Collection: Biography & Memoir

Love, betrayal, and a secret war: the untold story of two elite agents, one Canadian, one British, who became one of the most decorated couples of WWII.

On opposite sides of the pond, Sonia Butt, an adventurous young British woman, and Guy d'Artois, a French-Canadian soldier and thunderstorm of a man, are preparing for war.

From different worlds, their lives first intersect during clandestine training to become agents with Winston Churchill's secret army, the Special Operations Executive. As the world's deadliest conflict to date unfolds, Sonia and Guy learn how to parachute into enemy territory, how to kill, blow up rail lines, and eventually . . . how to love each other. But not long after their hasty marriage, their love is tested by separation, by a titanic invasion--and by indiscretion.

Writing in vivid, heart-stopping prose, Ayed follows Sonia as she plunges into Nazi-occupied France and slinks into black market restaurants to throw off occupying Nazi forces, while at the same time participating in sabotage operations against them; and as Guy, in another corner of France, trains hundreds into a resistance army.

Reconstructed from hours of unpublished interviews and hundreds of archival and personal documents, the story Ayed tells is about the ravaging costs of war paid for disproportionately by the young. But more than anything, The War We Won Apart is a story about love: two secret agents who were supposed to land in enemy territory together, but were fated to fight the war apart.

How did a young boy who played three sports become a two-time Super Bowl champion? Find out in this exciting Who HQ Now book about one of America's favorite football players.

Travis Kelce was born an athlete -- he played football, basketball, and baseball in high school. He excelled at football, and served as Cleveland Heights High School's quarterback -- though he'd one day become a famous tight end because of his impressive skills on the field. Travis was offered a scholarship to play football at the University of Cincinnati. After being drafted in the NFL to play for the Kansas City Chiefs, Travis got his first Super Bowl win. Travis won his second Super Bowl in 2022, when the Chiefs defeated his brother's team, the Philadelphia Eagles. Although he is best known for his excellence in football, Travis is also the founder of the Eighty-Seven & Running Foundation, which provides children in need with opportunities in education, athletics, and the arts. He is also a podcaster and an avid car collector.

In this exquisite and profound memoir, a medieval historian traces her lifelong obsession with Rome and the encounters with the city's past and present that became fulcrum points in her life

From the time she first felt called to its gates as a high school student fascinated by Dante and Italian thanks to a life-changing teacher, Rome has been a fixed star around which Alizah Holstein's life has rotated--despite the fact that she bears no Italian heritage, and has never lived there long enough to call it home.

In this kaleidoscopic yet intimate memoir, her shifting relationship to a vibrant city layered with human history becomes a lens on why we look to the past, on the mysteries of affinity and desire, and on what it means to grow up. Holstein weaves the stories of Romans past and present, and encounters with the city of historical figures from Petrarch to Freud, into the narrative of her evolution from a curious student abuzz with the thrill of discovery, to a lonely researcher in a city to which she feels she belongs despite knowing no one, to an ambitious young historian struggling to find her place in the halls of academia. Following a trail of memories--that first taste of a tartufo cioccolato in Piazza Navona, the ancient walls of the Via Appia blurring from the back of a motorcycle, the smudge of ink on a manuscript left by a scribe's hand over seven hundred years before--she explores what it means to be romana, Roman--and to find solace and self-knowledge in the presence of the past.

An enveloping, original, and deeply resonant account, set against one of the world's most beguiling cities, of the unexpected things that give our lives meaning, My Roman History is a profound depiction of the winding path to self-realization, which--much like history itself--is mysterious, captivating, and ever-unfolding.

This stunning and lyrical picture book biography details the life and art of celebrated children's book creator, Barbara Cooney.

For every kid who loves art, here is the inspirational story of beloved illustrator and two-time Caldecott Medalist, Barbara Cooney.
Barbara was born in a hotel in Brooklyn, with a view of the city and the sea. Her father loved numbers and money. But Barbara and her mother loved art, and color, and light. Barbara's favorite days were when she stayed home sick in bed and got to paint and draw.
In the summers, they left New York for Maine, where Barbara scrambled among the rocks, wind whipping her hair, light sparkling on the water. Summer was grey, and blue, and green, and free.
When Barbara grew up, she ventured out into the world with an art portfolio--she thought she might like to illustrate books. And she did, creating classics like Miss Rumphius, Island Boy, and Hattie and the Waves.
Her character Miss Rumphius said, you must do something to make the world more beautiful. And that is exactly what Barbara did. It's a message that's sure to inspire young readers and creators today.

