Biography & memoir from 2021

Lovers Dreamers Fighters

Lo Carmen

A beautiful and moving memoir about passion, creativity and fearlessness from one of Australia’s true creatives, singer/songwriter Lo Carmen, inspired by the lives and careers of other remarkable Australian women…

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Hardback

Found, Wanting

Natasha Sholl

This is a book for anyone who has ever loved someone who has died. Or who has ever loved someone. Because grief is the language of love, after all.

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Paperback

Missing

Tom Patterson

Beautifully written and affecting, this is the true story of a young man caught in a world he can’t control and how he finds a way to survive

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Paperback

Delia Akeley and the Monkey

Iain McCalman

By telling this story, Iain McCalman illuminates much about human-animal relations and the tyranny of gender inequality. He reinstates a twentieth century story of a dedicated amateur primatologist and her…

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Hardback

Allegorizings

Jan Morris

Published one year on from her death, at the age of ninety-four, Jan Morris’ Allegorizings is the final despatch from one of the greatest chroniclers of the Twentieth Century.

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Paperback

Lost & Found: A Memoir

Kathryn Schulz

Pulitzer Prize-winning New Yorker writer tells the story of losing her father and finding the love of her life in this profound meditation on love, grief and joy.

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Paperback

Don’t Call Us Carnies: We are Showies and Damn Proud of It

Norma Brophy,Wendy Stuart

While many Australian teenagers have dreamed of joining a travelling circus, Norma Brophy wanted to run away from it. In this vibrant, uproarious and poignant memoir, multi-talented showbiz matriarch Norma…

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Hardback

Mala’s Cat

Mala Kacenberg

A moving Holocaust memoir about the unlikely friendship between a young Jewish girl and a stray cat and their survival against the odds

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Paperback

Why Karen Carpenter Matters

Karen Tongson

A radical, literary and intimate insight into one of the twentieth century’s most vital vocalists.

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Paperback

Bypass: The Story of a Road

Michael McGirr

A classic in its own right, this personal and public memoir by one of Australia’s most observant and genial writers graces our bookshelves once again.

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Paperback

Punch Me Up to the Gods: A Memoir

Brian Broome

A poetic and raw coming-of-age memoir in essays about blackness, masculinity, and addiction

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Hardback

Renegades: Born in the USA

Barack Obama,Bruce Springsteen

Two long-time friends share an intimate and urgent conversation about life, music and their enduring love of America, with all its challenges and contradictions, in this stunningly-produced expansion of their…

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Mothers, Fathers, and Others: New Essays

Siri Hustvedt

Feminist philosophy meets family memoir in a fresh essay collection by the award-winning essayist and novelist Siri Hustvedt, author of the bestselling What I Loved and Booker Prize-longlisted The Blazing…

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Paperback

Baggage: Tales from a Fully Packed Life

Alan Cumming

A joyous and poignant book about the world of professional acting, the messiness of life and how every experience - good or bad - shapes who you are, from the…

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Paperback

These Precious Days

Ann Patchett

An irresistible collection of essays and memoir from the internationally bestselling, Women’s Prize-winning author of The Dutch House

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Hardback

Beggars Belief: Stories from Gerald’s Bar

Gerald Diffey,Max Allen

A collection of funny, poignant, insightful and just plain ludicrous stories from Gerald Diffey’s life in kitchens and behind bars

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Paperback

Being Britney: Pieces of a Modern Icon

Jennifer Otter Bickerdike

A timely and unique portrait of one of music’s most talented, troubled and talked-about modern icons, re-examining the prolific career, publicised life and continued cultural relevance of pop princess Britney…

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Growing Up in Australia

Black Inc.

This special collection is the perfect introduction to Black Inc.‘s definitive ‘Growing Up’ series

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Hardback

Seeking Asylum: Our Stories

Asylum Seeker Resource Centre

The voices Australia should hear

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Paperback

Girl, Transcending: Becoming the Woman I Was Born to Be

AJ Clementine

Real-world life lessons about acknowledging and celebrating all the things that make you unique, from TikTok sensation, model and LGBTQI+ advocate, AJ Clementine.

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Hardback

Dante

Alessandro Barbero

A new biography of Dante in time for the 700th anniversary of his death.

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Paperback

Leonard Cohen: The Mystical Roots of Genius

Harry Freedman

A spellbinding and unorthodox look into the life of Leonard Cohen, and the way his experiences with religion and spirituality produced one of the greatest musicians of our time.

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Paperback

Down and Out in England and Italy

Alberto Prunetti

A wry, filthy, and unputdownable look at class and national identity today.

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Eruption: The Eddie Van Halen Story

Paul Brannigan

Marking the first anniversary of Eddie Van Halen’s sad early death, a searching, affectionate and in-depth look at the life and legends of this true musical virtuoso.

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Hardback

Murakami T: The T-Shirts I Love

Haruki Murakami

The international literary icon opens his eclectic closet: Here are photographs of Murakami’s extensive and personal T-shirt collection, accompanied by essays that reveal a side of the writer rarely seen…

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Paperback

Theroux the Keyhole: Dispatches from a Grounded Documentary Maker

Louis Theroux

Step inside Louis’ life like never before as he turns his critical eye on himself, his home, and family and tries to make sense of our weird and sometimes scary…

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Hardback

William Cooper: An Aboriginal Life Story

Bain Attwood

An important tribute to the work and life of an extraordinary Aboriginal activist

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Hardback

The Young H.G. Wells: Changing the World

Claire Tomalin

A fascinating journey into the early life of H.G. Wells, the father of science fiction, from one of Britain’s best biographers

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Paperback

Caught in the Act: A Memoir by Courtney Act

Shane Jenek

Caught in the Act is about our journey towards understanding gender, sexuality and identity. It’s an often hilarious and at times heartbreaking memoir from a beloved drag and entertainment icon.

