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The Best Autobiographies Ever Written

Updated July 21, 2020 10.9k votes 4.6k voters 533.9k views126 items

List RulesWhich autobiographies were the best and most moving reads? Vote them up and add all of your favorites.

The best autobiographies ever written include memoirs by famous historical figures, authors, politicians, celebrities, and more. This list includes a wide variety of books that are considered autobiographical, including more recent memoirs. Which one is the best? That's for you to decide, with votes of course. Some of the books listed here have proven to be life-changing reads. If you are an avid reader of autobiographies, you'll likely recognize a vast majority of the books listed here. If one of your favorites is missing, by all means, please do add it to the list. Those of us who love reading a beautifully written autobiography will be grateful!

When talking about the best-written autobiographies ever, any list would be woefully incomplete without Anne Frank: 'The Diary of a Young Girl,' as well as 'The Autobiography of Malcolm X' and Frank McCourt's heartbreaking (and humorous) memoir 'Angela's Ashes.' These books are not only notable autobiographies, they are certainly among the best non-fiction eBooks ever.

Not all of the best autobiographies ever written are dark and serious. Some manage to mix an ample amount of humor in. Tina Fey's brilliant 'Bossypants' and Steve Martin's 'Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life' are excellent examples of must read books by stand up comedians. FYI: You don't necessarily have to spend a small fortune to purchase these best autobiographies ever written. Some of them are available as free ebooks, or even as audiobooks so be sure to check before you shell out a ton of money. If you're a reading fanatic, you might also like this list of famous autobiographical novel books, as well as this list of the top must-read books of all time.

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  • 1

    The Diary of a Young Girl

    Anne Frank
    732
    283

    First Published: 1947

    Subjects: Netherlands in World War II, Otto Frank, World War II, Hannah Pik-Goslar, Sol Kimel

    The Diary of a Young Girl is a book of the writings from the Dutch language diary kept by Anne Frank while she was in hiding for two years with her family during the Nazi occupation of the...  more
  • 2

    The Autobiography of Malcolm X

    Alex Haley, Malcolm X
    365
    128

    First Published: 1965

    Subjects: Security, African American, African American studies, Black, Islam

    The Autobiography of Malcolm X was published in 1965, the result of a collaboration between human rights activist Malcolm X and journalist Alex Haley. Haley coauthored the autobiography based on a...  more
  • 3

    The Story of My Experiments with Truth

    Mahatma Gandhi
    397
    139

    First Published: 1927

    Subjects: Nonviolent resistance

    Autobiography is a book written by Mahatma Ghandi....  more
  • 4

    The Story of My Life

    Helen Keller
    196
    70

    Subjects: Special education, Helen Keller, Education, Women, Public policy

    The story of my life, with her letters (1887-1901) and a supplementary account of her education is a book written by Helen Keller....  more
  • 5

    Angela's Ashes

    Frank McCourt
    209
    69

    First Published: 1996-09-05

    Subjects: Frank McCourt

    Angela's Ashes is a 1996 memoir by the Irish author Frank McCourt. The memoir consists of various anecdotes and stories of Frank McCourt's impoverished childhood and early adulthood in Brooklyn, New...  more
  • 6

    Long Walk to Freedom

    Nelson Mandela
    337
    124

    First Published: 1994

    Subjects: Human rights, World, Nelson Mandela, Politics, International relations

    Long Walk to Freedom is an autobiographical work written by South African President Nelson Mandela, and published in 1995 by Little Brown & Co. The book profiles his early life, coming of age,...  more
  • 7

    I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

    Maya Angelou
    223
    116

    First Published: 1969

    Subjects: Literary, Arkansas, Women, United States of America, 20th century

    I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is the 1969 autobiography about the early years of African-American writer and poet Maya Angelou. The first in a seven-volume series, it is a coming-of-age story that...  more
  • 8

    The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin

    Benjamin Franklin
    372
    148

    First Published: 1791

    Subjects: Philosophy, Pennsylvania, Education, World, Biography

    The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin is the traditional name for the unfinished record of his own life written by Benjamin Franklin from 1771 to 1790; however, Franklin himself appears to have...  more
  • 9

    Open: An Autobiography

    Andre Agassi
    341
    121
  • 10
    looksharp added

    The Confessions of St. Augustine

    Augustine of Hippo
    97
    43

    First Published: 0398

    Subjects: Augustine of Hippo

    Confessions is the name of an autobiographical work, consisting of 13 books, by St. Augustine of Hippo, written in Latin between 397 and 400 AD. Modern English translations of it are sometimes...  more
  • 11

