Autobiographies

A heartbreaking and hilarious memoir by iCarly and Sam & Cat star Jennette McCurdy about her struggles as a former child actor—including eating disorders, addiction, and a complicated relationship with her overbearing mother—and how she retook control of her life. Jennette McCurdy was six years old when she had her first acting audition. Her mother’s dream was for her only daughter to become a star, whatever it took, and Jennette would do anything to make her mother happy. So she went along with what her mother called “calorie restriction”, weighing herself five times a day and ultimately shrinking down to 89 pounds. She endured extensive at-home makeovers using knockoff whitening strips, hot curlers, eyelash tint, and gobs of bleach to enhance her “natural beauty.” She was showered by her mother until age sixteen while sharing her diaries, an email account, and all her earnings. The dream finally comes true when Jennette is cast in a new Nickelodeon series called iCarly and is thrust into fame. But for Jennette, the dream is a nightmare. Practically overnight, her fake smile and cheesy airbrushed hair-do is plastered on billboards across the country. And though her mom is ecstatic, ordering her to smile for the paparazzi (with whom she’s on a first-name basis) and sign endless autographs for fans who only know her by her character’s name, Jennette is riddled with anxiety, shame and self-loathing, which manifest into eating disorders, addiction and a series of unhealthy relationships.These issues only get worse when Jennette’s mother dies of cancer. Finally, after discovering therapy and coldly examining the relationship with her mother, Jennette embarks on recovery and decides for the first time in her life what she really wants. Told with raw honesty and equal parts gravity and humor, I’m Glad My Mom Died is a a shocking, devastating, and ultimately inspiring story of resilience. Product Information: • ISBN: 9781982185831 • Author: Jennette McCurdy • Publisher: Simon & Schuster • Format: Paperback  • Pages: 320

The hilarious, must-read memoir from everyone's favourite Celebrity Traitors Faithful - The truth about being a rugby player from the horsey's mouth. This book is not just about how a psychiatrist called Humphrey helped me get back on my horse and clippity-clop all the way to the World Cup semi-final in Japan. It's the story of how a fat kid who had to live up to the nickname Psycho grew up to play and party for over a decade with rugby's greatest pros and live weird and wonderful moments both in and out of the scrum. That's why I'm letting you read my diary on my weirdest days. You never know what you're going to get with me. From being locked in a police cell to singing Adele on Jonathan Ross (I'll let you decide which is worse), being kissed by a murderer on the number 51 bus to drug tests where clipboard-wielding men hover inches away from my naked genitalia, melting opponents in rucks, winning tackles, and generally losing blood, sweat and ears in the name of the great sport of rugby. This is how (not) to be a rugby player. Product Information: • ISBN: 9781529995589 • Author: Joe Marler • Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd • Format: Paperback  • Pages: 336 • Dimensions: 19.69 x 12.7 x 2.29 cm

Jamie Laing is still figuring it all out. And now that he's going to be a dad, he wants to share the tools to help his child grow into a happy, thoughtful and kind person. This is the handbook Jamie has put together for that purpose. In a world struggling to find genuine connection, Jamie wants to share his experiences of life, relationships and maturing. He takes us through his personal A-Z of growing up in today's society – from overcoming anxiety, checking in with your mates and working out what makes you happy, to embracing our failures, trying therapy and understand what it means to be a loving and present partner. Above all, Jamie shows us that vulnerability is cool. And that boys do cry – after all, he's done plenty of that this year. With contributions from his wife Sophie Habboo, this book will help men and women, boys and girls have the conversation of all conversations: how to live your happiest and most resilient life in today's world. Product Information: • ISBN: 9781037200182 • Author: Jamie Laing • Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc • Format: Hardback • Pages: 256 • Dimensions: 23.4 x 15.3 cm

