Collection: Biography & Memoir

National Bestseller

NPR Best Book of the Year

"Not all superheroes wear capes, and Elizebeth Smith Friedman should be the subject of a future Wonder Woman movie." --The New York Times

Joining the ranks of Hidden Figures and In the Garden of Beasts, the incredible true story of the greatest codebreaking duo that ever lived, an American woman and her husband who invented the modern science of cryptology together and used it to confront the evils of their time, solving puzzles that unmasked Nazi spies and helped win World War II.

In 1916, at the height of World War I, brilliant Shakespeare expert Elizebeth Smith went to work for an eccentric tycoon on his estate outside Chicago. The tycoon had close ties to the U.S. government, and he soon asked Elizebeth to apply her language skills to an exciting new venture: code-breaking. There she met the man who would become her husband, groundbreaking cryptologist William Friedman. Though she and Friedman are in many ways the "Adam and Eve" of the NSA, Elizebeth's story, incredibly, has never been told.

In The Woman Who Smashed Codes, Jason Fagone chronicles the life of this extraordinary woman, who played an integral role in our nation's history for forty years. After World War I, Smith used her talents to catch gangsters and smugglers during Prohibition, then accepted a covert mission to discover and expose Nazi spy rings that were spreading like wildfire across South America, advancing ever closer to the United States. As World War II raged, Elizebeth fought a highly classified battle of wits against Hitler's Reich, cracking multiple versions of the Enigma machine used by German spies. Meanwhile, inside an Army vault in Washington, William worked furiously to break Purple, the Japanese version of Enigma--and eventually succeeded, at a terrible cost to his personal life.

Fagone unveils America's code-breaking history through the prism of Smith's life, bringing into focus the unforgettable events and colorful personalities that would help shape modern intelligence. Blending the lively pace and compelling detail that are the hallmarks of Erik Larson's bestsellers with the atmosphere and intensity of The Imitation Game, The Woman Who Smashed Codes is page-turning popular history at its finest.

Boston Bruins fans, rejoice!

If you bleed the black and gold of the Big Bad Bruins, you've got to get The Ultimate Boston Bruins Trivia Book! It's chapter after chapter of incredible trivia, covering all the aspects any Bruins fan would want to read about.

Dig into the stories behind the team's heated rivalries, chuckle at the ingenious nicknames earned by the players, and marvel at the records set and awards won by some of the best athletes Boston has ever seen! In this book, you'll savor all the fascinating facts, like:

• Which Bruin invented goalie nets, bevelled pucks, and skate guards.
• Who was the only man to play for the Bruins, Celtics, AND Red Sox.
• Which Bruin threatened to knock out half of Rocket Richard's teeth.
• How players became known as Mr. Zero, Ol' Blood & Guts, and the Merlot Line.
• Which Hall of Fame goalie was drafted by the Bruins...without realizing it for a decade.

Whether you're re-living old glories through the team's heydays or freshly experiencing all of these colorful details, you're sure to enrich your fandom by testing yourself with multiple choice questions, true or false factoids, and quirky anecdotes about all the biggest movers and shakers from Bruins history.

From Orr to Chara, Espo to Bergeron, and Brimsek to Rask, it's all here in a page-turning dive into the world of the oldest American team in the NHL! If you want to impress your family and friends with your die-hard knowledge of the Boston Bruins, this is the book that will help you prove it...and maybe learn a few things along the way.

A powerful memoir from the University of Kentucky basketball legend, NBA veteran, and social media influencer about his recovery from addiction.

He is considered by many the greatest basketball player ever produced by the hoops-crazy state of Kentucky. In two years at the University of Kentucky, he scored over 1,000 points, led the Wildcats to a Sweet Sixteen appearance and was nicknamed "King Rex." The first player ever drafted by the Charlotte Hornets, he spent twelve seasons in the NBA, dazzling in dunk contests and sinking one of the most memorable buzzer-beaters in league history. But by the end of his career, Rex Chapman was harboring a destructive secret.

