This month’s best new biographies and memoirs

Don’t miss the best new biographies and memoirs from the past month, hand-picked by our editors! Don’t miss this month’s biggest and buzziest biographies and memoirs — including a fascinating road trip through Canada from an acclaimed travel writer, a heart-wrenching new book from the author of Hidden Valley Road, and more!

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	A long-time New York Times food writer reminisces about her culinary life WHY IT’S READWORTHY: “A tasty memoir by a foodie who’s been on the scene for years and knows where the skeletons are buried — or simmered” (Kirkus Reviews) Touches on the evolution of the US restaurant scene, Fabricant’s experience with titans like Thomas Keller and Tom Colicchio, and time with her partner of over 60 years Martha Stewart says, “This beautifully written and honest assessment of her years with food is fun to read and important to consider” Includes a recipe after every chapter Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers A no-holds-barred account of a life in Hollywood WHY IT’S READWORTHY: Peer inside Michael Douglas’s life through the lens of his 12 most well-known films, including One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Fatal Attraction, and Wall Street The legendary actor and producer tells his story — from growing up in the shadow of his father, Kirk Douglas, to winning an Oscar at 31 to his marriage with Catherine Zeta-Jones “A blockbuster — intimate and uncensored, worthy of a bucket of popcorn with extra butter… As candid and intimate as it is feisty” (The New York Times) Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers A Wall Street Journal reporter wrongly imprisoned in Russia tells his harrowing story WHY IT’S READWORTHY: Highly anticipated by The New York Times Book Review, The Times, and Town & Country In 2023, Evan Gershkovich was taken by masked agents of Putin’s Federal Security Service. Interrogated for hours and charged with spying, he documented his 16 months in prison With praise from Erik Larson (“rich and suspenseful”) and Patrick Radden Keefe (“propulsive and astutely observed”) Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers Black women visionaries come to life on the page in this stunning group biography WHY IT’S READWORTHY: From the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Franchise Meet 13 women behind the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, from household names like Rosa Parks and Josephine Baker to lesser-known women such as choir director Eva Jessye and coordinator Anna Hedgeman “Chatelain lets us see the complexities of these women’s lives, feel their pain, and marvel at their ability to cut through the thicket of racism and sexism” (New York Times bestselling author Carol Anderson) Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers ‘A top-notch biography of a generational talent’ (Kirkus Reviews starred review) WHY IT’S READWORTHY: Discover new sides to Whitney Houston in this major biography based on access to her inner circle “A humanizing and wonderfully nuanced reexamination of a misunderstood musical icon” (Publishers Weekly starred review) Delves into the legendary singer’s confidence in her own talent, agency in her career, fluid sexuality, and more Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers The latest from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Hidden Valley Road WHY IT’S READWORTHY: “A gripping real-life horror story of dementia, love, and grief” (The New York Times) The heart-wrenching story of a large Pennsylvania family with a rare genetic mutation that causes early-onset dementia — resulting in drastic personality changes and forcing loved ones to make impossible choices With praise from NPR, People, The Atlantic, and more, this “outstanding” read (Science) also delves into the advancements being made toward a cure for frontotemporal dementia Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers Get to know Rome’s famed orator, one of classical history’s most important figures WHY IT’S READWORTHY: Follow Cicero’s turbulent journey to become a master of rhetoric and a statesman — an influential life ended in execution on Marc Antony’s order “Dramatic episodes are grounded in deep research” in this “engaging, valuable contribution” (Library Journal starred review) An ancient historian and academic paints an intimate and complex character portrait Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers Spend a year taking care of a 175-acre forest in Vermont WHY IT’S READWORTHY: A forester, ecologist, and thought leader in ecosystem stewardship chronicles a year of life in the forest Blending scientific observations with lyrical prose, this hopeful read touches on ecology, stewardship, and community Publishers Weekly calls it “an emotive reflection” and “a moving testament to how ecosystems can be restored to ‘their true capacity for life’” Learn more... MEDIA MENTION: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers Discover Canada anew with a ‘master of modern travel writing’ (The Wall Street Journal) WHY IT’S READWORTHY: A New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice Veteran travel writer Paul Theroux recounts tracing his Quebecois ancestry, road-tripping through small villages and bustling cities, and more “This sprawling account will captivate readers who yearn not just for escape but for experience” (Publishers Weekly) Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers ‘A quiet masterpiece about one man’s death — and life’ (The New York Times) WHY IT’S READWORTHY: Longlisted for the 2026 Women’s Prize for Nonfiction Acclaimed author Sarah Perry interweaves the story of losing her beloved father-in-law with meditations on death in this moving read “An extraordinary book. One that slips seamlessly from the metaphysical to the brute realities of the dying body” (The Sunday Times) Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers Meet a reclusive 20th-century heiress whose life was a mystery until now WHY IT’S READWORTHY: After Alice Delamar inherited her father’s mining fortune at age 23, she rubbed shoulders with elite artists — but who was she? Tucked away on a number of private estates, Delamar’s secrets were kept close until this “incredible contribution to biographical literature from a new author” (Booklist) Library Journal calls it an “exceptional, well-written, and well-researched biography of a mining heiress and arts patron” Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers What can plants teach us about the Black diaspora in America? WHY IT’S READWORTHY: A “passionate critique of Western colonization… This is illuminating” (Publishers Weekly) Trace plants that are considered invasive from Africa to the United States, becoming symbols for Black liberation in the process Jenny Odell, acclaimed author of How to Do Nothing, calls this “a carefully woven, lyrical meditation on the nature of belonging in a world built on legacies of exclusion” Learn more... MEDIA MENTION: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers
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