Help your little one dream big with a Little Golden Book biography about legendary boxer and activist Muhammad Ali. Little Golden Book biographies are the perfect introduction to nonfiction for young readers--as well as fans of all ages!

This Little Golden Book about Muhammad Ali--the boxing heavyweight champion, civil rights activist, and the original GOAT (Greatest of All Time)--is an inspiring read-aloud for young readers.

Look for more Little Golden Book biographies:

• Jackie Robinson
• Martin Luther King Jr.
• Simone Biles
• Misty Copeland

A debut book from Entertainment Weekly writer and former Out magazine editor Lester Fabian Brathwaite, Rage is a darkly comedic exploration of Blackness, queerness, and the American Dream, at a time when creative anger feels like the best response to inequality.

One romantic hopeful had greeted Lester Fabian Brathwaite on a dating app with this gem: "You into race play?" Being young, queer, gifted, and Black, Lester has found that his best tool for navigating American life is gallows humor. If you don't laugh, you cry--or, you summon your inner rage. With biting wit, Lester's book Rage interrogates all the ways that systemic racism and homophobia have shaped our society. All to pose that proverbial question: Can a gurl live?

Rage is one part memoir, one part cultural critique, one part live grenade. He contrasts his tragic-comedic love life with the ideals he had formed from bingeing (straight, white) Hollywood depictions. And he is quick to side-eye the misogyny and internalized homophobia that some people reveal in statements like "masc for masc" on dating profiles. Lester also dives deep into representations of queer life from RuPaul's Drag Race to The Birdcage (Robin Williams was a snack in Versace), and explores our cultural understanding of Black genius through stories of James Baldwin, Whitney Houston, and Nina Simone.

Lester's razor-sharp voice, coupled with his searing social commentary on topics such as dating, rejection, racism, sexuality, identity, and more, offer an increasingly divided world an engaging and original read.

An upcoming book to be published by Penguin Random House.

Ayuda a tu niño a soñar en grande con esta biografía en español sobre el futbolista argentino Lionel Messi de Little Golden Book! Las biografías de Little Golden Book
representan la introducción perfecta a los libros no-ficción para lectores jóvenes, así como entusiastas de todas las edades!

Help your little one dream big with this Spanish language Little Golden Book biography about Argentine professional footballer Lionel Messi! Little Golden Book biographies are the perfect introduction to nonfiction for young readers!

Este Little Golden Book sobre Lionel Messi --el delantero y jugador estrella de Argentina, FC Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, y Inter Miami quien es ampliamente reconocido como uno de los mejores jugadores de fútbol de todos los tiempos-- es una inspiradora historia para narrar en voz alta a los pequeños lectores.

This Little Golden Book about Lionel Messi--the record-smashing star forward for Argentina, FC Barcelona, and Paris Saint-Germain who is widely regarded as one of the greatest soccer players of all time--is an inspiring read-aloud for young readers.

Look for more Little Golden Book biographies:

• Simone Biles
• Jackie Robinson
• Misty Copeland

A dazzling insider's account of the contemporary art world and the stunning rise and fall of the charismatic American art dealer Inigo Philbrick, as seen through the eyes of his friend and fellow dealer

Orlando Whitfield and Inigo Philbrick met in 2006 at London's Goldsmiths University where they became best friends. By 2007 they had started I&O Fine Art.

Orlando would eventually set up his own gallery and watch as Inigo quickly immersed himself in a world of private jets and multimillion-dollar deals for major clients. Inigo seemed brilliant, but underneath the extravagant façade, his complicated financial schemes were unraveling. With debt, lawsuits, and court summonses piling up, Inigo went into a tailspin of lies and subterfuge. At around the same time, Orlando would himself experience a nervous breakdown and leave the art world for good. By 2019 things had spiraled enough out of control for Inigo to flee to the remote island nation of Vanuatu, 300 miles west of Fiji. Within a year, he was arrested by the FBI and extradited to America, where he was sentenced to seven years in prison for having committed more than $86 million in fraud.

All That Glitters is at once a shocking and compulsive story of ambition and downfall, a cautionary tale, and an intimate portrait of friendship and its loss.

Sex, Drugs, and False Eyelashes--

Surviving an encounter with a gun-wielding lesbian, a car chase by a jealous stranger, and being drowned by drag queens, The Downtown Underground is the satirical memoir of a queer kid that stumbled into the outrageous world of Downtown Los Angeles' drag scene.

