What We're Reading This Weekend: Moving Memoirs
Anne Lamott on her son's first son; Drew Magary on fatherhood; Piper Kerman on her year in prison – it's not just A-list celebs whose life stories can touch and delight us. This week we're featuring moving memoirs.
Tell us your thoughts on our staffers' picks – and let us know what you're reading.
Tell us your thoughts on our staffers' picks – and let us know what you're reading.
Kate Hogan, Staff Features Editor
Her Pick: Orange Is the New Black by Piper Kerman
It's not exactly a beachy topic, but Piper Kerman's tale of her year inside Connecticut's Federal Correctional Institute, Danbury, is a total page-turner. Kerman, who was sent to prison in 2004 after she moved drug money for an ex, introduces readers to a colorful cast of co-prisoners who come across not as criminals but as warm women with big hearts – and, for the most part, remorse for their mistakes. Learning about the inner workings of the prison system is incredibly interesting, and following Kerman's own love story is moving, too. The book has been turned into a TV series; I can't wait to catch it on Netflix.
Kate Coyne, Assistant Managing Editor
Her Pick: Some Assembly Required by Anne Lamott
Even as a non-religious person, I've enjoyed Anne Lamott's essays on faith and finding grace. When I became a mom, however, her celebrated bookOperating Instructions, about her pregnancy and her first year raising son Sam, truly struck a chord. So I was amazed (and maybe a bit shocked) to learn that Sam, 19, is now a father himself due to his girlfriend's unplanned pregnancy. Lamott's memoir on her "son's first son," Some Assembly Required, is a fascinating and sometimes frustrating read not so much about Sam's struggles as it is Lamott's own attempts to reconcile her opinions with her son's decisions. Reading the two books back-to-back is also a pretty powerful reminder that childhood is far more fleeting than we realize.
Join us for a live chat with Anne Lamott on July 24!
Check back every Thursday for another round of staff picks, and see more book reviews each week in PEOPLE magazine, on newsstands now. Plus, check out last week's fun for the Fourthand more great book finds here.
Her Pick: Orange Is the New Black by Piper Kerman
It's not exactly a beachy topic, but Piper Kerman's tale of her year inside Connecticut's Federal Correctional Institute, Danbury, is a total page-turner. Kerman, who was sent to prison in 2004 after she moved drug money for an ex, introduces readers to a colorful cast of co-prisoners who come across not as criminals but as warm women with big hearts – and, for the most part, remorse for their mistakes. Learning about the inner workings of the prison system is incredibly interesting, and following Kerman's own love story is moving, too. The book has been turned into a TV series; I can't wait to catch it on Netflix.
Steve Helling, Staff Writer
His Pick: Someone Could Get Hurt by Drew Magary
Journalist Magary is brutally honest as he nails the triumphs and tribulations of being a father of three. Every dad – and plenty of moms – will recognize the stories: bathtime bribery, headlice infestations and children who loudly try out swear words in public. Yes, Magary sprinkles his tales with profanity, but it's nothing that every father doesn't mumble after stepping on an errant Lego with bare feet. And beneath the humor and the ribald jokes is a surprisingly touching memoir with a lot of heart.
His Pick: Someone Could Get Hurt by Drew Magary
Journalist Magary is brutally honest as he nails the triumphs and tribulations of being a father of three. Every dad – and plenty of moms – will recognize the stories: bathtime bribery, headlice infestations and children who loudly try out swear words in public. Yes, Magary sprinkles his tales with profanity, but it's nothing that every father doesn't mumble after stepping on an errant Lego with bare feet. And beneath the humor and the ribald jokes is a surprisingly touching memoir with a lot of heart.
Kate Coyne, Assistant Managing Editor
Her Pick: Some Assembly Required by Anne Lamott
Even as a non-religious person, I've enjoyed Anne Lamott's essays on faith and finding grace. When I became a mom, however, her celebrated bookOperating Instructions, about her pregnancy and her first year raising son Sam, truly struck a chord. So I was amazed (and maybe a bit shocked) to learn that Sam, 19, is now a father himself due to his girlfriend's unplanned pregnancy. Lamott's memoir on her "son's first son," Some Assembly Required, is a fascinating and sometimes frustrating read not so much about Sam's struggles as it is Lamott's own attempts to reconcile her opinions with her son's decisions. Reading the two books back-to-back is also a pretty powerful reminder that childhood is far more fleeting than we realize.
Join us for a live chat with Anne Lamott on July 24!
Check back every Thursday for another round of staff picks, and see more book reviews each week in PEOPLE magazine, on newsstands now. Plus, check out last week's fun for the Fourthand more great book finds here.
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