memoir

In the summer of 2020, as America underwent a reckoning with racism that was centuries in the making, Tiffanie Drayton wrote a provocative, personal, and widely shared New York Times essay called “I’m A Black American. I Had to Get Out.” In it, she reflects on her choice to leave the U.S. to return to her home island of Tobago, right before the pandemic and the murder of George Floyd—and how she felt grieving and raging for Black Americans from across an ocean. Now, in her powerful new memoir, "Black American Refugee: Escaping the Narcissism of the American Dream" (Viking), Drayton is telling her story – that of a woman coming to terms with how systemic racism has poisoned America, and ultimately deciding she has to leave the “land of the free” to be truly emancipated.

“All-American Ruins” is a multimedia travelogue in which artist, activist, adventurer Blake Pfeil recounts his experiences exploring abandoned spaces across the United States and transforms them into fantastical essays of prose and poetry, audio storytelling, and documentary film.Along the way, “All-American Ruins” asks critical questions about American history/culture, community, capitalism/economics, the environment, and mental health while encouraging folks to activate their imaginations as a tool for healing.

Alive with the intoxicating magic of summer in New England, former editor of the New York Times Book Review Charles McGrath’s evocative memoir looks back at that sun-soaked season, at family, youth, and a singular bond made at a time when he thought he was beyond making friends. The book is "The Summer Friend: A Memoir."

Jesse Green is the chief theater critic for The New York Times. Green will be at Tanglewood on Saturday 8/20 at 5 p.m. with Tony Kushner as part of Tanglewood's Spotlight Series at Ozawa Hall. The two will be discussing the power of the arts to illuminate diverse perspectives.He joins us to discuss "Shy: The Alarmingly Outspoken Memoirs of Mary Rodgers," which he co-authored with the late composer, screenwriter, and author.

Writer Séamas O’Reilly’s mother died when he was five, leaving him, his ten brothers and sisters, and their beloved father in their sprawling bungalow in rural Derry. It was the 1990s; the Troubles were a background rumble. He tells the story in his memoir: “Did Ye Hear Mammy Died?”

Bestselling author Wade Rouse finds solace with his dying father through their shared love of baseball in "Magic Season: A Son's Story" (Hanover Square Press) - a poignant, illuminating memoir of family and forgiveness.

Keri Blakinger is a Texas-based journalist and the author of "Corrections in Ink," a memoir tracing her path from figure skating to heroin addiction to prison and, finally, to life as an investigative reporter covering mass incarceration.

"And You May Find Yourself…: Confessions of a Late-Blooming Gen-X Weirdo" by Sari Botton is about “finding” yourself later in life — after first getting lost in all the wrong places. As Botton discovers, the wrong places famously include her own self-suppression and misguided efforts to please others (mostly men).In a series of candid, reflective, sometimes humorous essays, Botton describes coming to feminism and self-actualization as an older person, second (and third and fourth) chances—and how maybe it’s never too late to find your way…assuming you’re lucky enough to live long.

When Kate Swenson’s son Cooper was diagnosed with severe, nonverbal autism, her world stopped. She had always dreamed of having the perfect family life — watching her boy play at baseball games, walking him down the aisle. She hadn’t signed up for life as a mother raising a child with a disability. But through hard work, resilience and personal growth, she would come to learn that Cooper wasn’t the one who needed to change. She was.

Actor and model Colton Haynes currently stars on The CW’s "Arrow." Previously, he was in hit shows such as "American Horror Story," "Teen Wolf," and "Scream Queens" and has appeared in films such as "Rough Night" and "San Andreas." His memoir is "Miss Memory Lane."