15 Memoirs by 15 Female Writers

We read memoirs to get a better understanding of well-known people, people with extraordinary stories to tell, or even to better understand ourselves. Female writers especially get the uninterrupted chance to share their thoughts in a long form that can inspire, move, and educate others, particularly other women.

I’ve read a lot of memoirs throughout my life. Most were by celebrities who I wanted to learn more about after falling in love with their work. But I’ve also since branched out to read memoirs from more ordinary people who have led interesting lives or at least can tell their ordinary stories in compelling ways.

I’ve compiled a list of 15 memoirs by non-celebrities and those whose names you know but who don’t necessarily fit the mold of celebrity. Some I read years ago while others I’ve read recently.

Because so much content of so many books that I have read throughout my life have disappeared from my memory (see my post, Should I Remember What I Read?), I took to Goodreads to better refresh my memory about these titles. Most of the books on the list had mixed reviews, showing just how personal people take their memoir reading.

I’m not guaranteeing that you’ll like all, or even any of the books on this list. But these are the books that stuck with me for one reason or another, and they encompass a variety of topics and lives lived that, if anything, give us a better understanding of the female perspective from many, though still a select, different points of view.

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Tender at the Bone: Growing Up at the Table by Ruth Reichl

A memoir centered around food and cooking, in Tender at the Bone, Reichel writes about significant food experiences throughout her life and how they shaped her personality and worldview. I learned about this book through the Writers Almanac podcast that I used to listen to back in the day. This podcast did a great job of really pitching their book recommendations in a compelling way that made me want to read it.

Anyone could write a food-themed book. We all have stories about the best and worst meals we’ve eaten, cooking triumphs and tragedies, or even just memories around a kitchen or dining room table. Reichl uses her stories to better understand herself, share her sense of humor about otherwise serious topics, and help inspire readers to reflect on their own relationship with food, family, and their pasts.

Sister Mother Husband Dog: (Etc.) by Delia Ephron

I tried to steer clear of celebrity memoirs on this list, but Delia Ephron isn’t a celebrity as much as one who has worked behind the scenes in the celebrity world and who has a famous last name that she shares with her late sister, Hollywood director and writer Nora Ephron. Delia’s memoir, Sister Mother Husband Dog, though, is very much her own life story which intertwines with her sister’s for obvious reasons, and it is written entirely in her much softer yet just as compelling voice.

The second time I read this book, it was the last book I borrowed from my neighborhood library before Covid hit. I had been worried about finishing it before it was due only to have the world shut down for weeks. It took months before the library even reopened their return bin so I could drop it off to be sterilized and reshelved in the cold, dark building until the library reopened after several more months.

During that time, this book sat on my nightstand, the cover staring up at me each morning which made me contemplate the title, the content, and the bits and pieces I had absorbed and were slowly leaving my memory as I packed my brain with new stories. But the tone and the mixed bag of content stuck, and it’s one of the memoirs I think of when I sit down to write any kind of personal essay.

This Star Won’t Go Out: The Life and Words of Esther Grace Earl by Esther Earl and Others

This Star Won’t Go Out is a compiled collection of writings by a teen girl who died from cancer in 2010. From her writings, it’s clear to see that Earl was an intelligent and reflective person who really just wanted to document the curveball that life threw at her.

I read this book back when I was consistently watching John and Hank Green’s channel on YouTube and was thoroughly impressed by Green’s novel, The Fault in Our Stars. Through his channel, I learned that the book was inspired by Earl’s story, and I wanted to learn more about her. I like the scrapbook layout of the book and the handwritten letters, photos, and excerpts that make up Earl’s life.

Many of us will never know what it’s like to deal with a long and deadly illness, particularly as a child, and it’s horrifyingly fascinating to learn the day-to-day struggles of being sick in bed and the way you keep your mind occupied while trying to heal. While no one wants to be defined by their health, it’s inevitable that this is the takeaway from this book along with the attitude of not losing yourself to your illness and finding a way to shine through the tough times.

A Stolen Life by Jaycee Dugard

A Stolen Life chronicles Dugard’s abduction and 18-year imprisonment by her captor. During this time, she endured brutal torture, years of isolation, and gave birth to two daughters.

I borrowed this book from my former boss during a time when it seemed like every other news story was about a woman being found after years of confinement against her will. We were both horrifically fascinated by such a scenario, and we had so many questions that this book expertly answered.

This book makes you want to start peeking into every shed and every basement window in the neighborhood in the off chance that someone is being kept there. It sounds like it was written by a young teen, showing how frozen in time Dugard was due to her circumstances. But there’s also a lot of bravery behind her words, and she paints a clear, brutal, but ultimately hopeful picture in retelling her story in print, and it was one that I devoured in just a few days.

 Julie and Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen by Julie Powell

Julie and Julia follows Julie Powell’s year-long journey of cooking every recipe in Julia Child’s cookbook. Throughout that year, she shared the highs and lows of cooking her way through the book and the cooking tips and life lessons she picked up along the way.

I picked up this audiobook long after watching the film that it was based on. Powell was an early success in the blogging world, and I wanted to hear what the book had to say that the film didn’t. There’s no blueprint for success, and Powell proved this through her unorthodox way of going from a blogger to an author to having a movie made about your life.

I remember Powell equating every meal on par with cooking a Thanksgiving dinner every night. Yet, she powered through and met her goal, and her reward was the book deal that she earned as a result of those efforts. Powell passed away suddenly in 2022, but she leaves a legacy in her decision to take a chance on a unique writing project that led to a whirlwind success.

Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life by Amy Rouse Rosenthal

Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life is a collection of alphabetized lists of various themes that have some significance to the author. It’s meant to be funny, reflective, and calming to those of us who love a good, organized list.