    Night

    Elie Wiesel
    311
    157

    First Published: 1955

    Subjects: Literary, Entertainment, Poland, Modern history, World War II

    Night is a work by Elie Wiesel about his experience with his father in the Nazi German concentration camps at Auschwitz and Buchenwald in 1944–45, at the height of the Holocaust toward the end of the...  more
  • 12

    Up From Slavery

    Booker T. Washington
    85
    47

    First Published: 1901

    Up from Slavery is the 1901 autobiography of Booker T. Washington detailing his personal experiences in working to rise from the position of a slave child during the Civil War, to the difficulties...  more
  • 13

    Girl, Interrupted

    Susanna Kaysen
    87
    46

    First Published: 1993

    Subjects: Internal medicine, Medicine, Massachusetts

    Girl, Interrupted is a best-selling 1993 memoir by American author Susanna Kaysen, relating her experiences as a young woman in a psychiatric hospital in the 1960s after being diagnosed with...  more
  • 14

    Life and Times of Frederick Douglass

    63
    25
    Life and Times of Frederick Douglass is Frederick Douglass' third autobiography, published in 1881, revised in 1892. Because of the emancipation of American slaves during and following the American...  more
  • 15

    On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

    Stephen King
    98
    43

    First Published: 2000-10-03

    Subjects: Creative writing, Literary, Composition, Literature, Linguistics

    On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King, published in 2000, is a memoir of the author's experiences as a writer, and also serves as a guide book for those who choose to enter the craft. In...  more
  • 16

    A Walk in the Woods

    Bill Bryson
    82
    55

    First Published: 1998-05-04

    Subjects: Kindred Spirits, Sports, Travel, North America, Natural history

    A Walk in the Woods may be: A Walk in the Woods (book), a 1998 book by Bill Bryson A Walk in the Woods (film), a 2015 film by Ken Kwapis, based on Bryson's book A Walk in the Woods (play), a 1988...  more
  • 17
    looksharp added

    Donnie Brasco: My Undercover Life in the Mafia

    Joseph D. Pistone
    46
    20
    Donnie Brasco: My Undercover Life in the Mafia is a 1988 autobiographical crime book written by Joseph D. Pistone about his story as an FBI agent going undercover and infiltrating the Mafia. In 1997,...  more
  • 18
    stubb added

    Survival In Auschwitz

    Primo Levi
    49
    18

    First Published: 1956

    Subjects: Literary, Poland, Judaism, Italy, Modern history

    Primo Levi is in every way a better writer than Elie Wiesel. // First published as If This Be a Man, which is neither informative nor compelling.
    If This Is a Man is a work by the Italian Jewish writer Primo Levi. It describes his arrest as a member of the Italian anti-fascist resistance during the Second World War, and his incarceration in...  more
  • 19

    My Left Foot

    Christy Brown
    55
    36

    Subjects: Christy Brown

    My Left Foot is the 1954 autobiography of Christy Brown, who was born with cerebral palsy on June 5, 1932 in Dublin, Ireland. As one of 13 surviving children, Brown went on to be an author, painter...  more
  • 20

    The Diving-Bell and the Butterfly

    Jean-Dominique Bauby
    63
    32

    First Published: 1997-03-06

    Subjects: Locked-in syndrome, Quadriplegia, Jean-Dominique Bauby

    The Diving-Bell and the Butterfly is a book by Jean-Dominique Bauby....  more
  • 21

    Running with Scissors

    Augusten Burroughs
    73
    48

    Subjects: Literary, Homosexuality, Massachusetts, 20th century

    Running with Scissors is a 2002 memoir by American writer Augusten Burroughs. The book tells the story of Burroughs's bizarre childhood life after his mother, a chain-smoking aspiring poet, sent him...  more
  • 22

    Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life

    Steve Martin
    55
    38

    First Published: 2007-11

    Subjects: Steve Martin

    Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life is a memoir, released November 20, 2007, by Steve Martin, an American author, actor, comedian, producer, playwright and screenwriter. It chronicles his early life,...  more
  • 23
    WilliamCarrigan added

    The Civil War memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant

    Ulysses S. Grant
    61
    44

    Subjects: United States of America, United States Army, History of the United States, Ulysses S. Grant, History

    The Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant is an autobiography of Ulysses S. Grant, the 18th President of the United States, focused mainly on his military career during the Mexican-American War and...  more
  • 24

    The Education of Henry Adams

    Edmund Morris
    46
    27
  • 25

    Me: Stories of My Life

    Katharine Hepburn
    38
    29

    First Published: 1991

    Subjects: Hollywood, Classical Hollywood cinema, Entertainment, Women, United States of America

    Me: Stories of My Life is a 1991 book by Katharine Hepburn....  more
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List Rules: Which autobiographies were the best and most moving reads? Vote them up and add all of your favorites.