Years before America's opioid crisis would become national news, Chapman developed a dependency on Vicodin and Oxycontin, ultimately ingesting fifty painkillers a day. In addition, he developed a severe gambling addiction, once nearly losing $400,000 at a Las Vegas blackjack table. All this would cost him his family as well as most of the $40 million fortune he'd made in basketball, leaving him to live in his car and shoplift to support his addictions. Only when he was arrested--and his mugshot made national news--did he finally commit to getting clean.

In It's Hard for Me to Live With Me, Chapman--who has amassed millions of social media followers for his relatable and uplifting posts--tells the story of his addiction and recovery in unflinching detail. With equal frankness, he describes his history with depression; the racism he witnessed growing up and how that shaped his outspokenness on matters of social justice; and his complex and volatile relationship with his father, also a former professional basketball player. Cowritten with New York Times bestselling author Seth Davis, Chapman's memoir is an equally devastating and inspiring story about the human struggle for self-acceptance.

Attention Chiefs Nation!

Few NFL Teams have a more historic, star-studded tradition than the Chiefs. From the early days as the Dallas Texans in the AFL, to the glory days in the NFL in Kansas City, the Chiefs have had no shortage of characters throughout the years. All of those legendary players are detailed, along with a whole lot more, in the new Ultimate Kansas City Chiefs Trivia Book.

Throughout this thrilling read, you'll find amazing anecdotes, behind-the-scenes stories, incredible statistics, and a whole lot more, including:

• Why a Chiefs linebacker once beat up a scout in the stadium parking lot
• Which Kansas City star was afraid of the team's mascot
• Who hit opponents so hard that the team added padding to the outside of his helmet
• How Chiefs units earned nicknames like the "Redwood Forest" and the "Legion of Zoom"
• Which Chiefs player married a native Kansan who showcased her Chiefs fandom while winning $1 million on a reality TV show

It's all here in a fascinating book that any proud Kansas City fan must own. From Hank Stram to Patrick Mahomes and everything in between, this book is full of entertaining details that will make you the envy of your friends every Sunday and prove once and for all who the biggest fan of the Kansas City Chiefs really is.

Test your knowledge with hundreds of clever facts, multiple-choice and true-or-false questions that will set the record straight in any football argument. Never be caught without the answer you need in a sports debate again.

This book has all the incredible records, hilarious quotations, and unforgettable stories that will truly make up the ultimate Kansas City Chiefs fan.

Doris Kearns Goodwin's Pulitzer Prize-winning classic about the relationship between Franklin D. Roosevelt and Eleanor Roosevelt, and how it shaped the nation while steering it through the Great Depression and the outset of World War II.

With an extraordinary collection of details, Goodwin masterfully weaves together a striking number of story lines--Eleanor and Franklin's marriage and remarkable partnership, Eleanor's life as First Lady, and FDR's White House and its impact on America as well as on a world at war. Goodwin effectively melds these details and stories into an unforgettable and intimate portrait of Eleanor and Franklin Roosevelt and of the time during which a new, modern America was born.

Offers a rare view into the world of a Zulu shaman

- Includes 14 Zulu myths as told by a traditional Zulu story keeper

- Reveals Zulu shamanic practices, including healing techniques, dreamwork, oracles, prophecy, and interactions with star beings

In this rare window into Zulu mysticism, Vusamazulu Credo Mutwa breaks the bonds of traditional silence to share his personal experiences as a sangoma--a Zulu shaman. Set against the backdrop of post-colonial South Africa, Zulu Shaman relays the first-person accounts of an African healer and reveals the cosmology of the Zulu.

