Biographies
*New as of Sept. 2011
*For more biographies look for the yellow dot 

004 PAU
Pausch, Randy. The last lecture. The author, a computer science professor
diagnosed with terminal cancer, explores his life, the lessons that he has learned,
how he has worked to achieve his childhood dreams, and the effect of his
diagnosis on him and his family.
028.9 OZM
Ozma, Alice. The reading promise : my father and the books we shared. Alice
Ozma tells the story of how she and her father, an elementary school librarian,
set a goal when she was in fourth grade of reading together for one hundred
consecutive nights and continued on until she went away to college, and
discusses the bond that developed between her and her dad, and the life lessons
she learned from their time together.
230 MET
Metaxas, Eric. Bonhoeffer : pastor, martyr, prophet, spy : a righteous gentile vs.
the Third Reich. Chronicles the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, focusing on his time in
Germany after leaving America in 1939 and discussing his passionate love affair,
controversial writings, involvement in the plot to assassinate Hitler, an other
related topics.
282.092 DUF
Duffy, Eamon. Ten popes who shook the world. The Bishops of Rome have
been Christianity's most powerful leaders for nearly two millennia, and their
influence has extended far beyond the purely spiritual. The popes have played a
central role in the history of Europe and the wider world, not only shouldering
the spiritual burdens of their ancient office, but also in contending with - and
sometimes precipitating - the cultural and political crises of their times. In an
acclaimed series of BBC radio broadcasts Duffy explored the impact of ten
popes he judged to be among 'the most influential in history'. With this book,
readers may now also enjoy Duffy's portraits of ten exceptional men who shook
the world.
302.3 DEA
Dear bully : 70 authors tell their stories. A collection of stories in which seventy
authors share their experiences with and feelings about bullying, including
selections from Lauren Kate, R. L. Stine, Melissa Walker, Laura Kasischke, Amy
Reed, Kurtis Scaletta, Carolyn Mackler, and others.
328.73 BID
Witcover, Jules. Joe Biden : a life of trial and redemption. Political columnist
Jules Witcover examines the life of Joe Biden, discussing his youth in
Pennsylvania, career as a public defender, record in the Senate, progress in the
White House, challenges, achievements, and other related topics.
328.73 GIF
Giffords, Gabrielle D. (Gabrielle Dee). Gabby : a story of courage and hope. A
biography of Congresswoman Gabby Giffords and her husband, astronaut Mark
Kelly, covering their relationship, careers, childhood and families, and her
struggle to recover after an assassination attempt on her life.
338.7 JOB
Isaacson, Walter. Steve Jobs. A biography of Steve Jobs, focusing on his
intense personality and create success as the founder of Apple, based on
interviews with Jobs and more than a hundred, friends, family, and colleagues.
362.299 SHE
Sheff, Nic. We all fall down : living with addiction. The author describes his
experiences as a patient in a drug-rehabilitation facility and his relapses with
drugs and alcohol, and discusses what it is like to be a young person living with
addictions in the United States.
364.1 ROD
Rodriguez, Luis J.. It calls you back : an odyssey through love, addictions,
revolutions, and healing. The author describes his life after leaving gang life at
age eighteen, his struggles to overcome an addiction to heroin, and his search
for meaningful work.
364.1 SAN
Sanchez, Reymundo. My bloody life : the making of a Latin King.
Autobiographical account of the early life of a member of the Latin Kings of
Chicago.
364.15 DUG
Dugard, Jaycee Lee. A stolen life : a memoir. Jaycee Dugard chronicles the
eighteen years she spent in captivity, describing what happened after she was
kidnapped at age eleven in 1991, the abuse she endured, the birth of her two
daughters, the events leading up to her release, andvher struggle to adjust to life
once she was reunited with her family.
364.16 MAC
Mack, Stephanie Madoff. The end of normal : a wife's anguish, a widow's new
life. The widow of Mark Madoff and daughter-in-law of Bernard Madoff presents
an insider's account as an unsuspecting member of the family associated with
the Ponzi scheme, describing her idyllic marriage, her belief in her husband's
innocence, their ordeals at the height of the media frenzy, and her husband's
suicide.
371.1 WIC
Wickenden, Dorothy. Nothing daunted : the unexpected education of two society
girls in the West. The author tells the story of her grandmother Dorothy Woodruff
and Dorothy's friend Rosamond Underwood, two society girls in upstate New
York, who left home in the summer of 1916 to take jobs as teachers in the tiny
Colorado settlement of Elkhead, drawing from their letters home, interviews with
descendants, research, and trips to the region to reconstruct their adventures
and discuss their lasting influence on their young students and others they met.
590.73 MEE
Mee, Benjamin. We bought a zoo. The author relates his experiences buying
and moving into a rundown zoo in the English countryside and trying to rebuild it
with his family while taking care of his dying wife and two children.
636.737 ORL
Orlean, Susan. Rin Tin Tin : the life and the legend. An examination of the life
and legacy of Rin Tin Tin, an orphaned German shepherd that was found on a
World War I battlefield in France, taken home to California by a soldier, and
made into a movie star.
