Childhood Memoir

Brendan Murray redefines memoir in this haunting excavation of his own experiences as a child, teacher and parent to discover why imagination is so important throughout our lives. Why do some children grow up into happy lives, and others never make it? Brendan James Murray's childhood was one of...

This is the story of John McGahern's childhood - of his mother's death, his father's anger and bafflement, and of his own discovery of literature and his ambition to become a writer. At the heart of the book is an unembarrassed homage by a loving son to a woman who protected him and his sisters from his father's unpredictable moods. His joy in her presence is recovered with great lyrical tact.

It was an ordinary day in 2016. In Gatwick Airport, Jonathan and his wife, Anna, were having breakfast with their two little children while waiting for their flight to be called. And then it happened, a familiar sensation that Jonathan hadn't had for decades: an out-of-body experience that transported him to another place, the safe place he used to escape to in his mind when he was a boy.

In this immersive, spell-binding memoir, an acclaimed screenwriter tells the story of her childhood growing up with the infamous Lyman Family cult—and the complicated and unexpected pain of leaving the only home she’d ever known A NEW YORKER BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR On January 5, 1975, the...

'Put very simply, the details of my life could be boiled down to "boy dreams of being a comedian and then becomes one", so in a basic sense everything has gone according to plan. Item number one on the lifetime to-do list has been well and truly ticked off. 'But, of course, things are never that...

In his memoirs, Willy Beckel describes many aspects of everyday life that shaped the lives of children and young people during the German Empire in the years around 1912. They remain exciting to read, as they describe a world long gone that still has relevance today. The life of an urban extended family, usually taking centre stage, is not omitted from this homage to his parents, which recounts many major events in Leipzig during the imperial era. His memoirs are good intellectual and timeless food for thought.

"It’s a dark story that forced me to think more expansively about what constitutes a cult." —The New York Times' Ernesto Londoño "Although this is Mestyanek Young’s first time narrating, listeners will appreciate hearing this deeply personal story told by the author herself. Share with...

Brought to you by Penguin. 'Hunger was a constant, reliable friend in Mei Guo. She came second only to loneliness.' In China she was the daughter of professors. In Brooklyn her family is illegal. Qian is just seven when she moves to America, the 'Beautiful Country', where she and her parents...

A Holocaust survivor from Belgium recounts memories of her childhood and her escape from the Nazis in hiding and on the run, reflecting on the nature of memory and on the enduring effects of the Holocaust and trauma.

A compelling and lyrical memoir of a young Jewish girl in WWII Europe and Russia, learning the importance of connection and community even as the world grows dark around her. We are all formed by our childhoods. These are the years that define us, and that teach us the most important lessons...

This is my inspirational true story of childhood sexual abuse that I endured. The abuse was a secret, even to me, due to the fact that all the painful images were locked up in my subconscious for close to 37 years.

“One of the Finest Memoirs Ever Written” –The New Yorker “A Childhood has been widely recognized as a masterpiece, a Dickensian document of survival and blight in Depression-era Georgia.” –Harper’s The highly acclaimed memoir of one of the most original American storytellers of the...

In this evocative, personal piece, Dr. Sanjay Gupta reflects on his life as a parent during this unprecedented time. He shares his fears and questions about raising his three young daughters amid our current public health crisis - and gives listeners a candid glimpse into how he’s navigating the pandemic at home.

By the age of nine, I will have lived in more than a dozen countries, on five continents, under six assumed identities. I’ll know how a document is forged, how to withstand an interrogation, and most important, how to disappear . . . To the young Cheryl Diamond, life felt like one big...

‘The Grip of Childhood Sexual Abuse’ tells the story of our healing journey to overcome the impacts of our abuse. Tragically victims unknowingly accrue many syndromes and disorders as a direct result of enduring sexual abuse over a long period of time. We believe we can help victims by sharing what we've learned. Through recognizing our own strengths, we can encourage others to shed the self-limiting beliefs trauma survivors often unconsciously own.

For fans of Educated and Invisible Child, David Sussillo combines memoir and cutting-edge neuroscience to tell the story of his unlikely journey from group homes and drug-addicted parents to the scientific elite—exploring why, and how, he managed to succeed against all odds. David Sussillo has...

BONUS FEATURE: Exclusive interview with the author. From one of the most beloved and bestselling authors in the English language, a vivid, nostalgic and utterly hilarious memoir of growing up in the middle of the United States in the middle of the last century. A book that delivers on the...

This audiobook is beautifully read by the author, Jill Halfpenny, and includes an exclusive powerful and heartwarming conversation between Jill and her niece, Chelsea. I made myself a promise very early on that I was going to walk straight through the centre of my grief. No shortcuts and...

First, I Believe You is an astonishing memoir of resilience and recovery from severe childhood trauma she had no memory of. Terrifying flashbacks haunted her for decades despite an affluent, advantaged childhood, resulting in severe depression, food addiction, anxiety, and nightmares.

In this tender and nostalgic memoir, Susan Lorraine Kadera shares the story of the backyard garden her father lovingly built — a place where fruit trees, vegetables, and childhood memories grew side by side. What began with a few carefully planted plum trees soon blossomed into a thriving garden that shaped the rhythm of family life. From watching her father dig the first holes, to helping weed the rows of corn and lettuce, to sneaking sunwarmed strawberries straight from the vine, the garden became a place of learning, connection, and simple joy.