Amazon's 100 Biographies & Memoirs to Read in a Lifetime

1.
The Diary of a Young Girl
The Diary of a Young Girl 4.20 avg rating — 4,073,377 ratings
2.
The Story of My Life
The Story of My Life 4.08 avg rating — 150,151 ratings
3.
Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly
Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly 4.18 avg rating — 359,888 ratings
4.
Travels with Charley: In Search of America
Travels with Charley: In Search of America 4.08 avg rating — 103,308 ratings
5.
The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary
The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary 3.84 avg rating — 120,607 ratings
6.
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (Maya Angelou's Autobiography, #1)
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (Maya Angelou's Autobiography, #1) 4.30 avg rating — 568,976 ratings
7.
Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption
Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption 4.39 avg rating — 989,223 ratings
8.
The Complete Maus
The Complete Maus 4.58 avg rating — 245,675 ratings
9.
Eat, Pray, Love
Eat, Pray, Love 3.64 avg rating — 1,819,858 ratings
10.
Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs 4.15 avg rating — 1,331,269 ratings
11.
My Life in France
My Life in France 4.16 avg rating — 92,235 ratings
12.
Notes of a Native Son
Notes of a Native Son 4.37 avg rating — 23,283 ratings
13.
The Agony and the Ecstasy
The Agony and the Ecstasy 4.09 avg rating — 93,734 ratings
14.
Seabiscuit: An American Legend
Seabiscuit: An American Legend 4.23 avg rating — 167,143 ratings
15.
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks 4.13 avg rating — 787,096 ratings
16.
Night
Night 4.38 avg rating — 1,334,260 ratings
17.
Depression Hates a Moving Target: How Running With My Dog Brought Me Back From the Brink
Depression Hates a Moving Target: How Running With My Dog Brought Me Back From the Brink 3.72 avg rating — 1,922 ratings
18.
The Glass Castle
The Glass Castle 4.32 avg rating — 1,325,693 ratings
19.
Into the Wild
Into the Wild 4.02 avg rating — 1,165,684 ratings
19.
Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen
Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen 4.30 avg rating — 228,799 ratings
21.
The Bell Jar
The Bell Jar 4.05 avg rating — 1,153,940 ratings
22.
The Autobiography of Malcolm X
The Autobiography of Malcolm X
by: Malcolm X
4.37 avg rating — 285,193 ratings
23.
The Complete Persepolis
The Complete Persepolis 4.40 avg rating — 199,584 ratings
24.
On the Road
On the Road 3.61 avg rating — 438,519 ratings
25.
A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier
A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier 4.16 avg rating — 192,420 ratings
26.
Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance
Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance 3.94 avg rating — 229,616 ratings
27.
A Moveable Feast
A Moveable Feast 4.02 avg rating — 162,866 ratings
28.
The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt (Theodore Roosevelt, #1)
The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt (Theodore Roosevelt, #1) 4.23 avg rating — 59,128 ratings
29.
The Color of Water
The Color of Water 4.15 avg rating — 131,558 ratings
30.
Long Walk to Freedom
Long Walk to Freedom 4.36 avg rating — 92,329 ratings
30.
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius 3.69 avg rating — 182,718 ratings
32.
Bossypants
Bossypants
by: Tina Fey
3.96 avg rating — 1,041,986 ratings
32.
The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts
The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts 3.73 avg rating — 33,277 ratings
34.
Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China
Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China 4.30 avg rating — 120,287 ratings
35.
Open
Open 4.32 avg rating — 139,818 ratings
36.
Angela’s Ashes (Frank McCourt, #1)
Angela’s Ashes (Frank McCourt, #1) 4.15 avg rating — 650,973 ratings
37.
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass 4.12 avg rating — 131,999 ratings
38.
Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life
Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life 3.88 avg rating — 105,653 ratings
39.
Touching the Void: The True Story of One Man's Miraculous Survival
Touching the Void: The True Story of One Man's Miraculous Survival 4.23 avg rating — 63,072 ratings
40.
Black Like Me
Black Like Me 4.11 avg rating — 69,182 ratings
41.
Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African Childhood
Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African Childhood 3.97 avg rating — 56,659 ratings
42.
West with the Night
West with the Night 4.15 avg rating — 40,233 ratings
43.
Napoleon: A Life
Napoleon: A Life 4.24 avg rating — 27,071 ratings
44.
Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman
Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman 3.94 avg rating — 107,266 ratings
45.
American Caesar: Douglas MacArthur 1880-1964
American Caesar: Douglas MacArthur 1880-1964 4.09 avg rating — 13,888 ratings
46.
Cash
Cash 4.02 avg rating — 24,976 ratings
47.
I Am Malala: The Story of the Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban
I Am Malala: The Story of the Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban 4.16 avg rating — 612,717 ratings
47.
Out of Africa / Shadows on the Grass
Out of Africa / Shadows on the Grass 4.21 avg rating — 11,732 ratings
49.
Everybody Was So Young: Gerald and Sara Murphy: A Lost Generation Love Story
Everybody Was So Young: Gerald and Sara Murphy: A Lost Generation Love Story 4.06 avg rating — 2,561 ratings
50.
The Soul of a New Machine
The Soul of a New Machine 4.12 avg rating — 9,240 ratings
50.
Mortality
Mortality 4.12 avg rating — 29,012 ratings
52.
Depression Hates a Moving Target: How Running With My Dog Brought Me Back From the Brink
Depression Hates a Moving Target: How Running With My Dog Brought Me Back From the Brink 3.72 avg rating — 1,922 ratings
53.
