Best Memoir / Biography / Auto-biography (1226 books)

Best Memoir / Biography / Auto-biography

1	The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank 4.03 avg rating — 591,669 ratings score: 23,689, and 241 people voted	My rating:
2	Night by Elie Wiesel 4.23 avg rating — 186,373 ratings score: 17,729, and 181 people voted	My rating:
3	The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls 4.15 avg rating — 188,507 ratings score: 16,513, and 168 people voted	My rating:
4	Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt 3.97 avg rating — 130,670 ratings score: 15,557, and 160 people voted	My rating:
5	Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert 3.38 avg rating — 400,076 ratings score: 9,435, and 96 people voted	My rating:
6	Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer 3.91 avg rating — 136,375 ratings score: 7,931, and 81 people voted	My rating:
7	Running With Scissors by Augusten Burroughs 3.53 avg rating — 111,027 ratings score: 7,220, and 74 people voted	My rating:
8	Little House in the Big Woods (Little House, #1) by Laura Ingalls Wilder 4.12 avg rating — 49,344 ratings score: 5,860, and 62 people voted	My rating:
9	Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom 3.90 avg rating — 171,887 ratings score: 5,123, and 53 people voted	My rating:
10	Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood by Marjane Satrapi 4.19 avg rating — 39,793 ratings score: 5,087, and 52 people voted	My rating:
11	The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Malcolm X 4.26 avg rating — 29,760 ratings score: 4,946, and 52 people voted	My rating:
12	A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah 4.09 avg rating — 33,754 ratings score: 4,663, and 48 people voted	My rating:
13	Marley & Me: Life and Love with the World's Worst Dog by John Grogan 4.06 avg rating — 97,641 ratings score: 4,403, and 46 people voted	My rating:
14	Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace ... One School at a Time by Greg Mortenson (Goodreads Author) 3.73 avg rating — 105,782 ratings score: 4,371, and 45 people voted	My rating:
15	Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer 3.80 avg rating — 221,577 ratings score: 4,334, and 46 people voted	My rating:
16	John Adams by David McCullough 4.24 avg rating — 34,061 ratings score: 4,091, and 42 people voted	My rating:
17	Maus I: My Father Bleeds History by Art Spiegelman 4.35 avg rating — 42,069 ratings score: 3,926, and 40 people voted	My rating:
18	I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou 4.00 avg rating — 61,473 ratings score: 3,918, and 42 people voted	My rating:
19	A Child Called "It" (Dave Pelzer, #1) by Dave Pelzer 3.98 avg rating — 83,534 ratings score: 3,879, and 41 people voted	My rating:
20	Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali 4.18 avg rating — 18,561 ratings score: 3,690, and 38 people voted	My rating:
21	Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China by Jung Chang 4.17 avg rating — 17,667 ratings score: 3,572, and 37 people voted	My rating:
22	The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom 4.41 avg rating — 46,798 ratings score: 3,567, and 38 people voted	My rating:
23	The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother by James McBride 3.98 avg rating — 26,206 ratings score: 3,517, and 37 people voted	My rating:
24	Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi (Goodreads Author) 3.44 avg rating — 42,906 ratings score: 3,431, and 37 people voted	My rating:
25	Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris 3.86 avg rating — 274,557 ratings score: 3,419, and 36 people voted	My rating:
26	Escape by Carolyn Jessop 3.89 avg rating — 11,457 ratings score: 3,139, and 32 people voted	My rating:
27	Black like Me by John Howard Griffin 4.00 avg rating — 14,011 ratings score: 2,560, and 27 people voted	My rating:
28	West with the Night by Beryl Markham 4.14 avg rating — 5,294 ratings score: 2,508, and 26 people voted	My rating:
29	The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi 4.27 avg rating — 20,018 ratings score: 2,505, and 26 people voted	My rating:
30	The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch 4.17 avg rating — 72,136 ratings score: 2,500, and 26 people voted	My rating:
31	The Diving Bell and the Butterfly by Jean-Dominique Bauby 3.97 avg rating — 14,418 ratings score: 2,343, and 25 people voted	My rating:
32	The Complete Maus by Art Spiegelman 4.48 avg rating — 19,046 ratings score: 2,314, and 24 people voted	My rating:
