Best Book Club Books: Memoirs

Celebrated chef Erin French shares her moving story of overcoming obstacles and finding community in her bestselling memoir, Finding Freedom. From her formative years working the line at her dad’s diner to opening her own critically acclaimed restaurant The Lost Kitchen in Freedom, Maine, French’s journey to the head of the table was anything but easy. Indeed, she endured addiction, hit multiple rock bottoms, and faced the challenges of single motherhood along the way. Told with candor and warmth — and enriched by French’s delectable food writing — Finding Freedom celebrates the life-affirming joys of family and finding your voice and the delicious connection between good food and great company.

In While You Were Out, award-winning journalist Meg Kissinger movingly chronicles her relationship with her family and the mental health crises that they endured. Combining the intimacy of memoir with the rigor of investigative journalism, Kissinger’s narrative guides us through moments of personal tragedy, love, resilience, and unexpected humor with an eye toward the future and changing the way we talk about mental health care in America. 

With self-deprecating humor and a healthy dose of Hollywood charm, Happy Days star Henry Winkler opens up about his life in this entertaining celebrity memoir. The Emmy Award–winning actor touches on everything from his lifelong struggles with dyslexia and the daily grind of showbiz to dazzling anecdotes from the sets of Barry and Arrested Development, and, of course, his career-defining turn as the Fonz on Happy Days. Radiating sincerity and warmth, Being Henry teaches lessons on being truthful to yourself no matter the odds — something every reader can appreciate.

For true crime aficionados, Paul Holes needs no introduction. The seasoned cold case investigator has dedicated his life to the pursuit of evil and he has helped crack some of the most notorious cases in modern American history, from the kidnapping of Jaycee Dugard to the 20-year manhunt for the Golden State Killer. He’s proud of his work, putting away criminals and providing closure to survivors. But he’s also haunted by a troubling question about his career: What was the cost to his well-being and his family? In this bestselling true crime memoir, Holes looks back on the cases he’s investigated and opens up about the many sacrifices he’s made in pursuit of justice, from frayed personal relationships to missing out on the joys of fatherhood. Delivered with unflinching honesty, Unmasked is a powerful account that “grabs its reader in a stranglehold and proves more fascinating than fiction and darker than any noir narrative” (Los Angeles Magazine). 

From being born into an infamous cult – to a childhood filled with poverty and addiction, Mikel Jollett struggled to find love and a sense of normalcy in world where nothing made sense. His incredible story is at once heartbreaking and inspiring, and it shows you that family loyalty and fierce determination can take you to places you only dreamed about.

In a way, NPR correspondent Aarti Shahani has lived the American dream. She and her family immigrated to New York City, she received a scholarship to a top Manhattan private school, and eventually she landed a successful career. But the Shahani family’s struggles equally define these years, especially when her old-world shopkeeper father inadvertently launders money for the Cali drug cartel. This immigrant story presents a look at a controversial topic that is not as black-and-white as some might think, which makes for a thought-provoking dialogue. Discussion questions are here.

From Mya-Rose Craig, the renowned birder and environmentalist who stands at the forefront of a new generation of environmental activists, Birdgirl combines science writing with advocacy and a touching tale of family love. Craig’s nature memoir interweaves her passion for bird-watching with the story of her mother’s mental health crisis, beautifully capturing the planet’s fragile grandeur while championing her mother’s journey and highlighting the restorative power of the natural world. Both thought-provoking and inspiring, Birdgirl is a deeply felt narrative about finding your calling and all the help you need along the way.

From New York Times bestseller and human rights activist Jennifer Finney Boylan comes her newest memoir Good Boy, showing how a young boy became a middle-aged woman—accompanied at seven crucial moments of growth and transformation by seven memorable dogs. Boylan contemplates her past in ways that prompt you to consider your own transformative times. An ode to dogs, identity, and finding love, the perfect thought-provoking read to share with friends or family.

Calling all animal lovers: Grab your furry friend and plenty of tissues, and settle in for this touching memoir about love, loss, and soul-warming companionship. When Emmy Award–winning news correspondent Martha Teichner is asked if she’d consider adopting a dog in need, she happily agrees — after all, Harry, the dog in question, is a bull terrier, just like her dog, Minnie. The two canines quickly hit it off; they’re natural companions. And yet, a friendship also blossoms between Martha and Harry’s owner, Carole, a woman who’s dying of cancer caused by exposure to toxins from 9/11. When Harry Met Minnie is a modern-day fairy tale rich with chance encounters, fated friendships, and a bustling New York City backdrop. It’s also a stirring memoir about camaraderie, and how the souls that we meet, both human and canine, leave a lasting impression on our lives.