The Gulag Archipelago, 1918-1956: An Experiment in Literary Investigation
The Gulag Archipelago, 1918-1956: An Experiment in Literary Investigation 4.33 avg rating — 33,407 ratings
54.
Meditations
Meditations 4.28 avg rating — 320,765 ratings
55.
Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail
Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail 4.07 avg rating — 850,514 ratings
56.
The Year of Magical Thinking
The Year of Magical Thinking 3.93 avg rating — 284,984 ratings
57.
A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail
A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail 4.07 avg rating — 436,134 ratings
58.
Personal History: A Memoir
Personal History: A Memoir 4.09 avg rating — 24,451 ratings
59.
Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr.
Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. 4.16 avg rating — 35,591 ratings
60.
American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer
American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer
by: Kai Bird
4.31 avg rating — 55,194 ratings
61.
The Diary of Frida Kahlo: An Intimate Self-Portrait
The Diary of Frida Kahlo: An Intimate Self-Portrait 3.90 avg rating — 48,380 ratings
62.
Just Kids
Just Kids 4.21 avg rating — 333,709 ratings
62.
Churchill: A Life
Churchill: A Life 4.11 avg rating — 7,014 ratings
64.
Life
Life 3.89 avg rating — 97,140 ratings
65.
American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History
American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History 4.03 avg rating — 138,796 ratings
66.
The Liars' Club
The Liars' Club
by: Mary Karr
3.94 avg rating — 71,041 ratings
67.
Drinking: A Love Story
Drinking: A Love Story 4.09 avg rating — 21,114 ratings
68.
Black Boy
Black Boy 4.09 avg rating — 55,306 ratings
69.
Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!: Adventures of a Curious Character
Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!: Adventures of a Curious Character 4.27 avg rating — 213,220 ratings
70.
Darkness Visible: A Memoir of Madness
Darkness Visible: A Memoir of Madness 3.99 avg rating — 30,923 ratings
71.
American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House
American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House 3.86 avg rating — 55,953 ratings
72.
Under the Tuscan Sun: At Home in Italy
Under the Tuscan Sun: At Home in Italy 3.77 avg rating — 329,146 ratings
73.
Running with Scissors
Running with Scissors 3.77 avg rating — 400,435 ratings
74.
Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher: The Epic Life and Immortal Photographs of Edward Curtis
Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher: The Epic Life and Immortal Photographs of Edward Curtis 4.11 avg rating — 9,933 ratings
75.
Naked
Naked 4.10 avg rating — 271,051 ratings
76.
This Boy's Life
This Boy's Life 3.97 avg rating — 30,191 ratings
77.
The Motorcycle Diaries: Notes on a Latin American Journey
The Motorcycle Diaries: Notes on a Latin American Journey 3.80 avg rating — 44,101 ratings
78.
The Tender Bar: A Memoir
The Tender Bar: A Memoir 3.99 avg rating — 44,609 ratings
79.
Chronicles, Volume One
Chronicles, Volume One
by: Bob Dylan
3.98 avg rating — 60,445 ratings
80.
The Basketball Diaries
The Basketball Diaries 3.99 avg rating — 31,489 ratings
81.
Speak, Memory
Speak, Memory 4.08 avg rating — 17,396 ratings
82.
American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson
American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson 3.94 avg rating — 28,832 ratings
83.
The Diary of Anaïs Nin, Vol. 1: 1931-1934
The Diary of Anaïs Nin, Vol. 1: 1931-1934 4.17 avg rating — 8,067 ratings
84.
Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice
Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice 4.07 avg rating — 6,210 ratings
85.
Ball Four
Ball Four 4.05 avg rating — 20,737 ratings
86.
E=mc²: A Biography of the World's Most Famous Equation
E=mc²: A Biography of the World's Most Famous Equation 4.10 avg rating — 8,264 ratings
87.
The Andy Warhol Diaries
The Andy Warhol Diaries 3.93 avg rating — 3,061 ratings
88.
The Years of Lyndon Johnson Set: The Path to Power; Means of Ascent; Master of the Senate; The Passage of Power
The Years of Lyndon Johnson Set: The Path to Power; Means of Ascent; Master of the Senate; The Passage of Power 4.68 avg rating — 319 ratings
89.
Savage Beauty: The Life of Edna St. Vincent Millay
Savage Beauty: The Life of Edna St. Vincent Millay 3.91 avg rating — 9,507 ratings
90.
The Kid Stays in the Picture
The Kid Stays in the Picture 3.97 avg rating — 5,094 ratings
91.
The Autobiography of Mark Twain
The Autobiography of Mark Twain 3.94 avg rating — 5,195 ratings
92.
Dorothy Parker: What Fresh Hell Is This?
Dorothy Parker: What Fresh Hell Is This? 3.98 avg rating — 4,160 ratings
93.
The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas
The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas 3.54 avg rating — 13,204 ratings
94.
Vera
Vera 3.86 avg rating — 1,373 ratings
95.
Tennessee Williams: Mad Pilgrimage of the Flesh
Tennessee Williams: Mad Pilgrimage of the Flesh
by: John Lahr
4.23 avg rating — 941 ratings
96.
Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage
Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage 4.46 avg rating — 155,700 ratings
97.
De Profundis and Other Writings
De Profundis and Other Writings 4.22 avg rating — 2,801 ratings
98.
Updike
Updike 4.09 avg rating — 629 ratings
99.
The Last Lone Inventor: A Tale of Genius, Deceit, and the Birth of Television
The Last Lone Inventor: A Tale of Genius, Deceit, and the Birth of Television 4.21 avg rating — 186 ratings
100.
Knock Wood
Knock Wood 3.94 avg rating — 920 ratings
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