any good Biographies that you would recommend please?

[mckenzie]

I need to buy three birthday presents on saturday afternoon and have decided to buy books. DH has suggested Biographies.
One is for a lady (40, mum, likes art and design) and other 2 are for guys (39, single, designer, trendy and 39, professional, likes cycling, dad)

Any ideas please so that I can go into the shop and just buy straight away what i need?
Otherwise, if I start looking I will be in there for hours and come out with about 25 books . Normally not a problem as I don't think you can ever have too many books but I have exams coming up and the only books I should be reading just now are my course books!

40yr old lady i'd recommend david crosby's autobiog long time gone. sums up the ages brilliantly

I am 45 and just read a biog of Jackie Kennedy-Onassis which was very interesting. Not sure about the designer chappie but for the one that likes cycling then get a book about Chris boardman as he had quite a varied cycling career.

thanks very much you too. The Jackie K-O one I think i might like myself though

Lance Armstrongs biog is very good and so is Matt Seatons memoir.

for the cycling chap, Lance Armstrong's It's Not About the Bike is v good. Or if he has a sense of humour Tim Moore's French Revolutions is v funny (about him trying to cycle the route of the tour de France. He gets kind of obsessed with cycling and there's lots of interesting stuff about the tour and professional cycling generally).

for your mum I think I'd need more information - but based purely on my own tastes what about the Mitford sisters letters? Not biography strictly but very sweet - I have a soft spot for anything Mitford though so I may be biassed.

Trendy designer - is he London based? I recently read Underground London by Stephen Smith and loved it - all about London as told through its lost underground stations, hidden rivers, buried streets, caves, crypts etc etc.

Or for the trendy man, Robert Elms the Way We Wore is about clothes design, trends and obsession - as chronicled through his own wardrobe and changing tastes. He goes through the gamut of styles from mod, to punk, so it's a portrait of our recent history as well as a personal biography and a map of clothing trends.

Francis Wheen's biography of Marx is brilliant.

on a lighter note if any of them are Scottish I loved rikki fultons

Oh yes Seeker, I liked the Wheen book too.

For your Mum - Kathryn Hughes book on Mrs Beeton is fun. Also recent Thomas Hardy biog excellent - if anyone likes literary biography.

Jenny Uglow's book looks good too.

Um. Oliver Sacks new book on music and the brain for the other friend?

McKenzie - I will have a think tonight whether to offer you the Jackie-O one ffp for yourself as its quite worn. Its quite an old book, she was still alive when it was written and what I like about it is that its about HER. It just mentions in one line that her husband had become president and focusses on her contribution to the White House for that chapter. She lost a newborn baby and 3 months later her husband was shot Very interesting lady in her own right.
I think my mum got it from a car boot sale.

Check back this thread in a couple of days as I can't get on much at teh weekends.....

Maya Angelou wrote 3 and they are all excellent.

thank you all so much. I'm going to call the book shop now and see what they have in stock. And thanks Flibberty - I'll check back next week.

If you would like it please email we are legoates @ tiscali .co.uk

I have a large collection of biogs and already have a Jackie O one that I read a couple of years ago so will let you have this little one - should get to you for the price of a large letter stamp!

thanks very much Flibberty. i will e mail you now and sort out getting the money to you. Much appreciated.

oh yes, Maya Angelou's autobiographical series, its amazing.

currently reading (or at least trying to in the 5 mins i have between hitting my pillow and snoring) John Donne's bio. excellent.