Autobiography Recommendations?

[bystander]

Hello! My boyfriend just got a Kindle 3, and after many years of not reading much, he's finally giving it a try again.

However, he is VERY picky, and the only books he's found enjoyable so far are autobiographies.

I know he enjoyed Obama's book as well as Ozzy Osbourne's autobiography. He likes to read about people who have had less-than privileged upbringings and the interesting lives they have led before they became successful.

He'd prefer autobiographies on living or recently deceased people, preferably male. No religious figures, please.

I was wondering if I could get a few autobiography recommendations? Even if you don't think he would like them, I'd still love to hear your favorites, and I might put them on my own to-read list.

Thank you so much for any and all help!

[edbro]

Life by Keith Richards was very good.

While I haven't yet read it, I heard that Open by Andre Agassi was good also.

[rhadin]

Although not a recently living person, this could be the autobiography hit of the decade: Autobiography of Mark Twain: The Complete and Authoritative Edition, Volume 1. Twain is truly a rascal in all the positive senses of the word.

[RolandD]

Just read American on Purpose by Craig Ferguson. Very interesting, especially the part about being a punk rocker and his descent into and recovery from alcoholism.

[HappyMartin]

Boy Racer by Mark Cavendish. I found it a very entertaining and insightful read. Of course it will help to have some interest in bicycle racing.

[HappyMartin]

Originally Posted by edbro

Life by Keith Richards was very good.

While I haven't yet read it, I heard that Open by Andre Agassi was good also.

Open is a fantastic book.

I am struggling with Life (that sounds weird I know). Turns out I dont actually care about some bloke that spent most of his life wasted, boring. Reminds me of my youth, bunch of people hanging around bragging about how hammered they got.

[HarryT]

Given that pretty much all modern "autobiographies" of famous people are ghost written, do you think that he might extend his selection to biographies? There are a lot more biographies around than autobiographies.

[Billi]

Originally Posted by edbro

While I haven't yet read it, I heard that Open by Andre Agassi was good also.

That's one of my favourite books, really funny sometimes.
If he is interested in sports, I can recommend the two books by Lance Armstrong, too.
Than he can try "If I did it" by O. J. Simpson.

And two from people who are already a long-time dead, but the books are very worth reading and you will find them in our library here at mobileread:
Jack London: John Barleycorn
Benjamin Franklin: Autobiographie

On a more general line: HarryT is absolutely right with his remark about ghostwriting and recommendation to extend the choice to "normal" biographies.

[bystander]

Thank you all so much for your suggestions, and all of these recommendations look like something he would at least give an honest chance. I am making a list for him to go through.

Also, I understand HarryT and Billi's comments about autobiographies - so yes, as long as the biographies have a "personal" feel to them, I think the bf would enjoy them just as much.

The reason he wants (auto)biographies is because he feels like he's wasting his time reading about things that never happened (funny, I feel like video games are a huge waste of time, but he is obsessed with those). But he finds most non-fiction pretty dry, so he wants to curl up with a good story, and the only way he can fulfill both his desires is to read the stories that real people have to tell.

Again, thank you all.

[naittaw]

I think I perhaps have a similar leaning toward biography, but for something light and unprofound with a bit of humour, but by no means a full biography, try Tony Hawks, "Round Ireland with a Fridge" or his more recent "A Piano in the Pyrenees".

[HarryT]

I'd also recommend Bill Bryson's books. They are hysterically funny, and very interesting, too. They're mainly about his personal experiences in various countries.

EDIT: They are also all available in the Kindle store at pretty reasonable prices.

[Jaime_Astorga]

I heavily recommend "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!": Adventures of a Curious Character. It's full of fun and interesting stories that actually happened to famous scientist Richard Feynman, and he has a really endearing way of telling them.

[Bilbo1967]

Originally Posted by Jaime_Astorga

I heavily recommend "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!": Adventures of a Curious Character. It's full of fun and interesting stories that actually happened to famous scientist Richard Feynman, and he has a really endearing way of telling them.

I'll second that one. It was recommended to me by a friend a few months ago, so I read it.

Really, really interesting read. Not your average physicist I would guess.

[Maggie Leung]

Originally Posted by Jaime_Astorga

I heavily recommend "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!": Adventures of a Curious Character. It's full of fun and interesting stories that actually happened to famous scientist Richard Feynman, and he has a really endearing way of telling them.

Thanks for this recommendation. I had a couple of other Feynman books, but didn't know about this one. I just finished it and thoroughly enjoyed it.

[Shayne Parkinson]

Maybe Frank McCourt's "Angela's Ashes" and/or "'Tis"? He certainly met the "people who have had less-than privileged upbringings" criterion.