Best Autobiography

[MikeK]

What's the best autobiography you've ever read? I ask because I find it so difficult to find autobiographies that I enjoy, so much so that I've just about given up on autobiographies alltogether. I think that the problem lies in the form itself - a very difficult kind of book to write; so difficult not to be either too easy or too hard on yourself, too self-aggrandizing or too self-debasing, too narcissistic or too removed, too difficult to find the right balance between those polarities. So please, in your answer mention why you like it. How was the author able to make it work?

For me the best autobiography is far and away Malcolm Muggeridge's two-volume "Chronicles of Wasted Time".

[ychustla6]

I recommend the Autobiograpy of Malcolm X. As told to Alex Haley by Malcolm X. I think if anyone begins to read the book without any prior judgement about the man and enters into his world with great curiosity and interest as to who he really was and what he was all about, this book could be one of the best autobiograpies you ever read. He was an extremely intelligent person and this book is very inspiring. It will surprise you.

[MikeK]

Interesting suggestion. The only problem for me would be what you mention in your third sentence. I'm not sure that I could come to it without any prior judgement about the man. Nonetheless, I think I might put it on my list and check it out some time. Thanks

[Zippy]

'A Moveable Feast' by Hemingway. Fantastic read about his time in Paris.

[MikeK]

Hemingway, huh, and the Lost Generation. Is this book very literary, dealing with the circle of writers around him and literature in general? Is it cultural, dealing primarily with Parisien life, or personal, dealing mostly with his own reflections and ruminations?

By the way, you might enjoy a book called "The Breaking Point: Hemingway, Dos Passos, and the Murder of Jose Robles". It's about Hemingway's relationship with Dos Passos with the backdrop of the Spanish Civil War. Very interesting.

[papayahed]

The current one I'm reading is "Madam Secretary". It's the story of Madaliene Albright. I found it fascinating, she has a perspective on world events and leaders that most people will never see. There is a picture Yasser Arafat watching her grandson practicing diving, we don't think of world leaders as having lives.

[Zippy]

Hemingway, huh, and the Lost Generation. Is this book very literary, dealing with the circle of writers around him and literature in general? Is it cultural, dealing primarily with Parisien life, or personal, dealing mostly with his own reflections and ruminations?

It's a mixture, but mostly his reflections and ruminations. The parts dealing with other writers that he met in Paris are probably the most interesting. Although one chapter 'A Matter of Measurement' is very strange indeed, dealing as it does with Hemingway's friend, F. Scott Fitzgerald's doubts about the size of his manhood! I can't think why Hemingway included this, but hey, it's entertaining anyway.

[manofletters]

I nominate John Cowper Powys' "Autobiography" hands down, but have never met anyone else who's read it.

[blp]

I recommend the Autobiograpy of Malcolm X. As told to Alex Haley by Malcolm X. I think if anyone begins to read the book without any prior judgement about the man and enters into his world with great curiosity and interest as to who he really was and what he was all about, this book could be one of the best autobiograpies you ever read. He was an extremely intelligent person and this book is very inspiring. It will surprise you.

I second this. A friend gave it to me recently and I couldn't put it down. Incredibly moving.

I've also recently enjoyed...

The Prime of Life by Simone De Beauvoir

Chronicles by Bob Dylan

All three of these are, in a large measure, books about the pleasure of reading and learning.

I also like

My Last Breath by Luis Bunuel

[beer good]

Dylan's autobiography (if you can even call it that) is indeed a great, if somewhat haphazard, read. As is Johnny Cash's. Stay away from Miles Davis', though; it took me months to be able to listen to his music with the same enjoyment again after I finished it. How could such a bitter man make such amazing music?

[Idril]

A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers is my favorite autobiography. It's not about anyone particularly famous but it is a great read, funny and tragic and incredibly touching.

[blp]

I forgot - The Invention of Solitude by Paul Auster I remember being superb - and I don't particularly like his other books.

[Guinivere]

For me it would be Moab is my Washpot, by the brilliant Stephen Fry. His writing is so funny and overall excellent. Known for his way with words and his vast knowledge, the story of his life, carear, and family is a must for Fry fans.

Oh and Golda Meir's autobiography was excellent as well. Especially her time as Prime Minister of Israel during the Munich Olympics massacre. A very insightful book.

[kelby_lake]

Autobiographies really annoy me! I can't bear to read any. I read This Side of Paradise, which was basically autobiographical, except it was 'i this' and 'i that'

[WICKES]

Stephen Fry 'Moab Is My Washpot' (may be regarded as a minor classic in years to come- beautifully written, funny and moving)

Robert Graves 'Goodbye To All That'

David Niven 'The Moon's A Baloon'