Welcome to Staying Relevant, a book written by two best friends . . . contains swearing, adult themes and outrageous stories from life in the spotlight. If you think you know us already, you're wrong. You're gonna find out a hell of a lot about us. Probably more than you ever needed or wanted to know, to be honest. This book isn't about the glossy, filtered version of us that people normally see. It's about the real Sam and Pete, the ones behind the nonsense. Now grab a bevvy, get comfy and enjoy the journey with us - through the best bits, the worst bits, and all the absolute bottom-of-the-barrel moments in between, on our quest to stay relevant. In their first book together, Sam and Pete lay out what it truly takes to stay in the spotlight. A celebration of their unlikely friendship, the book features brand new, insane stories from their lives, including: behind the scenes, never-before-told tales from the jungle and the ballroom, hosting the NTAs red carpet, their journey creating the podcast, and plenty more. Expect swearing, heaps of positivity from Sam and, of course, zero sarcasm from Pete. Product Information: • ISBN: 9781408734742 • Author: Sam Thompson & Pete Wicks • Publisher: Little Brown • Format: Hardback • Pages: 384 • Dimensions: 24 x 15.8 x 3.6 cm

'I am a survivor. That comes with a survivor's obligation to represent one and half million Jewish children murdered by the Nazis. They cannot speak. So I must speak on their behalf.' Tova Friedman was one of the youngest people to emerge from Auschwitz. After surviving the liquidation of the Jewish ghetto in Central Poland where she lived as a toddler, Tova was four when she and her parents were sent to a Nazi labour camp, and almost six when she and her mother were forced into a packed cattle truck and sent to Auschwitz II, also known as the Birkenau extermination camp, while her father was transported to Dachau. During six months of incarceration in Birkenau, Tova witnessed atrocities that she could never forget, and experienced numerous escapes from death. She is one of a handful of Jews to have entered a gas chamber and lived to tell the tale. As Nazi killing squads roamed Birkenau before abandoning the camp in January 1945, Tova and her mother hid among corpses. After being liberated by the Russians they made their way back to their hometown in Poland. Eventually Tova's father tracked them down and the family was reunited. In The Daughter of Auschwitz, Tova immortalizes what she saw, to keep the story of the Holocaust alive, at a time when it's in danger of fading from memory. She has used those memories that have shaped her life to honour the victims. Written with award-winning former war reporter Malcolm Brabant, this is an extremely important book. Brabant's meticulous research has helped Tova recall her experiences in searing detail. Together they have painstakingly recreated Tova's extraordinary story about the world's worst ever crime. Product Information:  • ISBN:  9781529423501 • Author: Tova Friedman & Malcolm Brabant • Publisher:  Quercus • Format:  Paperback • Pages:  352 • Dimensions: 12.8 x 3 x 19.6 cm

It is never too late to build the life you’re seeking. Part-memoir, part-inspirational manual for better living, Simply More by Cynthia Erivo is for anyone seeking greater harmony and fulfilment in their lives. Cynthia Erivo learned the music to Wicked a decade before she needed it, not knowing that those same lyrics would change her life. Ten years later, she performed those songs on a world stage, showing us that there is always time to keep discovering ourselves, and that the journey of becoming is not a finite one. In Simply More, through a series of powerful, personal vignettes, Cynthia reflects on the ways that she has grown as an actor and a person, shares the lessons she’s learned over years of performing, and reminds us how we are capable of so much more than we think. In this profoundly honest and moving memoir, Cynthia draws from her experiences running marathons, both real and metaphorical, on stage and on screen, to show how each challenge can help us. Through personal anecdotes, lessons and advice, she urges readers to lean into the wisdom of their bodies and to understand and strive for a physical and mental balance. Because when we chase our deepest desires, each small step leads us closer to where we want to go. Product Information: • ISBN: 9781035086016 • Author: Cynthia Erivo • Publisher: Macmillan Distribution Limited • Format: Hardback • Pages: 208

