Biography books

Notes on Grief by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie review – the malicious surprise

The author reflects on the loss of her father, mourned at a distance during the pandemic, in an exquisitely written tribute

Catherine Taylor

15, May, 2021 @9:00 AM

The Three Burials of Lotty Kneen by Krissy Kneen review – memoir as both fairytale and defiant truth

Kneen weaves a magical and honest story about finding freedom but also about naming the things that shape us

Bec Kavanagh

13, May, 2021 @5:30 PM

The Adventures of Miss Barbara Pym by Paula Byrne review – life and loves of a true original

Clever, funny and full of surprises, this true literary original leaps off the page in a wonderfully attentive biography

Rachel Cooke

09, May, 2021 @10:00 AM

Speak, Okinawa review – a struggle to unearth a denied self

Elizabeth Miki Brina’s memoir about coming to terms with her Japanese-American heritage is warm and affecting

Viv Groskop

09, May, 2021 @9:00 AM

Everybody: A Book About Freedom by Olivia Laing review – free your body and your mind will follow

The Lonely City author explores Wilhelm Reich’s insights into the physical impact of emotional pain in a deft book of many parts

Ashish Ghadiali

09, May, 2021 @8:00 AM

Clive Bell and the Making of Modernism by Mark Hussey review – a meticulous portrait

A revelatory biography of the Bloomsbury outsider and influential critic who championed modern art

Kathryn Hughes

05, May, 2021 @8:00 AM

Real Estate by Deborah Levy review – a dialogue between art and life

The third of Levy’s memoirs, which sees her leaving home for a fellowship in Paris, is a drily funny contemplation of what it means to be a female writer

Stephanie Merritt

03, May, 2021 @6:00 AM

‘Silenced’ voice of Great War poet to be heard for first time

Ivor Gurney’s writings from an asylum were ignored. But a new study reveals their genius

Donna Ferguson

02, May, 2021 @9:00 AM

My Autobiography of Carson McCullers review – identity parade

Jenn Shapland’s insistence on reducing Carson McCullers’s life story to a modish account of her sexuality makes no sense

Rachel Cooke

02, May, 2021 @6:00 AM

Jonathan Fryer obituary

Lib Dem activist, writer and lecturer whose international outlook was reflected in BBC radio broadcasts from all round the world

Michael Meadowcroft

28, Apr, 2021 @3:29 PM

The Twelve Lives of Alfred Hitchcock by Edward White review – looking for Mr Fright

This innovative biography of the director – a wily tormentor of audiences and colleagues – is most successful when tracking his contemporary influence

Peter Conrad

25, Apr, 2021 @6:00 AM

Philip Roth and Blake Bailey were an all-too-perfect match | Francine Prose

In light of the allegations against Philip Roth biographer Blake Bailey, one can’t help thinking: they found each other

Francine Prose