When drag broke into the mainstream, it gave birth to a subculture of performers that didn't aspire to be media-friendly beauty queens. Instead, these drag queens embraced the culture of an underground art. The raw, monstrous underbelly of drag has since evolved into The Downtown Underground.

This coming-of-age adventure tells the story of a misfit queer struggling to find his place in the LGBT community.

When We Become Weavers brings together a multitude of voices exploring the many dimensions of the Midwest queer female experience: a land of moderation and extremes, lakes and thunderstorms, tall grass prairie and dance clubs, racism and transphobia, assault and female erotic power. In this volume, 17 poets, familiar and new, share stories you won't soon forget.

Fourth edition of this popular guide, that has sold over 15,000 copies, updated and expanded to include the latest Ghibli productions: Earwig and the Witch (2020) and How Do You Live? (2023)

The animations of Japan's Studio Ghibli are among the most respected in the movie industry. Their delightful films rank alongside the most popular non-English language films ever made, with each new eagerly anticipated release a guaranteed box office hit. Yet this highly profitable studio has remained fiercely independent, producing a stream of imaginative and individual animations. The studio's founders, the late Isao Takahata and Hayao Miyazaki, have created timeless masterpieces. Although their films are distinctly Japanese, their themes are universal: humanity, community and a love for the environment. No other film studio, animation or otherwise, comes close to matching Ghibli for pure cinematic experience.

Studio Ghibli examines all their major works including Laputa: Castle in the Sky, Grave of the Fireflies, My Neighbour Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, Only Yesterday, Porco Rosso, Pom Poko, Whisper of the Heart, Princess Mononoke and Howl's Moving Castle, as well as the critically acclaimed Spirited Away and The Tale of Princess Kaguya. Odell and Le Blanc's informed analysis also considers Studio Ghibli features such as Hayao Miyazaki's Oscar-nominated final masterpiece The Wind Rises, When Marnie Was There and the recent co-productions, Ronja the Robber's Daughter and Red Turtle.

From the author of the best-selling A Venetian Affair ("A narrative of novelistic resonance . . . Astonishing" --The Washington Post), the story of an Italian Renaissance book editor who introduced European minds to the wider world through his passion for geography

In the autumn of 1550, a thick volume containing a wealth of geographical information new to Europeans, with startling wood-cut maps of Africa, India and Indonesia, was published in Venice under the title Navigationi et Viaggi (Journeys and Navigations). The editor of this remarkable collection of travelogues, journals and classified government reports remained anonymous. Two additional volumes delivered the most accurate information on Asia and the "New World" available at the time. The three volumes together constituted an unparalleled release of geographical data into the public domain. It was, Andrea di Robilant writes, the biggest Wikileak of the Renaissance.

In This Earthly Globe, di Robilant brings to life the palace intrigues, editorial wheedling, delicate alliances and vibrant curiosity that resulted in this coup by the editor Giovambattista Ramusio. Learned and self-effacing, he gathered a vast array of both popular and closely guarded narratives, from the journals of Marco Polo (he fact-checked them!) to detailed reports on Northern African cultures from the Muslim scholar and diplomat al-Hasan ibn Mohammad al-Wazzan (later known as Leo Africanus). Diverse voices spill out from these chapters as di Robilant recounts how Ramusio pursued the sources, and how he understood both the darker episodes of "exploration" involving colonial violence and the voyage stories which included accounts of people from African and Asian lands, who had a great deal to share about their cultures. The result is a far-flung and delightful homage to one of the founding fathers of modern geography.

The complicated life and legacy of John Trumbull, whose paintings portrayed both the struggle and the principles that distinguished America's founding moment

John Trumbull (1756-1843) experienced the American Revolution firsthand--he served as aid to George Washington and Horatio Gates, was shot at, and was jailed as a spy. He made it his mission to record the war, giving visual form to what most citizens of the new United States thought: that they had brought into the world a great and unprecedented political experiment. His purpose, he wrote, was "to preserve and diffuse the memory of the noblest series of actions which have ever presented themselves in the history of man." Although Trumbull's contemporaries viewed him as a painter, Trumbull thought of himself as a historian.

Richard Brookhiser tells Trumbull's story of acclaim and recognition, a story complicated by provincialism, war, a messy personal life, and, ultimately, changing fashion. He shows how the artist's fifty-year project embodied the meaning of American exceptionalism and played a key role in defining the values of the new country. Trumbull depicted the story of self-rule in the modern world--a story as important and as contested today as it was 250 years ago.