Mutwa begins with the compelling story of his personal journey as an English-trained Christian schoolteacher who receives a calling to follow in his grandfather's footsteps as a shaman and keeper of folklore. He then tells the stories of his ancestors, including creation myths; how evil came to the world; the adventures of the trickster god Kintu; and Zulu relations with the "fiery visitors," whom he likens to extraterrestrials. In an attempt to preserve the knowledge of his ancestors and encourage his vision of a world united in peace and harmony, Mutwa also shares previously guarded secrets of Zulu healing and spiritual practices: including the curing power of the sangoma and the psychic powers of his people.

Discover how a young girl who was the star of her school's debate team became a federal jurist and the first Black woman to sit on the United States Supreme Court.

Presenting Who HQ Now: an exciting addition to the #1 New York Times Best-Selling Who Was? series!

Born in Washington, DC, in 1970, and raised in Miami, Florida, Ketanji Brown Jackson developed an interest in law and politics at an early age. As a preschooler, she sat with her father and watched him complete his law school assignments. And even though some people, including a school guidance counselor, discouraged Ketanji from aiming high, she proved them wrong and graduated with honors from Harvard Law School. She went on to serve on the U.S. District Court in 2013 and the United States Court of Appeals in 2021 before making history and becoming the first Black woman to be confirmed to the United States Supreme Court in 2022.

Learn more about Ketanji Brown Jackson's story in this addition to the New York Times bestselling series.

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER AND A NEW YORK TIMES CRITICS' PICK

"Thrilling . . . [told] with gonzo élan . . . When the sommelier and blogger Madeline Puckette writes that this book is the Kitchen Confidential of the wine world, she's not wrong, though Bill Buford's Heat is probably a shade closer." --Jennifer Senior, The New York Times

Professional journalist and amateur drinker Bianca Bosker didn't know much about wine--until she discovered an alternate universe where taste reigns supreme, a world of elite sommeliers who dedicate their lives to the pursuit of flavor. Astounded by their fervor and seemingly superhuman sensory powers, she set out to uncover what drove their obsession, and whether she, too, could become a "cork dork."

With boundless curiosity, humor, and a healthy dose of skepticism, Bosker takes the reader inside underground tasting groups, exclusive New York City restaurants, California mass-market wine factories, and even a neuroscientist's fMRI machine as she attempts to answer the most nagging question of all: what's the big deal about wine? What she learns will change the way you drink wine--and, perhaps, the way you live--forever.

"Think: Eat, Pray, Love meets Somm." --theSkimm

"As informative as it is, well, intoxicating." --Fortune

Growing up in Damascus, the pool was Yusra Mardini's happy place. She learned to swim before she could walk. And with swimming came a dream--to compete in the Olympic games.

But when war came to Syria, Yusra's home--and her pool--were no longer safe. Yusra and her sister set out on a harrowing journey, crossing the sea in search of safety.

In the inspirational tale that follows, Yusra's courageous spirit shines. Crammed on a too-small refugee boat, disaster strikes when the boat's motor breaks! Scared but determined, Yusra plunges into the water and starts swimming.

Infused with hope, Yusra's story encourages readers to pursue their own dreams, revealing how she met waves of danger with strength and perseverance. One breath at a time.

Readers will dive into this courageous tale of an athlete, refugee, and hero who inspired the world with her resolve to pursue her Olympic dream.

"An ardent fan letter from Hornby that makes you want to re-read Great Expectations while listening to Sign o' the Times." --Vogue

From the bestselling author of Just Like You, High Fidelity, and Fever Pitch, a short, warm, and entertaining book about art, creativity, and the unlikely similarities between Victorian novelist Charles Dickens and modern American rock star Prince

Every so often, a pairing comes along that seems completely unlikely--until it's not. Peanut butter and jelly, Dennis Rodman and Kim Jong Un, ducks and puppies, and now: Dickens and Prince.

Equipped with a fan's admiration and his trademark humor and wit, Nick Hornby invites us into his latest obsession: the cosmic link between two unlikely artists, geniuses in their own rights, spanning race, class, and centuries--each of whom electrified their different disciplines and whose legacy resounded far beyond their own time.