The trial of Dominique Pelicot, which began on 2 September 2024, has captured the world's attention. Behind the haunting details of Pelicot's unthinkable crimes are a mother, Gisèle Pelicot, and a daughter, Caroline Darian, who were forced to rebuild their lives. This is their story. In November 2020, Caroline Darian received a call from the police in Carpentras. Her father was in police custody. The seizure of his computer equipment revealed the unthinkable: since 2013, he had drugged his wife before handing her over, in a state of unconsciousness, to men, from all ages and stages of life. With exceptional courage, Darian recounts the earth-shattering discovery that a loved one, her own father, is capable of the worst. But more importantly, she shares the remarkable story of her mother Gisèle and how she carried on living, without self-pity, while learning to manage all of the things her husband once took care of. She shares how her mother managed to maintain her joie de vivre in circumstances none of us could imagine. Gisèle Pelicot has won acclaim around the world after she gave up her right to anonymity and opted for a public trial, a trial in which Caroline herself has testified, turning the tables: the shame no longer borne by the victims in silence but directed, at last, to the abusers. She has also written her own book, A Hymn to Life. Together, mother and daughter reveal another side to the violence committed against women, as they bravely transform their private trauma into a collective fight. Product Information: • ISBN: 9781785126031 • Author: Caroline Darian • Publisher: Bonnier Books UK Limited • Format: Paperback • Pages: 208 • Dimensions: 19.6 x 13 x 2.3 cm

A revealing and honest first book from one of the UK's biggest trendsetters and star of the Amazon Prime series Molly-Mae: Behind It All. This is the real Molly-Mae, in her own words. Molly-Mae Hague is no stranger to the limelight, having found fame on TV and online. But behind the polished exterior there is a young woman with a unique story. It's the Molly not everyone gets to see. In Becoming Molly-Mae she unravels herself completely for the first time to open up about how she nurtured her creativity from a young age, took ownership of her body image, battle self-doubt and built a happy life. Along the way she shares the moments, relationships and life lessons that have made her who she is. From the energetic child who loved Irish dancing and pageants, to the teenager holding down a job at Boots whilst building her dreams at fashion school, her journey to Love Island and how she copes with fame today. By sharing these parts of herself, Molly-Mae gives a fresh take on finding beauty and balance in a busy world. Product Information: • ISBN: 9781529996166 • Author: Molly-Mae Hague • Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd • Format: Paperback • Pages: 304 • Dimensions: 19.8 x 12.6 x 1.9 cm

One of the most loved - and loving - father-and-son duos in the land, Harry and Jamie Redknapp are football royalty. Football runs through their veins. Both have enjoyed stellar careers on the pitch, in managerial dug-outs and in our television studios. But how did it all start, and what drove them on to be the football fanatics that they so passionately are today? A Family Obsession is the fascinating result of Harry and Jamie sitting round the kitchen table, where they discuss, debate, select and celebrate all aspects of the game that have inspired them. Who are the men who impacted their careers and fired that all-consuming passion for football? This is a deep dive into the matches, the players, the managers and the changes that have spanned their two generations. With amusing anecdotes, Harry and Jamie reveal the individuals who have set their pulses racing, opened their minds, enriched their football lives and stimulated their respective love affairs with the sport. From childhood idols to role models in young adulthood, from beloved team-mates to bitter rivals, from genius managers to the game's great mavericks - from Pele and Maradona to Bobby Moore and Lionel Messi via Steven Gerrad and Pep Guardiola - all are brought to life by two of the country's most knowledgeable, animated and beloved football obsessives. Product Information: • ISBN: 9781408721742 • Author: Harry Redknapp & Jamie Redknapp • Publisher: Little Brown • Format: Paperback • Pages: 288 • Dimensions: 19.56 x 12.7 x 1.52 cm

In his first full-length autobiography, comedy legend and national treasure Billy Connolly reveals the truth behind his windswept and interesting life. Born in a tenement flat in Glasgow in 1942, orphaned by the age of 4, and a survivor of appalling abuse at the hands of his own family, Billy's life is a remarkable story of success against all the odds. Billy became a folk musician with a genuine talent for playing the banjo. But it was his ability to spin stories, tell jokes and hold an audience in the palm of his hand that truly set him apart. As a young comedian Billy broke all the rules. He was fearless and outspoken, but his stand-up was full of warmth and silliness too. His startling, hairy 'glam-rock' stage appearance - wearing leotards, scissor suits and banana boots - only added to his appeal. Billy's stand-up comedy continued- for over 50 years, in fact - until a double diagnosis of cancer and Parkinson's Disease brought his remarkable live performances to an end. Since then, he has continued making TV shows, creating extraordinary drawings... and writing. Product Information: • ISBN: 9781529318272 • Author: Billy Connolly • Publisher: Two Roads • Format: Paperback • Pages: 400 • Dimensions: 19.6 x 12.6 x 3.4 cm

