Biographies You’ll Want to Own

If you’re looking for good summer reading material, you could do worse than shopping your way through these biographies recommended by Stacy McCain.

I like biographies, though I really couldn’t tell you exactly why. There is something very enjoyable about reading about how someone who achieved a certain amount of fame (or infamy) learned their lessons. Hopefully, when I read a biography, I learn the same lessons without having to live them myself.

I’d add a few good bios to the extensive list Stacy’s already given us. I’m a big fan of David McCullough’s work and can recommend Truman, John Adams, and Mornings on Horseback very highly.

I also really liked this biography of Johannes Brahms by Jan Swafford. Oddly enough, there seems to be no documented instance of his having burst into a family’s dining room with a grand piano. Andre Previn’s autobiography No Minor Chords: My Days in Hollywood is said to be quite good as is this recollection of the life of renowned film score composer Bernard Herrmann. I don’t own either one (hint, hint) but I’ve read nothing but good about both.

I’m excited to get my hands on the new biography of Yogi Berra by the same man who wrote this highly-acclaimed account of the life of Paul “Bear” Bryant. I heard an interview with the author recently (I believe it was a C-SPAN interview with Brian Lamb, though I can’t find it on C-SPAN’s site) that really sold it for me.

So those are my recommendations. Check a couple of them out for yourself and remember, when you buy them, use the links here. Every little bit helps!

UPDATE: Linked by Little Miss Attilla who wrote the post title I should have written. Well played!

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Tags: Books, Stacy McCain

Category: The Printed Page