When Prince's 1987 record Sign o' the Times was rereleased in 2020, the iconic album now came with dozens of songs that weren't on the original-- Prince was endlessly prolific, recording 102 songs in 1986 alone. In awe, Hornby began to wonder, Who else ever produced this much? Who else ever worked that way? He soon found his answer in Victorian novelist and social critic Charles Dickens, who died more than a hundred years before Prince began making music.

Examining the two artists' personal tragedies, social statuses, boundless productivity, and other parallels, both humorous and haunting, Hornby shows how these two unlikely men from different centuries "lit up the world." In the process, he creates a lively, stimulating rumination on the creativity, flamboyance, discipline, and soul it takes to produce great art.

Pelé--legendary footballer and humanitarian--explores the sport's recent history and shares his most inspiring experiences, heartwarming stories, and hard-won wisdom.

"I know in my heart that soccer was good to me, and great to the world....I saw, time and again, how the sport improved countless millions of lives, both on and off the field. For me, at least, that's why soccer matters."

The world's most popular sport goes by many names--soccer, football, the beautiful game--but fans have always agreed on one thing: The greatest player of all time was Pelé. Before Messi, before Ronaldo, before Beckham, Pelé had a stunning twenty-year career, where he was heralded as an international treasure. His accomplishments on the field proved to be pure magic: an unprecedented three World Cup championships and the all-time scoring record, with 1,283 goals. Since retiring, he has traveled the world as soccer's global ambassador, relentlessly promoting the positive ways soccer can transform young men and women, struggling communities, even entire nations.

This is Pelé's legacy, his way of passing on everything he's learned and inspiring a new generation. In Why Soccer Matters, Pelé details his ambitious goals for the future of the sport and, by extension, the world.

This informative and inspiring picture book by acclaimed author Kim Rogers (Wichita), with striking artwork by debut illustrator Bobby Von Martin (Choctaw), celebrates the achievements of Clarence Tinker, a member of the Osage Nation who became the first Native American major general.

Clarence Tinker always knew that he wanted to do something extraordinary. Something adventurous. Something that made a difference in the world.

But as a member of the Osage Nation at the turn of the twentieth century, there were a lot of obstacles that he had to face to achieve his dreams. When he was a child, Clarence was taken away from his family and community. He was forced to attend a prisonlike boarding school, like many other Native children of his generation. There, he wasn't able to speak his language or practice his Osage customs.

Still, Clarence kept his dream close to his heart and joined the US Army with the goal of becoming an officer. Though he was treading an unfamiliar path, he worked hard and never forgot his Osage values and traditions that, ultimately, paved his way to success.

I Am Osage, the first nonfiction project from the Heartdrum imprint, combines gorgeous, vibrant artwork with a stirring text that celebrates an unsung hero while also shedding light on significant American history.

Features an author's note and timeline.

*INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER*

WITH A FOREWORD BY SIR BEN KINGSLEY

A powerful memoir by one of the youngest survivors of Auschwitz, Tova Friedman, following her childhood growing up during the Holocaust and surviving a string of near-death experiences in a Jewish ghetto, a Nazi labor camp, and Auschwitz.

"I am a survivor. That comes with a survivor's obligation to represent one and a half million Jewish children murdered by the Nazis. They cannot speak. So I must speak on their behalf."

Tova Friedman was one of the youngest people to emerge from Auschwitz. After surviving the liquidation of the Jewish ghetto in Central Poland where she lived as a toddler, Tova was four when she and her parents were sent to a Nazi labour camp, and almost six when she and her mother were forced into a packed cattle truck and sent to Auschwitz II, also known as the Birkenau extermination camp, while her father was transported to Dachau.

During six months of incarceration in Birkenau, Tova witnessed atrocities that she could never forget, and experienced numerous escapes from death. She is one of a handful of Jews to have entered a gas chamber and lived to tell the tale.