33	A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers 3.60 avg rating — 76,805 ratings score: 2,275, and 24 people voted	My rating:
34	A Million Little Pieces by James Frey 3.51 avg rating — 78,768 ratings score: 2,205, and 24 people voted	My rating:
35	Wasted: A Memoir of Anorexia and Bulimia by Marya Hornbacher 3.93 avg rating — 7,945 ratings score: 2,203, and 23 people voted	My rating:
36	Dry by Augusten Burroughs 3.94 avg rating — 30,835 ratings score: 2,159, and 23 people voted	My rating:
37	The Story of My Life by Helen Keller 4.00 avg rating — 13,019 ratings score: 2,130, and 24 people voted	My rating:
38	A Piece of Cake by Cupcake Brown 4.03 avg rating — 5,537 ratings score: 2,126, and 22 people voted	My rating:
39	Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance by Barack Obama 3.82 avg rating — 32,301 ratings score: 2,078, and 23 people voted	My rating:
40	Lucky by Alice Sebold 3.67 avg rating — 32,200 ratings score: 1,994, and 22 people voted	My rating:
41	Man's Search For Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl 4.32 avg rating — 31,143 ratings score: 1,983, and 21 people voted	My rating:
42	Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass 3.83 avg rating — 13,758 ratings score: 1,982, and 21 people voted	My rating:
43	Speak, Memory by Vladimir Nabokov 4.20 avg rating — 3,492 ratings score: 1,866, and 20 people voted	My rating:
44	The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream by Barack Obama 3.68 avg rating — 31,164 ratings score: 1,831, and 20 people voted	My rating:
45	Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger's by John Elder Robison (Goodreads Author) 3.79 avg rating — 14,910 ratings score: 1,815, and 20 people voted	My rating:
46	The Pianist by Władysław Szpilman 4.24 avg rating — 6,570 ratings score: 1,813, and 19 people voted	My rating:
47	Autobiography of a Face by Lucy Grealy 3.86 avg rating — 6,294 ratings score: 1,783, and 19 people voted	My rating:
48	Princess: A True Story of Life Behind the Veil in Saudi Arab by Jean Sasson (Goodreads Author) 3.96 avg rating — 6,891 ratings score: 1,750, and 19 people voted	My rating:
49	The Liars' Club by Mary Karr 3.82 avg rating — 13,749 ratings score: 1,720, and 19 people voted	My rating:
50	Mountains beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, a Man Who Would Cure the World by Tracy Kidder 4.20 avg rating — 19,714 ratings score: 1,692, and 18 people voted	My rating:
51	Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight by Alexandra Fuller 3.91 avg rating — 13,577 ratings score: 1,595, and 18 people voted	My rating:
52	Cheaper by the Dozen by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. 3.94 avg rating — 10,524 ratings score: 1,589, and 17 people voted	My rating:
53	Truth and Beauty by Ann Patchett 3.86 avg rating — 10,164 ratings score: 1,564, and 17 people voted	My rating:
54	What is the What by Dave Eggers 4.15 avg rating — 31,037 ratings score: 1,524, and 16 people voted	My rating:
55	On Writing by Stephen King 4.19 avg rating — 39,535 ratings score: 1,504, and 18 people voted	My rating:
56	The Private Letters of Countess Erzs Bet B Thory by Kimberly L. Craft (Goodreads Author) 4.70 avg rating — 30 ratings score: 1,492, and 15 people voted	My rating:
57	'Tis by Frank McCourt 3.51 avg rating — 19,927 ratings score: 1,486, and 18 people voted	My rating:
58	Infamous Lady by Kimberly L. Craft (Goodreads Author) 4.50 avg rating — 52 ratings score: 1,485, and 15 people voted	My rating:
59	The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion 3.75 avg rating — 33,983 ratings score: 1,368, and 15 people voted	My rating:
60	Black Boy by Richard Wright 3.86 avg rating — 12,806 ratings score: 1,332, and 15 people voted	My rating:
61	First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers by Loung Ung 4.21 avg rating — 4,403 ratings score: 1,325, and 14 people voted	My rating:
62	Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life by Steve Martin 3.81 avg rating — 14,897 ratings score: 1,284, and 14 people voted	My rating:
63	Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly by Anthony Bourdain 3.94 avg rating — 44,657 ratings score: 1,275, and 14 people voted	My rating:
64	Truman by David McCullough 4.29 avg rating — 8,766 ratings score: 1,254, and 14 people voted	My rating:
65	The Life of Elizabeth I by Alison Weir 4.06 avg rating — 4,810 ratings score: 1,206, and 15 people voted	My rating:
66	Musical Chairs by Jen Knox (Goodreads Author) 4.22 avg rating — 190 ratings score: 1,197, and 12 people voted	My rating:
67	Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin 4.39 avg rating — 15,397 ratings score: 1,138, and 12 people voted	My rating:
68	The Bookseller of Kabul by Åsne Seierstad 3.66 avg rating — 12,002 ratings score: 1,127, and 12 people voted	My rating:
69	All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot 4.23 avg rating — 25,152 ratings score: 1,125, and 14 people voted	My rating:
70	My Lobotomy by Howard Dully 3.56 avg rating — 3,918 ratings score: 1,117, and 12 people voted	My rating:
71	Please Stop Laughing at Me... One Woman's Inspirational Story by Jodee Blanco 3.67 avg rating — 2,922 ratings score: 1,116, and 12 people voted	My rating:
72	Teacher Man by Frank McCourt 3.62 avg rating — 11,924 ratings score: 1,092, and 13 people voted	My rating:
73	Me: Stories of My Life by Katharine Hepburn 3.80 avg rating — 2,958 ratings score: 1,078, and 12 people voted	My rating:
74	Survival in Auschwitz by Primo Levi 4.23 avg rating — 7,088 ratings score: 1,072, and 12 people voted	My rating:
75	The Invisible Wall: A Love Story That Broke Barriers by Harry Bernstein 4.00 avg rating — 4,028 ratings score: 1,065, and 11 people voted	My rating:
76	The Tender Bar by J.R. Moehringer 3.81 avg rating — 9,371 ratings score: 1,018, and 11 people voted	My rating:
77	Just Kids by Patti Smith 4.13 avg rating — 21,442 ratings score: 1,013, and 11 people voted	My rating:
78	Sybil: The True & Extraordinary Story of a Woman Possessed by Sixteen Separate Personalities by Flora Rheta Schreiber 3.90 avg rating — 19,160 ratings score: 1,007, and 12 people voted	My rating:
79	Personal History by Katharine Graham 4.07 avg rating — 3,672 ratings score: 1,000, and 11 people voted	My rating:
80	Jarhead by Anthony Swofford 3.49 avg rating — 3,321 ratings score: 994, and 11 people voted	My rating:
81	Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder 3.97 avg rating — 16,082 ratings score: 984, and 12 people voted	My rating:
82	The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures by Anne Fadiman 4.10 avg rating — 16,134 ratings score: 951, and 11 people voted	My rating:
83	Naked by David Sedaris 4.04 avg rating — 87,158 ratings score: 939, and 11 people voted	My rating:
84	Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel 4.15 avg rating — 15,681 ratings score: 938, and 10 people voted	My rating:
85	Alive: The Story of the Andes Survivors by Piers Paul Read 3.98 avg rating — 8,952 ratings score: 920, and 10 people voted	My rating:
86	Three Weeks With My Brother by Nicholas Sparks (Goodreads Author) 3.95 avg rating — 13,624 ratings score: 892, and 10 people voted	My rating:
87	Magical Thinking: True Stories by Augusten Burroughs 3.90 avg rating — 19,441 ratings score: 885, and 10 people voted	My rating:
88	The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin by Benjamin Franklin 3.71 avg rating — 8,638 ratings score: 879, and 10 people voted	My rating:
89	The Autobiography of Mark Twain by Mark Twain 4.00 avg rating — 714 ratings score: 876, and 10 people voted	My rating:
90	Cash by Johnny Cash 4.05 avg rating — 4,161 ratings score: 841, and 9 people voted	My rating:
91	If Chins Could Kill: Confessions of a B Movie Actor by Bruce Campbell 4.05 avg rating — 3,988 ratings score: 829, and 10 people voted	My rating:
92	I, Asimov: A Memoir by Isaac Asimov 4.04 avg rating — 556 ratings score: 828, and 9 people voted	My rating:
93	Georgiana: Duchess of Devonshire by Amanda Foreman 3.67 avg rating — 4,299 ratings score: 810, and 9 people voted	My rating:
94	1776 by David McCullough 4.03 avg rating — 28,746 ratings score: 803, and 9 people voted	My rating:
95	My Horizontal Life: A Collection of One-Night Stands by Chelsea Handler 3.78 avg rating — 35,669 ratings score: 793, and 9 people voted	My rating:
96	The Collected Autobiographies of Maya Angelou by Maya Angelou 4.54 avg rating — 227 ratings score: 791, and 9 people voted	My rating:
97	This Boy's Life by Tobias Wolff 3.93 avg rating — 7,136 ratings score: 767, and 9 people voted	My rating:
98	Red Azalea by Anchee Min 3.78 avg rating — 2,503 ratings score: 757, and 8 people voted	My rating:
98	Sickened: The Memoir of a Munchausen by Proxy Childhood by Julie Gregory 3.60 avg rating — 3,963 ratings score: 757, and 8 people voted	My rating:
100	Manchild in the Promised Land by Claude Brown 4.24 avg rating — 1,536 ratings score: 728, and 8 people voted	My rating:

← Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 12 13 Next →

1,226 books · 1,161 voters · list created July 13th, 2008 by Heather (votes) .

Tags: autobiography, biography, memoir, non-fiction

like 29 likes

Lists are re-scored approximately every 500 seconds.

People Who Voted On This List (1161)

Heather
569 books
115 friends

Kate
2063 books
591 friends

Nick
5042 books
105 friends

Russellino
221 books
2 friends

Chriss
164 books
266 friends

Jennifer
651 books
10 friends

Tracy
247 books
3 friends

Asli
286 books
6 friends

More voters…

Post a comment »
Comments (showing 1-19 of 19) (19 new)

date

newest »

message 1: by Raelle (new)

Jun 28, 2009 03:56pm

PATRON SAINT OF USED CARS AND SECOND CHANCES
by MARK MILLHONE

Beautiful, honest memoir that appeals to both men and women which is so rare. It is very funny, but have your kleenex near by and the phone numbers of family members handy to tell them you love them and value them

reply | flag *

message 2: by Ryann (last edited Oct 02, 2009 01:06pm) (new)

Oct 02, 2009 01:05pm

FYI: "What is the What" is not a memoir. Nor is "Sarah's Key." Both are great books, but they're fiction.

reply | flag *

message 3: by Fiona (new)

Dec 13, 2009 10:13am

Ryann wrote: "FYI: "What is the What" is not a memoir. Nor is "Sarah's Key." Both are great books, but they're fiction. "

Neither is memoirs of a geisha!!! Come on people, figure it out...

reply | flag *

message 4: by Julie (new)

Feb 27, 2010 01:18pm

add:Time To Be In Earnest: A Fragment Of Autobiography|3831], P. D. James

This is fabulous. six stars

reply | flag *

message 5: by Pia (new)

Feb 27, 2010 03:15pm

Never forget Anne Frank.

reply | flag *

message 6: by Jaliyah (new)

May 20, 2010 03:09pm

this was a good book..going to read more like this !

reply | flag *

message 7: by Kelsey (new)

Aug 17, 2010 10:09pm

The Lovely Bones isn't a memoir or biography.

reply | flag *

message 8: by Xenophon (new)

Aug 27, 2010 04:02am

Hannibal
by Thomas Harris and
Death of a Salesman
by Arthur Miller are both fiction, and I removed them.

reply | flag *

message 9: by Sue T (new)

Jan 21, 2011 04:01pm

Wow, I'm seeing a lot of fiction on this list.

reply | flag *

message 10: by Linda (new)

Apr 08, 2011 07:17pm

Sue T wrote: "Wow, I'm seeing a lot of fiction on this list."

Can we get them removed? One of the reasons I came to look at this list was to find good biographies to add to my TBR list, so I want to be sure I'm not reading a book I think is a biography then discover it was fiction.

reply | flag *

message 11: by Sarah (new)

Apr 11, 2011 11:33am

Linda wrote: "Sue T wrote: "Wow, I'm seeing a lot of fiction on this list."

Can we get them removed? One of the reasons I came to look at this list was to find good biographies to add to my TBR list, so I want ..."

Please don't remove them - even those are fiction-biography books, this list is still gorgeous.

reply | flag *

message 12: by Elle (new)

Apr 12, 2011 07:38am

reply | flag *

message 13: by Darbi (new)

May 06, 2011 10:22am

Thank you so much for creating this list Heather! I have been looking for 'Oh the Glory of it all." for years but I couldn't remember the name, thought I knew I would recognize the cover. I found it on your list and now I can read it again! Your awesome!

reply | flag *

message 14: by Janet (new)

May 15, 2011 05:22pm

"Good Grief" is fiction.

reply | flag *

message 15: by Janet (new)

May 15, 2011 05:27pm

"The Friday Night Knitting Club" is fiction. Why do people put fiction titles on non-fiction lists??

reply | flag *

message 16: by Guy (new)

Nov 23, 2011 05:18pm

Here's a real fun wild and crazy memoir about the movie biz and about finding true love...please vote for this cover - Kiss Me Quick Before I Shoot :)

reply | flag *

message 17: by John (new)

Nov 25, 2011 10:18am