Adult Winter Reading: Meet Your Hero

In this moving, inspirational memoir, Ke Huy Quan paints a vivid self-portrait, telling both heart-wrenching and funny stories of his early rise, slow fall from the spotlight, the resilience that kept him going through his darkest times, and his eventual resurrection on one of the biggest stages in Hollywood.

José Andrés is a chef, an entrepreneur, an author, a television host, and a tireless humanitarian leader across the globe. A Michelin-starred chef with more than forty restaurants, José is also the founder of World Central Kitchen, a nonprofit dedicated to feeding the hungry in the wake of natural and man-made disasters. His lifetime of experience—from kitchens to conflict zones—has given him a wealth of stories and teachable moments that are funny, touching, and insightful.

Crenshaw, civil rights scholar and Black feminist, founded the high-profile critical race theory movement and coined the term “intersectionality.” Growing up in Canton, Ohio, Crenshaw personally experienced the turbulent civil rights era and the ongoing, erratic fight for racial and gender equality. Crenshaw describes how busing and prejudicial treatment in school launched her on the path toward becoming a fearless “backtalker,” activist, and crusader.

From his breakout part as Dr. Frank-N-Furter in The Rocky Horror Picture Show to movie, Broadway, and West End roles, Tim Curry redefined what it meant to be a “character actor,” portraying heroes and villains alike with complexity, nuance, and a genuine understanding of human darkness. In his memoir, Curry takes readers behind-the-scenes of his rise to fame from his early beginnings to when he hit the stage for the first time, and goes in-depth about working on some of the most emblematic works of the 20th century.

Fab 5 Freddy doesn’t just have a great story – he is the story. Everybody’s Fly is a fast-moving, all-access pass to Fred’s extraordinary life – one that begins in a book- and jazz-filled Brooklyn home and takes us deep into New York’s creative explosions from the 1970s into the 1990s. He didn’t just shape culture, he synthesized it – from highbrow to street, the Bronx to the East Village, punk to rap, Warhol to Wild Style.

This biography tells the overlapping stories of Baldwin’s most sustaining intimate and artistic relationships: with his mentor, the Black American painter Beauford Delaney; with his lover and muse, the Swiss painter Lucien Happersberger; and with his collaborators, the famed Turkish actor Engin Cezzar and the iconoclastic French artist Yoran Cazac.

How does one of the greatest storytellers of our time write her own life? The long-awaited memoir from Margaret Atwood, author of The Handmaid’s Tale and The Testaments and one of our most lauded and influential cultural figures, unfolds her story. As we travel with her along the course of her life, more and more is revealed about her writing, the connections between real life and art, and the workings of one of our greatest imaginations.

The highly anticipated memoir from the legendary author of The God of Small Things and The Ministry of Utmost Happiness traces the complex relationship with her mother, Mary Roy, a fierce and formidable force who shaped her life both as a woman and a writer.

In this nuanced portrait of Mark Twain, biographer Ron Chernow brings his considerable powers to bear on a man who shamelessly sought fame and fortune, and crafted his persona with meticulous care. In this tribute to the writer’s talent and humanity, Chernow reveals the magnificent and often maddening life of one of the most original characters in American history.

Through her personal experiences and reflections, the former prime minister of New Zealand is a model for anyone who has ever doubted themselves, or has aspired to lead with compassion, conviction, and courage.

In this deeply personal book, Isabel Allende delves into her creative process, reflecting on nearly half a century of writing that has captivated millions of readers worldwide. She offers readers an intimate glimpse into her creative world, where stories take shape through intuition, discipline, and a deep connection to the human experience.

In her spare and lyrical memoir, Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Geraldine Brooks (March) details her delayed grieving process after the sudden death of her husband in 2019.