What do you do when the system you believe in is flawed? According to Judge LaDoris Hazzard Cordell, you get in there and you fix it. In this eye-opening new memoir, Judge Cordell, the first African American woman to sit on the Superior Court of Northern California, offers an insider’s look at America’s criminal justice system, celebrating its strengths, highlighting its weaknesses, and tracing paths to more equitable judicial methods. Judge Cordell is well aware of the legal system’s shortcomings: shaky plea bargains, unchecked racial biases in law enforcement, and the troubling shift from rehabilitation to punishment are but a few of the weighty issues she tackles here. Nevertheless, Cordell is prepared to put in the work for positive change. In Her Honor, Cordell invites us into her chambers and shares her remarkable journey through the halls of justice, all while maintaining her conviction that the system can work — if we work on it.

In a letter to his 15-year-old son, Coates seeks to teach one important lesson: how to be a black man in America. He recounts his rough childhood, the importance of black history, and the moment he learns that education and wealth can’t protect you from racism if you’re black. Coates doesn’t put much faith in the American Dream; instead he urges his son to build strong community ties and surround himself with the love he finds there. Discussion questions are here.

Laymon pulls no punches when describing the abuse he suffered as a child. He places blame squarely in two places: his mother, and America’s institutional racism and sexism. His mother’s strict insistence on good grades, his obesity, and his career struggles are the stressors that lead to him writing. In doing so, he uncovers generations of family abuse and condemns those who did nothing to stop it. It’s a harrowing but important read. Discussion questions are here.

Harpham is thrilled by her new relationship with Brian until she gets pregnant … and Brian balks, leaving her alone and disillusioned. New-mom joy turns into a nightmare when baby Gracie grows suddenly, gravely ill. Brian returns, commits to helping Harpham and Gracie, and their relationship slowly resuscitates. How this fragile family grows strong is almost unbelievable, yet it’s true … and it has a happy ending. Discussion questions are here.

In the late 60s, at age 12, Rush is introduced to psychedelic drugs. From that moment, the counterculture of hippies and nomads becomes his family. Once a colorful decade of peace and love, the years soon dissolve into the 70s’ raw and violent hedonism. Rush survives his quest for meaning —– but just barely. Discussion questions are here.

Wiesel’s Nobel-prize-winning memoir is more than just the story of his years as a prisoner at the Auschwitz and Buchenwald concentration camps. It’s also a study of faith, and how it gets redefined in the face of one of the worst crimes against humanity in modern history. Even if you’re among the millions who have read Night, this story is worth a re-read at different points in your life. Discussion questions are here.

Obama is the first to admit that she would never have predicted her journey from Chicago’s working-class South Side to the White House. Her memoir is a fascinating peek behind a heavily-guarded curtain—from her concerns about how the Presidency affected her marriage and family, to the closing moments of her tenure as First Lady. These stories are riveting, and her honesty has made Becoming a book club favorite. Discussion questions are here.

Education — the 13 or so years most Americans receive — was never a given for Westover. Raised in a remote survivalist camp in Idaho, her parents considered the public school system to be a waste of time. So when Westover ran away and started school at age 17, she had a lot to learn. And she did, eventually working her way into Harvard and Cambridge universities. After her incredible escape and global adventures, can she ever go home again? Discussion questions are here.

Magical thinking is how Didion describes the mental gymnastics required of her during the most challenging year of her life. Her daughter falls ill and is placed in a medically induced coma, and shortly thereafter her husband suddenly dies of a heart attack. Both of these events send her spiraling into a world of medical journals and existential crises, all beautifully and miraculously captured in this memoir.  Discussion questions are here.

When he was 13 years old, Beah was recruited as a child soldier in Sierra Leone’s government army. As he’s asked to perform increasingly violent acts, he shuts down emotionally. Childhood is reduced to a past dream; the war an inescapable nightmare … until one day, he’s shown the way out. Written at age 25, Beah’s story is shocking but so important to witness. Discussion questions are here.

Being single and pregnant, Land learns, has an immediate impact on your ability to make a living. Working as a maid keeps her small family fed and clothed, and along the way she discovers surprising lessons about the upper class and what it means to be their servant. Discussion questions are here.

Arenas escapes poverty in rural Cuba to become one of the country’s most popular writers in exile. His rise to fame is treacherous, though. Once outed as a gay man, his writing is banned, he’s sent to prison, and he eventually flees his homeland. In New York, he faces the ultimate fight for his life: AIDS. Before Night Falls is considered his deathbed memoir.

In 1975, Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge ended five-year-old Ung’s childhood as she knew it. Her father worked in government, which put them all in immediate danger. Indeed, as the family attempted to escape Phnom Penh, they were separated. Two years later, Ung is a child soldier and her siblings are struggling to survive in various labor camps. Their sudden uprooting and slow, uncertain reunion makes for an intense read. Discussion questions are here.