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Paperback

The Game: A Portrait of Scott Morrison

Sean Kelly

What happens when the prime minister views politics only as a game?

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Hardback

Love Stories

Trent Dalton

Trent Dalton, Australia’s best-loved writer, goes out into the world and asks a simple, direct question: ‘Can you please tell me a love story?

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Hardback

The Book of Hope: A Survival Guide for an Endangered Planet

Jane Goodall,Douglas Abrams

A legendary conservationist. A lifetime spent fighting for nature. An indispensable message of hope.

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Hardback

How to End a Story: Diaries 1995-1998

Helen Garner

The third instalment of diaries from the inimitable Helen Garner covers four eventful years in the life of one of Australia’s most treasured writers.

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How We Love: Notes on a Life

Clementine Ford

A deeply personal exploration of love in all its forms from a feminist icon and bestselling author of Fight Like a Girl and Boys Will Be Boys.

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Hardback

Invention: A Life

James Dyson

The definitive autobiography of James Dyson, the UK’s most successful businessman, revealing the secrets of his success and the inspiration behind his inventions

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A Farewell to Gabo and Mercedes

Rodrigo Garcia

The son of one of the greatest writers of our time - Nobel Prize winner and internationally bestselling icon Gabriel García Márquez - remembers his beloved father and mother in…

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Dog Days: A Year with Olive and Mabel

Andrew Cotter

Now with more than 87 million views on YouTube, lockdown superstar Labradors Olive and Mabel are back with a second book about their meteoric year of fame.

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Currowan

Bronwyn Adcock

Australia’s worst bushfires, and how we live with fire in a climate-changed world

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Paperback

A Bloody Good Rant: My Passions, Memories and Demons

Thomas Keneally (Author)

Following a lifetime observing Australia and its people, Tom Keneally turns inwards to reflect on what has been important to him.

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Last Letter to a Reader

Gerald Murnane

Final work by internationally acclaimed Australian author Gerald Murnane, reflecting on his career as a writer.

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Hardback

Why Marianne Faithfull Matters

Tanya Pearson

A remarkable feminist history and biography that features fragments from the five-decade career of an iconic artist.

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Love is an Ex-Country

Randa Jarrar

Queer. Muslim. Arab American. A proudly Fat woman. Randa Jarrar is all these things. In this provocative memoir she explores how to claim joy in an unravelling and hostile world.

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Hardback

Misfits

Michaela Coel

The ground-breaking much-awaited debut by leading British star Michaela Coel. A personal and powerful book about the life-changing power of transparency.

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Hardback

Manifesto

Bernardine Evaristo

The powerful, urgent manifesto on never giving up from Booker prize-winning trailblazer, Bernardine Evaristo.

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The Dancer: A Biography for Philippa Cullen

Evelyn Juers

The new book by prize-winning biographer Evelyn Juers, author of The House of Exile and The Recluse, portrays the life and background of a pioneering Australian dancer who died…

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Chronicles of a Cairo Bookseller

Nadia Wassef

The warm and winning story of opening a modern bookstore where there were none, Chronicles of a Cairo Bookseller recounts Nadia Wassef’s troubles and triumphs as a founder and manager…

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Hardback

Windswept & Interesting: My Autobiography

Billy Connolly

The funny, frank and full autobiography of the nation’s favourite comedian. ‘It’s the first time I’ve done this. Other people have written about me - or for me - but…

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Paperback

A Carnival of Snackery: Diaries, 2003-2020

David Sedaris

From bestselling author David Sedaris, the second volume of diaries - the source of his remarkable autobiographical stories.

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Biography & memoir from 2021

Lovers Dreamers Fighters

Found, Wanting

Missing

Delia Akeley and the Monkey

Allegorizings

Lost & Found: A Memoir

Don’t Call Us Carnies: We are Showies and Damn Proud of It

Mala’s Cat

Why Karen Carpenter Matters

Bypass: The Story of a Road

Punch Me Up to the Gods: A Memoir

Renegades: Born in the USA

Mothers, Fathers, and Others: New Essays

Baggage: Tales from a Fully Packed Life

These Precious Days

Beggars Belief: Stories from Gerald’s Bar

Being Britney: Pieces of a Modern Icon

Growing Up in Australia

Seeking Asylum: Our Stories

Girl, Transcending: Becoming the Woman I Was Born to Be

Dante

Leonard Cohen: The Mystical Roots of Genius

Down and Out in England and Italy

Eruption: The Eddie Van Halen Story

Murakami T: The T-Shirts I Love

Theroux the Keyhole: Dispatches from a Grounded Documentary Maker

William Cooper: An Aboriginal Life Story

The Young H.G. Wells: Changing the World

Caught in the Act: A Memoir by Courtney Act

The Game: A Portrait of Scott Morrison

Love Stories

The Book of Hope: A Survival Guide for an Endangered Planet

How to End a Story: Diaries 1995-1998

How We Love: Notes on a Life

Invention: A Life

A Farewell to Gabo and Mercedes

Dog Days: A Year with Olive and Mabel

Currowan

A Bloody Good Rant: My Passions, Memories and Demons

Last Letter to a Reader

Why Marianne Faithfull Matters

Love is an Ex-Country

Misfits

Manifesto

The Dancer: A Biography for Philippa Cullen

Chronicles of a Cairo Bookseller

Windswept & Interesting: My Autobiography

A Carnival of Snackery: Diaries, 2003-2020