossi Ghinsberg
    £9.49

    Four travellers meet in Bolivia and set off into the Amazon rainforest on an expedition to explore places tourists only dream of seeing. But what begins as the adventure of a lifetime quickly becomes a struggle for survival when they get lost in the wilds of the jungle.

  • - Bernard Hinault and the Fall and Rise of French Cycling
    by William Fotheringham
    £10.99

    He is a five-time winner of the Tour de France and the only man to have won each of the Grand Tours on more than one occasion. Three decades on from his retirement, Hinault remains the last French winner of the Tour de France.

  • - Times Like His: Foo Fighters, Nirvana and Other Misadventures
    by Martin James
    £8.99

    Dave Grohl: Times Like His is the fully updated edition of the bestselling biography on one of modern rock's most influential figures, drawing on interviews with key figures in the Grohl story to create an intimate, insightful portrait of the man himself.

Autobiographies and their knowledge

Autobiographies are books that most often deal with the author himself. It is about people who have been through wild and eventful moments. Usually we have to dive far down, or at least know each other well, before we tell very personal stories. After all, it is not something we would tell a stranger in everyday life, so personal, are these autobiographies. It is excellent to be able to learn from each other so that the experiences and traumatic times we go through are not in vain. Of course, this is also something we can learn from, but autobiographies give you the knowledge you need to avoid the mistakes they end up making. In addition, it also contains stories about people they have been close to and how those relationships have changed. It is not always about learning in autobiographies, it can also be about understanding the human being behind. We are all incredibly complex people and that is evident in autobiographies. Autobiographies are books that take us very close to human nature, it gives us details that we would not otherwise get in a normal conversation.

The experiences and moments we all have, are where autobiographies shine about the mentality, such as the highest athletes have. These are books written both for the author's own sake but also the reader's. It is about quid pro quo, a two-sided coin that benefits one's own recovery (the author) and the reader. When we write down our thoughts, we quickly get rid of everything that keeps us down. That weight can be incredibly heavy and can therefore be very healthy to get rid of once in a while. A positive is that you know someone can read it, and get a whole lot of information from it, and perhaps learn what they should and should not do in certain situations. Take, for example, ‘Mamba Mentality’ a book about the late Kobe Bryant, it is said that his mentality was invincible and completely bulletproof. Something that we all strive to achieve, and that is exactly what autobiographies are all about. The innermost thoughts in a man. Autobiographies can also give you insight into your favorite celebrity life, understand them and see what makes them the person they are. We are all interesting and unique in our own way, through experiences and the knowledge or skills we possess.

Many of the books also consist of well-known quotes from many different people through political stories and the celebrity world.

Elon Musk has written an autobiography back in 2016, which deals with the giant tech companies he has managed to create. Including PayPal, SpaceX, Tesla and SolarCity. It is a deep look into how he has managed to do this and what it required from his own life. It is said that we have to sacrifice a lot to reach a high position in life. Great autobiography, which is a great place to start if you are into this topic.

As mentioned, autobiographies are a great tool for learning from others, and many of the stories are written by people who have had a tough upbringing. It is to their own advantage to understand how they have done it and what it requires of them. Try and dive into some of our autobiographies today!

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