Best Memoirs To Read From Interesting Characters

Some memoirs are a complete no go, others introduce you to really interesting characters or are written in really unique ways. We've put together a list of the best memoirs to read if you are looking to understand celebrities, society and fame in a new way. Laugh a long with Miriam Margolyes, be courageous with Caitlyn Jenner and understand trauma with Jennette McCurdy.

This Much is True - Miriam Margolyes

National treasure and award-winning performer Miriam Margolyes has chosen to finally share her incredible life story at the age of 80. And compared to any role she has portrayed, it is much richer and stranger.

Learn how her curly hair resulted from being conceived during an air raid, what tricks made her the naughtiest student ever at Oxford High School, how she ended up posing naked for Augustus John at the age of 17, getting sent to Coventry by Monty Python and the Goodies, and swearing on University Challenge (she was the first woman to say F*** on TV).

'There's never been a memoir so packed with eye-popping, hilarious and shockingly candid stories.' - Daily Mail

I’m Glad My Mom Died - Jennette McCurdy

iCarly and Sam & Cat star Jennette McCurdy's painful and comic memoir about her struggles as a former child actor, including eating disorders, addiction, and a difficult relationship with her controlling mother, and how she regained control of her life. When Jennette McCurdy went to her first acting audition, she was six years old. Jennette would do anything in order meet her mother's wish for her one and only daughter to achieve fame. 

As a result Jennette suffered with anxiety, shame, and self-loathing; she develops eating disorders, addictions, and has a string of unhealthful relationships. Finally, after discovering therapy and abandoning acting, Jennette starts to recover and makes a life-changing decision.

'A coming-of-age story that is alternately harrowing and mordantly funny.' - The New York Times

Beyond The Wand - Tom Felton

Tom Felton's adolescence was anything but typical, going from Borrower to Wizard. When he was only twelve years old, he was thrust into the spotlight when he was cast as the legendary Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter films.

Tom discusses his childhood growing up on screen and becoming a member of the wizarding world with honesty and his unique brand of humour. He discusses his big break, what it was truly like to film, the lifelong friendships he developed while working on the franchise for ten years; as well as the highs and lows of celebrity, and the realities of adjusting to adult life once the filming was over.

The Secrets of My Life - Caitlyn Jenner

Caitlyn speaks of her confusion as a teenager, Bruce Jenner's momentary Olympic glory, and the pressure of always being referred to as the pinnacle of manhood with sadness and humour.

She discusses how she went to tremendous lengths to tell lies to hide her true nature as she grew older, which made her feel ashamed and deceptive.

She also discusses her public life, her broken marriages, her strained connections with her children. As well as what made her decide to change her name to Caitlyn, and how the transgender community and the rest of the world have accepted her new identity. This book finally reveals the true and authentic Caitlyn.

'Her refusal of bullshit is refreshing and sometimes eye-popping.' - New Statesman

Talking As Fast As I Can - Lauren Graham

Lauren Graham takes a minute to pause and reflect on her life in Talking As Fast As I Can. She shares hilarious anecdotes about growing up, beginning her acting career, and, years later, sitting in her trailer on the Parenthood set and wondering, "Did you, um, make it?".

Graham comments about playing the quick-witted Lorelai Gilmore while watching a marathon of Gilmore Girls in "What It Was Like, Part One." In the article "What It Was Like, Part Two," she describes how it felt to take on the role once more after nine years and what it has meant to her.

Living History - Hillary Rodham Clinton

In a forthright, political, and news-making memoir, one of America's most influential and intelligent women looks back on her eight years as First Lady. Hillary Rodham Clinton reimagined the role of First Lady throughout her husband's two presidential terms. Her book tells the extraordinary story of how this highly private woman not only survived, but also triumphed.

Hillary Clinton recalls the difficult process through which she learned to define herself as a wife, a mother, and a capable politician in her own right. She also shares the unseen narrative of her time in the White House. She  was the only First Lady to directly influence domestic policy; she served as an unofficial global ambassador for democracy and human rights; and she assisted in preserving the Presidency through the impeachment crisis.

Watching Neighbours Twice A Day: How '90s TV (Almost) Prepared Me For Life - Josh Widdicombe

Josh Widdicombe describes his unique rural upbringing in his debut memoir, a life he didn't realise was peculiar until he left home and began telling others about it. In addition to just having four classmates in his class at school, he also lived with a family who didn't have a key and didn't bother to lock their front door. 

Each chapter begins with a different 90s tv show, making the book a combination of childhood memoir and comedic history of the decade's media and culture. It will cover everything from Josh's conviction that Mr. Blobby is one of the greatest actors ever to the BBC persuading him that Michael Parkinson had been possessed by a ghost.

It is the tale of the passing of an era, the final example in which watching television together as a family and as a country was a shared activity. 

'A wonderful blend of nostalgia, hilarity and personal anecdotes that only Josh Widdicombe could deliver' - James Acaster

Ten Steps to Nanette - Hannah Gadsby

With her blunt honesty and her talent to elicit both laughter and stress in the same breath, Hannah Gadsby's original stand-up special Nanette became an internet sensation. Although she may have appeared to become famous all over the world overnight, her journey from an open mic to the international stage was everything from simple.

Ten Steps to Nanette follows Gadsby's development as a queer person from Tasmania—where homosexuality was illegal until 1997—to her continuously shifting connection with comedy, to her struggle with late-life diagnoses of autism and ADHD, and finally to the core of Nanette—the giving up of self-deprecation, the rejection of sexism, and the moral importance of telling the truth.

'Hannah is a Promethean force, a revolutionary talent... This hilarious, touching, and sometimes tragic book is all about where her fires were lit.' - Emma Thompson

Everything You Really Need To Know About Politics - My Life As An MP - Jess Phillips

The inner workings of Westminster are frequently a mystery to an outsider, from the extraordinary to the absurd. In this essay, Jess Phillips exposes the structures and laws that control us all and reveals the true state of British politics in her trademark unique fashion.

She will describe how to stand for election, change a law, serve her constituency, negotiate with her fellow MPs, and much more, drawing on her experience as an MP. Anyone who is uncertain about the way politics works will certainly benefit from reading this book.

Gotta Get Theroux This: My Life and Strange Times In Television - Louis Theroux

Louis Theroux, the renowned documentary filmmaker, offers an amusing, sensitive, and enjoyable account of his life and strange moments in television.

From his anxious youth to his unexpectedly lucrative career, Louis takes the reader on a joyous journey in this book. Accepting the BBC's offer of his own show with nervousness, he went on to develop an award-winning documentary style that saw him delve into the strange worlds of paranoid US militias and top secret pro wrestlers, get under the skin of entertainers like Chris Eubank and Max Clifford, and examine gang activity in San Quentin prison, all the while wondering whether the same traits that make him good at tv programmes might also make him terrible at life.

'If you are a fan of Louis Theroux's self-deprecating humour and relaxed broadcasting style, you will enjoy this honest and soul-searching account of his life so far.' - Sunday Express

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