FATHOMLESS RICHES is the Reverend Richard Coles’ warm, witty and wise memoir in which he divulges with searing honesty and intimacy his pilgrimage from a rock-and-roll life of sex and drugs in the Communards to one devoted to God and Christianity. Product Information: • ISBN: 9781399628457 • Author: Richard Coles • Publisher: Orion Publishing • Format: Paperback • Pages: 288 • Dimensions: 20.32 x 12.7 x 2.29 cm

Johnny Herbert was one of the most brilliant natural talents to emerge in motor racing, but for all his bravery and prowess, he's lucky to be alive. After becoming British Junior Karting Champion (losing part of a finger in the process), then the Formula 3 title for Eddie Jordan in 1987, he was all set for a glittering debut season in Formula 1 when he was caught in a mass pile-up at Brands Hatch. That horrific crash threatened to end his career, but Herbert made a miraculous recovery, was a hugely popular winner of the British Grand Prix in 1995, and enjoyed 25 years of competitive motorsport, becoming the only British driver to win the 24 hours of Le Mans followed by a Grand Prix. And all that despite driving every pace in extreme pain; in fact, as the first and only disabled driver in F1 history. While chronicling an extraordinary life behind the wheel with cheer and his trademark cheeky humour, What Doesn't Kill You... contains a wealth of stories from the hard end of Formula 1: on Johnny's team-mate Michael Schumacher, legends like Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost, his fellow British adversaries Damon Hill, Martin Brundle and Nigel Mansell, and of course all those gruesome accidents. With an encyclopaedic knowledge and love of the sport, Johnny Herbert's autobiography, much like the man himself, delivers brilliance from the back of the grid. Product Information: • ISBN: 9781911754541 • Author: Johnny Herbert • Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd • Format: Paperback • Pages: 320 • Dimensions: 19.8 x 12.7 x 1.9 cm

THE NO.1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE CANON CLEMENT SERIES, THE REVEREND RICHARD COLES After a life of sex, drugs and the Communards, recounted in his acclaimed memoir Fathomless Riches, the Reverend Richard Coles devoted himself to God and Christianity. So what is life like for the parson in Britain today? From his ordination, through Advent and Christmas to Lent and Easter, Reverend Coles gives us a unique insight into his daily experience in the ministry, with all the joy, hope, drama and difficulty that entails. Written with extraordinary charm and compassion, Bringing in the Sheaves will inspire and inform all who read it. Product Information: • ISBN: 9781399628464 • Author: Richard Coles • Publisher: Orion Publishing • Format: Paperback • Pages: 256 • Dimensions: 19.69 x 12.7 x 1.27 cm

In June 2005 four US Navy SEALs left their base in Afghanistan for the Pakistani border. Their mission was to capture or kill a notorious al-Qaeda leader known to be ensconced in a Taliban stronghold surrounded by a small but heavily armed force. Less than twenty-four hours later, only one of those Navy SEALs was alive. This is the story of team leader Marcus Luttrell, the sole survivor of Operation Redwing. Blasted unconscious by a rocket grenade, blown over a cliff, but still armed and still breathing, Luttrell endured four desperate days fighting the al-Qaeda assassins sent to kill him, before finding unlikely sanctuary with a Pashtun tribe who risked everything to protect him from the circling Taliban killers. Product Information: • ISBN: 9780751555943 • Author: Marcus Luttrell & Patrick Robinson • Publisher: Orion Publishing • Format: Paperback  • Pages: 400 • Dimensions: 19.5 x 12.9 x 2.7 cm

Gavin & Stacey’ is a TV series like no other. Now, for the first time, its creators James Corden and Ruth Jones tell the full extraordinary story of how they turned their little show into a full-on cultural phenomenon. As they recount the rejection, obstacles and challenges they faced on the way to giving birth to their beloved comedy creation, James and Ruth also explore the flourishing of their own real-life friendship. While their now legendary on-screen characters Nessa and Smithy had a profound awkwardness to negotiate, culminating in that marriage proposal in the 2019 Christmas special, Ruth and James forged a magical relationship of mutual support based also on a deep, shared sense of subversive fun. Here, from their tentative initial pitch to the emotionally overwhelming final day of filming, the duo detail what’s occurred every step of the way, bouncing off each other in inimitable style. Full of revelations and never-before-heard stories, this is a one-of-a-kind book about a show that’s already gone down in history. Product Information: • ISBN: 9780857507440 • Author: Ruth Jones & James Corden • Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd • Format: Hardback • Pages: 336 • Dimensions: 24.1 x 16.4 x 3.3 cm