641.5 HAM
Hamilton, Gabrielle. Blood, bones & butter : the inadvertent education of a
reluctant chef. A memoir in which Gabrielle Hamilton discusses her childhood,
directionless youth, and her decision to open the Prune restaurant in New York's
East Village in spite of the fact that she had no previous experience as a chef.
782.42164 GAG
Morgan, Johnny. Gaga. A biography of singer Lady Gaga, exploring her
childhood, musical accomplishments, fashion, influence on popular culture, and
other aspects of her life; includes a large number of phonographs of her life and
career both on and off the stage.
792.02 LYN
Lynch, Jane. Happy accidents. Actress Jane Lynch shares the moments that
shaped her life, discussing her childhood in Illinois, her battle with alcoholism, her
early years as an actress, her efforts to get her life together, her successful film
roles, her part on the television show "Glee," her support of gay and lesbian
causes, her marriage, and other related topics.
792.702 DEG
DeGeneres, Ellen. Seriously--I'm kidding. Ellen DeGeneres recounts moments
from her life, discusses what it was like for her to become the host of a
syndicated talk show, provide the voice for Dory in "Finding Nemo," run in the
Boston Marathon, and more, and includes a list of pros and cons about making a
list of pros and cons.
796.323092 WES
West, Jerry. West by West : my charmed, tormented life. Basketball great Jerry
West tells his story—from his tough childhood in West Virginia, to his
unbelievable college success at West Virginia University, his 40-year career with
the Los Angeles Lakers, and his relationships with NBA legends.
796.522 DAV
Davis, Wade. Into the silence : the Great War, Mallory, and the conquest of
Everest. Presents the tale of George Mallory's fatal attempt to climb Mount
Everest in 1924, as well how his quest influenced and was influenced by world
events at the time.
917.47 GOP
Gopnik, Adam. Through the children's gate : a home in New York. Adam Gopnik
recounts the experiences he had after moving his family from Paris to Manhattan,
describing the family's struggle to adapt to urban life in the hectic city and rebuild
once more after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
917.8042 AMB
Ambrose, Stephen E. Undaunted courage : Meriwether Lewis, Thomas
Jefferson, and the opening of the American West. Chronicles the experiences of
Meriwether Lewis, the man chosen by President Jefferson to lead a voyage from
the Missouri River to the Pacific Ocean, discusses the experiences of those who
took part in the expedition, and tells of the leading political, scientific, and military
figures involved in the mapping of the American West.
920 BRA
Bragg, Georgia. How they croaked : the awful ends of the awfully famous.
Shares the sometimes gruesome details of the deaths of nineteen famous
historical figures, including King Tut, Pocahontas, George Washington, Edgar
Allan Poe, and Marie Curie.
940.53 MOO
Moorehead, Caroline. A train in winter : an extraordinary story of women,
friendship, and resistance in occupied France. Presents the stories of female
members of the French Resistance who, in January 1943, were hunted down by
the Gestapo and imprisoned in Auschwitz.
943.086 BRA
Görtemaker, Heike B.. Eva Braun : life with Hitler. Examines the life of Eva
Braun, the misstress and eventually wife of Adolf Hitler.
943.086 LAR
Larson, Erik. In the garden of beasts : love, terror, and an American family in
Hitler's Berlin. William E. Dodd becomes the American ambassador to Germany,
where he witnesses first-hand the atrocities of Hitler's regime and watches his
daughter fall in love with a Nazi officer.
947.063 CAT
Massie, Robert K.. Catherine the Great : portrait of a woman. A biography of
Russian empress Catherine the Great, discussing her childhood, her rise to the
throne, the values and beliefs she used to guide her rule over Russia, contacts
she had over the years, and more.
958.104 PFA
Pfarrer, Chuck. SEAL target Geronimo : the inside story of the mission to kill
Osama Bin Laden. A former assault element commander of SEAL Team Six
shares details of the raid to take down Osama bin Laden and the Navy SEALs
who conducted it.
959.704 NOR
Norton, B. H. (Bruce H.). Force recon diary, 1969. A riveting, true-to-life account
of survival, heroism and death in the elite Marine 3d Force Recon unit, one of
one two Marine units to receive the Valorous Unit Citation during the Vietnam
War. Doc Norton, leader of 3d Force Recon, recounts his team's experiences
behind enemy lines during the tense patrols, sudden ambushes and acts of
supreme sacrifice that occurred as they gathered valuable information about
NVA operations right from the source.
966.404 BEA
Beah, Ishmael. A long way gone : memoirs of a boy soldier. Ishmael Beah
describes his experiences after he was driven from his home by war in Sierra
Leone and picked up by the government army at the age of thirteen, serving as a
soldier for three years before being removed from fighting by UNICEF and
eventually moving to the United States.
973.931092 BUS
Kessler, Ronald. Laura Bush : an intimate portrait of the first lady. Chronicles the
life of First Lady Laura Bush, describing her personality, her life before meeting
George W. Bush, their relationship, and her influence on his decisions as
president.