As Nazi killing squads roamed Birkenau before abandoning the camp in January 1945, Tova and her mother hid among corpses. After being liberated by the Russians they made their way back to their hometown in Poland. Eventually Tova's father tracked them down and the family was reunited.

In The Daughter of Auschwitz, Tova immortalizes what she saw, to keep the story of the Holocaust alive, at a time when it's in danger of fading from memory. She has used those memories that have shaped her life to honour the victims. Written with award-winning former war reporter Malcolm Brabant, this is an extremely important book. Brabant's meticulous research has helped Tova recall her experiences in searing detail. Together they have painstakingly recreated Tova's extraordinary story about the world's worst ever crime.

This "comforting...thoughtful" (The Washington Post) guide to maintaining a high quality of life--from resilient old age to the first inklings of a serious illness to the final breath--by the New York Times bestselling author of Knocking on Heaven's Door is a "roadmap to the end that combines medical, practical, and spiritual guidance" (The Boston Globe).

"A common sense path to define what a 'good' death looks like" (USA TODAY), The Art of Dying Well is about living as well as possible for as long as possible and adapting successfully to change. Packed with extraordinarily helpful insights and inspiring true stories, award-winning journalist Katy Butler shows how to thrive in later life (even when coping with a chronic medical condition), how to get the best from our health system, and how to make your own "good death" more likely. Butler explains how to successfully age in place, why to pick a younger doctor and how to have an honest conversation with them, when not to call 911, and how to make your death a sacred rite of passage rather than a medical event. This handbook of preparations--practical, communal, physical, and spiritual--will help you make the most of your remaining time, be it decades, years, or months.

Based on Butler's experience caring for aging parents, and hundreds of interviews with people who have successfully navigated our fragmented health system and helped their loved ones have good deaths, The Art of Dying Well also draws on the expertise of national leaders in family medicine, palliative care, geriatrics, oncology, and hospice. This "empowering guide clearly outlines the steps necessary to prepare for a beautiful death without fear" (Shelf Awareness).

In this book from the critically acclaimed, multimillion-copy best-selling Little People, BIG DREAMS series, discover the life of Neil Armstrong, the first person to walk on the moon.

Little Neil's dreams took flight when he rode on his first airplane as a child. After studying aeronautical engineering and time spent in the Navy, he became a pilot. From there, he was selected to take a trip to where no human had gone before--the moon! Along with his team, Buzz and Mike, he was the captain of the Apollo 11. And Neil took a giant step for humankind as the first person to ever step onto the surface of the moon. This inspiring book features stylish and quirky illustrations and extra facts at the back, including a biographical timeline with historical photos and a detailed profile of the legendary astronaut.

Little People, BIG DREAMS is a best-selling biography series for kids that explores the lives of outstanding people, from designers and artists to scientists and activists. All of them achieved incredible things, yet each began life as a child with a dream.

This empowering series of books offers inspiring messages to children of all ages, in a range of formats. The board books are told in simple sentences, perfect for reading aloud to babies and toddlers. The hardcover and paperback versions present expanded stories for beginning readers. With rewritten text for older children, the treasuries each bring together a multitude of dreamers in a single volume. You can also collect a selection of the books by theme in boxed gift sets. Activity books and a journal provide even more ways to make the lives of these role models accessible to children.

Inspire the next generation of outstanding people who will change the world with Little People, BIG DREAMS!

Groundbreaking chef Charlie Trotter offers up the beloved recipes that launched his eponymous Chicago restaurant into stardom, utilizing fresh ingredients, classic technique, and innovative combinations.

This is the book that helped to launch a thousand taste sensations. By now widely acknowledged as one of the hottest chefs of the nineties, Chicago's award-winning Charlie Trotter is noted for his inventiveness and imagination in the preparation and presentation of food. This stunning feat of culinary artistry first presented Trotter's unique cuisine in what has become his trademark opulent style.