An outrageous, white-knuckle journey to the dark heart of an intoxicating world - from someone who survived the trading game and then blew it all wide open. 'If you were gonna rob a bank, and you saw the vault door there, left open, what would you do? Would you wait around?' Ever since he was a kid, kicking broken footballs on the streets of East London in the shadow of Canary Wharf's skyscrapers, Gary wanted something better. Something a whole lot bigger. Then he won a competition run by a bank: 'The Trading Game'. The prize: a golden ticket to a new life, as the youngest trader in the whole city. A place where you could make more money than you'd ever imagined. Where your colleagues are dysfunctional maths geniuses, overfed public schoolboys and borderline psychopaths, yet they start to feel like family. Where soon you're the bank's most profitable trader, dealing in nearly a trillion dollars. A day. Where you dream of numbers in your sleep - and then stop sleeping at all. But what happens when winning starts to feel like losing? When the easiest way to make money is to bet on millions becoming poorer and poorer - and, as the economy starts slipping off a precipice, your own sanity starts slipping with it? You want to stop, but you can't. Because nobody ever leaves. Would you stick, or quit? Even if it meant risking everything? Product Information: • ISBN: 9781802062731 • Author: Gary Stevenson • Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd • Format: Paperback • Pages: 432 • Dimensions: 19.7 x 12.9 x 2.5 cm

Champion dancer and Strictly Come Dancing professional Johannes Radebe has captured our hearts with his mesmerising talent, bringing joy to millions of fans and wowing the most critical of judges. He is loved not only for his dancing, but for his beautiful, infectious spirit and energy. Jojo: Finally Home is his never-before-told story, where he shares the experiences and challenges he’s faced – from growing up in Zamdela, a township in South Africa, as a young boy with a passion for dance (and playing with Barbies), to becoming the star he is today. Dance transformed Jojo’s future, giving him a tool to express himself – but as you will learn, this was not always easy. Captivating and moving, these are Jojo’s tales of euphoric highs and all-time lows, of making history, of grief, love, family and opportunity. It is a celebration of him finally feeling at home in his own skin. These are the personal moments that have shaped him into the man he is today – someone who lives life to the full and believes that no mountain is insurmountable. Product Information: • ISBN: 9781399722759 • Author: Johannes Radebe • Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton • Format: Paperback • Pages: 288 • Dimensions: 19.6 x 12.6 x 2.8 cm

Billed as 'the ultimate fighting machine', the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter is a US-designed close-support aircraft in service in the UK with the Army Air Corps (AAC). Apache at War is a senior British pilot's vivid and uncompromising account of flying this and other combat helicopters in action. Tautly, often graphically written, here is a memoir of the author's service flying close-support helicopters with the AAC, from patrolling 'Bandit Country' in Co. Armagh, Northern Ireland, in the late 1990s, to taking out Taliban fighters in Helmand Province, Afghanistan, in the mid to late 2000s, with active service in the Balkans and Iraq along the way. Besides combat flying, Steve Jones was also a qualified instructor on the Apache, and helped to teach the then 'Lieutenant H. Wales' - Prince Harry - to fly and fight the aircraft. He tells of mentoring the hard-living prince, of equipping him with skills that would later bring out the best in him in Afghanistan, offering insights into Harry the soldier and pilot far removed from the media figure of today. The first-person narrative is immediate, often dramatic, and peppered with military insights that give it great authenticity. Laced with laconic humour, it is a testament to the vital work of combat helicopters, as well as an intimate salute to a truly remarkable aircraft. Product Information: • ISBN: 9781789467734 • Author: Steve Jones • Publisher: Bonnier Books UK Limited • Format: Paperback • Pages: 400 • Dimensions: 19.8 x 12.9 x 2.5 cm