Listing books in autobiography
| Full title | Boy [permalink] |
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| Language | English |
| Author | Roald Dahl (author) |
| Publisher | Cappelen |
| Category | Autobiography |
| Publication year | 2008 |
| Original publication year | 1985 |
| ISBN | 82-02-19319-2 [Amazon, B&N, Abe, Powell's] |
| Pages | 208 |
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| Full title | Hitch-22: A Memoir [permalink] |
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| Language | English |
| Author | Christopher Hitchens (author) |
| Publisher | Atlantic Books |
| Categories | Autobiography and memoir |
| Publication year | 2011 |
| Original publication year | 2010 |
| ISBN | 978-1-84354-922-2 [Amazon, B&N, Abe, Powell's] |
| Pages | 435 |
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| Full title | I. Asimov: A Memoir [permalink] |
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| Language | English |
| Author | Isaac Asimov (author) |
| Publisher | Bantam Books |
| Category | Autobiography |
| Publication year | 1995 |
| Original publication year | 1994 |
| ISBN | 0-553-56997-X [Amazon, B&N, Abe, Powell's] |
| Pages | 578 |
| Synopsis | This is Asimov's third and last autobiography, started in early 1990 after a complicated operation, and finished in May 1990 (Asimov died in 1992). His two previous autobiographies are called In Memory Yet Green and In Joy Still Felt, and their titles, Asimov tells in this book, are from a poem by Asimov himself:
From this, Asimov wanted to call this third volume The Scenes of Life, but sadly that title didn't survive editorial tampering. |
| Review | This is a more or less chronological account of Asimov's life, arranged in 166 smallish chapters, each dealing with a different subject or person (Asimov had a lot of well-known friends), and everything is thoroughly entertaining. If you pick up this book, I promise you'll have a hard time putting it down. |
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| Full title | Infidel: My Life [permalink] |
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| Original title | Mijn Vrijheid |
| Language | English |
| Author | Ayaan Hirsi Ali (author) |
| Publisher | Simon & Schuster |
| Categories | Autobiography and religion |
| Publication year | 2007 |
| Original publication year | 2006 |
| ISBN | 978-1-4165-2624-7 [Amazon, B&N, Abe, Powell's] |
| Pages | 353 |
| Synopsis | The first part of the book is all about Ayaan's upbringing in Somalia (and her later emigrations elsewhere), while the latter part is about her career in the Netherlands and beyond. |
| Review | Ayaan describes her life in such vivid detail that it's impossible not to be drawn in by her writing. I found the first part of the book, if not boring, then at least not gripping, but by the latter part of the book, I was totally absorbed. She writes with intelligence and wit, and hers is a most amazing story. Highly recommended reading. |
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Part I: My Childhood
Part II: My Freedom
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| Full title | Mortality [permalink] |
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| Language | English |
| Authors | Christopher Hitchens (author), Graydon Carter (foreword) and Carol Blue (afterword) |
| Publisher | Twelve |
| Categories | Anthology, autobiography, essay and memoir |
| Publication year | 2012 |
| ISBN | 978-1-4555-2347-4 [Amazon, B&N, Abe, Powell's] |
| Pages | 104 |
| Synopsis | Mortality is a very short collection of essays that Hitchens wrote for Vanity Fair about his diagnosis of and living with oesophageal cancer. There are forays into other topics, but the essays mainly concern his living with cancer and all that that implies.
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| Review | It's a very short book, but the essays are interesting. If you're familiar with Hitchens' output, then you know what to expect. |
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| Full title | Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!: Adventures of a Curious Character [permalink] |
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| Language | English |
| Author | Richard Feynman (author) |
| Category | Autobiography |
| Publication year | 1985 |
| Pages | 205 |
| Synopsis | The book is a fascinating look into the mind of one of the 20th century's top physicist, the eccentric free spirit Richard Feynman. It's a mostly chronological account of the interesting moments of his life, from his childhood when he fixed radios, to his mischief at MIT, to Princeton, to Los Alamos (where he worked on the bomb and cracked safes for fun), to Cornell, to Brazil, to Japan. The stories are engagingly told as anecdotes, which is partly why it's such an interesting read (and partly because the stories are inherently interesting). |
| Review | I think I can honestly say that this book is excellent all the way through. At no point was I bored. In fact, I grinned to myself at least three times and almost cried once (honest). |