Six Must-Read Biographies

Six Must-Read Biographies

Books in list (6)


Title: The Last Lone Inventor: A Tale of Genius, Deceit, and the Birth of Television

In a story that is both of its time and timeless, Evan I. Schwartz tells a tale of genius versus greed, innocence versus deceit, and independent brilliance versus corporate arrogance. Many men have laid claim to the title "father of television," but Philo T. Farnsworth is the true genius behind what may be the most influential invention of our time.

Driven by his obsession to demonstrate his idea,by the age of twenty Farnsworth was operating his own laboratory above a garage in San Francisco and filing for patents. The resulting publicity caught the attention of RCA tycoon David Sarnoff, who became determined to control television in the same way he monopolized radio.

Based on original research, including interviews with Farnsworth family members, The Last Lone Inventor is the story of the epic struggle between two equally passionate adversaries whose clash symbolized a turning point in the culture of creativity.

Author(s): Evan I. Schwartz
ISBN 13: 9780060935597
Pages: 352

Title: American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer

J. Robert Oppenheimer is one of the iconic figures of the twentieth century, a brilliant physicist who led the effort to build the atomic bomb for his country in a time of war, and who later found himself confronting the moral consequences of scientific progress. In this magisterial, acclaimed biography twenty-five years in the making, Kai Bird and Martin Sherwin capture Oppenheimer’s life and times, from his early career to his central role in the Cold War. This is biography and history at its finest, riveting and deeply informative.

Winner of the 2005 National Book Critics Circle Award and the 2006 Pulitzer Prize, for Biography

Author(s): Kai Bird
ISBN 13: 9780375726262
Pages: 784

Title: I Am Malala

A MEMOIR BY THE YOUNGEST RECIPIENT OF THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE "I come from a country that was created at midnight. When I almost died it was just after midday." When the Taliban took control of the Swat Valley in Pakistan, one girl spoke out. Malala Yousafzai refused to be silenced and fought for her right to an education. On Tuesday, October 9, 2012, when she was fifteen, she almost paid the ultimate price. She was shot in the head at point-blank range while riding the bus home from school, and few expected her to survive. Instead, Malala's miraculous recovery has taken her on an extraordinary journey from a remote valley in northern Pakistan to the halls of the United Nations in New York. At sixteen, she became a global symbol of peaceful protest and the youngest nominee ever for the Nobel Peace Prize. I AM MALALA is the remarkable tale of a family uprooted by global terrorism, of the fight for girls' education, of a father who, himself a school owner, championed and encouraged his daughter to write and attend school, and of brave parents who have a fierce love for their daughter in a society that prizes sons. I AM MALALA will make you believe in the power of one person's voice to inspire change in the world.
Author(s): Malala Yousafzai
ISBN 13: 9780316322409
This book is in (4) other book lists, learn more.

Title: Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave Written by Himself

Former slave, impassioned abolitionist, brilliant writer, newspaper editor and eloquent orator whose speeches fired the abolitionist cause, Frederick Douglass (1818–1895) led an astounding life. Physical abuse, deprivation and tragedy plagued his early years, yet through sheer force of character he was able to overcome these obstacles to become a leading spokesman for his people. In this, the first and most frequently read of his three autobiographies, Douglass provides graphic descriptions of his childhood and horrifying experiences as a slave as well as a harrowing record of his dramatic escape to the North and eventual freedom. Published in 1845 to quell doubts about his origins — since few slaves of that period could write — the Narrative is admired today for its extraordinary passion, sensitive and vivid descriptions and storytelling power. It belongs in the library of anyone interested in African-American history and the life of one of the country's most courageous and influential champions of civil rights. A selection of the Common Core State Standards Initiative.
Author(s): Frederick Douglass
ISBN 13: 9780486284996
This book is in (2) other book lists, learn more.

Title: The Motorcycle Diaries: Notes on a Latin American Journey

The book of the popular movie STARRING GAEL GARCIA BERNAL

NOW A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

The young Che Guevara’s lively and highly entertaining travel diary, now a popular movie and a New York Times bestseller. This new, expanded edition features exclusive, unpublished photos taken by the 23-year-old Ernesto on his journey across a continent, and a tender preface by Aleida Guevara, offering an insightful perspective on the man and the icon.

“A journey, a number of journeys. Ernesto Guevara in search of adventure, Ernesto Guevara in search of America, Ernesto Guevara in search of Che. On this journey of journeys, solitude found solidarity, ‘I’ turned into ‘we’.” —Eduardo Galeano

“When I read these notes for the first time, I was quite young myself and I immediately identified with this man who narrated his adventures in such a spontaneous manner… To tell you the truth, the more I read, the more I was in love with the boy my father had been…” —Aleida Guevara

“Our film is about a young man, Che, falling in love with a continent and finding his place in it.” —Walter Salles, director of “The Motorcycle Diaries.”

“As his journey progresses, Guevara’s voice seems to deepen, to darken, colored by what he witnesses in his travels. He is still poetic, but now he comments on what he sees, though still poetically, with a new awareness of the social and political ramifications of what’s going on around him.”—January Magazine

Also available in Spanish: DIARIOS DE MOTOCICLETA (978-1-920888-11-4)

Features of this edition include:

  • A preface by Che Guevara’s daughter Aleida
  • Introduction by Cintio Vintier, well-known Latin American poet
  • Photos & maps from the original journey
  • Postcript: Che’s personal reflections on his formative years: “A child of my environment.”

Published in association with the Che Guevara Studies Center, Havana

Author(s): Ernesto Che Guevara
ISBN 13: 9781876175702
Pages: 170
This book is in (2) other book lists, learn more.

Title: Churchill: A Life

Distilled from years of meticulous research and documentation, filled with material unavailable when the earliest books of the official biography's eight volumes went to press, Churchill is a brilliant marriage of the hard facts of the public life and the intimate details of the private man. The result is a vital portrait of one of the most remarkable men of any age as well as a revealing depiction of a man of extraordinary courage and imagination.

After publishing the eighth and final volume of Churchill's official biography in 1988, Martin Gilbert was finally free to devote himself to his own one-volume account of this compelling life. The result is a brilliant marriage of the hard facts of the public life and intimate details of the private man--a vital portrait of one of the most remarkable men of any age. Photographs.

Author(s): Martin Gilbert
ISBN 13: 9780805023961
Pages: 1088
This book is in (3) other book lists, learn more.

 


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