This was another recommendation from my John Green fan era. Green has always been generous about plugging other authors and sharing those who inspired him in his own writing. It becomes a domino effect where, when you find an author you respect, you seek out the authors who they respect.

Rosenthal died of ovarian cancer in 2017. She could have easily jumped on the bandwagon of writing her memoirs and centering it around her terminal illness. Instead, she decided to get creative and have fun with it, and I found that very refreshing. How you die can be a very defining part of your life, if not the defining thing, and getting readers to remember how you lived instead of how you died is a very noble and respectable quest.

I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death by Maggie O’Farrell

I Am, I Am, I Am is a collection of instances in which the author recaps 17 times that she had a near-death experience. From long illnesses to split second situations that put her in mortal danger, the collection is diverse and amazing but also believable.

I remember first hearing about this book while listening to O’Farrell being interviewed on a podcast, and the premise was so intriguing that I wanted to see if the book lived up to the hype. The book ended up delivering on that hype. Each chapter tells an engaging story of literal survival as the author cheats death over and over.

Of course, this book gets the reader thinking about their own mortality and near death experiences, whether it’s swerving to avoid a collision in their car, escaping from shady characters they meet in dark alleys, or overcoming a serious illness, life is a series of good and bad decisions, luck, and learning opportunities that isn’t meant to keep us from living but instead is about taking that stolen time and living life to the fullest.

Death is always a compelling topic, but O’Farrell doesn’t romanticize it or disregard it. Instead, she gives it the respect and reflection needed to appreciate it.

Out of the Pantry: A Disordered Eating Journey by Ronni Robinson

Out of the Pantry follows the author as she reflects on her life leading up to her disordered eating diagnosis and the experiences, habits, and justifications that led to this diagnosis. From her secretive binge eating as a child to the snacking she used to cope with an abusive relationship before learning about her diagnosis on TV one day, Robinson chronicles the step-by-step process it takes to develop, identify, and overcome such a condition.

This book is about an often dismissed addiction that doesn’t get as much attention but surely affects more people than those who are aware of it. We love to joke about polishing off a gallon of ice cream after a bad day at work or brag about being able to inhale a sleeve of cookies as a kind of party trick. We might not even brag about it at all as those who embrace diet culture would see it as gluttonous while those who push against it would consider it a win for not letting diet and exercise take over their life.

The truth is, too much of anything can be bad, and using food in an addictive way tethers you to it like a drug and can lead to poor health and a feeling of being out of control of your own free will. Robinson shows that this addiction can be overcome, and her own story proves it.

You can read my full review of Out of the Pantry here!

Scotland with a Stranger by Ninya

Scotland with a Stranger tells the story of the author’s decision to take a two-week trip to Scotland with a woman she met on Facebook. While this could have gone any number of ways, what transpires is a tale of two very different people who frequently butt heads, are pulled in two different directions, and take an emotional toll on each other as they attempt to navigate this vacation with two very different agendas.

What becomes torture for the author becomes entertainment for the reader as we watch this trainwreck of a trip play out. Travel is difficult with your closest allies, and the only thing these two women actually have in common is their desire to go to Scotland. It feels like a buddy comedy playing out in real life where neither main character is a picnic to be around, but that just makes for juicier conflicts and a surprising resolution.

I read this book fairly early into my blogging journey on LBB. It was one of those books that made me want to read more memoirs with interesting premises and a series of misadventures that culminate in a core life experience.

You can read my full review of Scotland with a Stranger here!

Confessions of a Do-Gooder Gone Bad by Ann Howley

Confessions of a Do-Gooder Gone Bad explores Howley’s relationship with her strict upbringing and her rebellion against that upbringing. This led to her career as a writer, even working in Hollywood for a time, before settling in Pittsburgh where she made her living teaching, writing, and eventually publishing multiple books.

I met Howley when I signed up for her non-credited writing class offered through the community college as a way to keep my writing skills sharp and get some feedback on the latest novel I was writing. One class turned into multiple, and her advice led to me getting my former publishing deal. She’s up-to-date on the industry and knows exactly how to guide each writer in the right direction for the work that they are trying to get out into the world.

I love the short, concentrated chapters of Howley’s memoirs and the glimpses of her full and fascinating life that she has chosen to share. It shows that doing the wrong thing can sometimes lead to a satisfying outcome.

My Story by Elizabeth Smart

My Story is a retelling of then 14-year-old Smart’s abduction, imprisonment, and liberation. It’s the story with the happy ending that shouldn’t have been, but this book explores the nine months of torture that Smart endured to get to that happy ending.

Elizabeth Smart is just a little younger than me, making her automatically relatable, even if we come from different places and had different upbringings. Her deeply religious faith was severely tested throughout her ordeal, but it also kept her from believing the lies that her captors were feeding her and helped her to heal afterwards in an impressive and hopeful way.

Smart’s story is very straightforward. She lets the events speak for themselves. She also comes off as very practical and strong willed, taking life day by day, both the good days and the bad, which I think is what ultimately led her to not only survive but thrive afterwards.

Ghostbuster’s Daughter: My Life with My Dad Harold Ramis by Violet Ramis Stiel

Ghostbuster’s Daughter is a personal memoir about the life of a child of a celebrity. Violet Ramis grew up with a famous father who she adored, not because he was famous, but because he was her dad. The story is very much hers, but she largely frames it around her relationship with his dad and includes his big life moments from her point of view.

Despite her adoration, Stiel isn’t afraid to lay out her father’s flaws or tragedies, from fathering a child with another woman to struggling with an autoimmune disease that eventually took his life. She also chronicles her own ups and downs, even the most sensitive and tragic ones as well as those that don’t paint her in the greatest of lights.

Fans of Ramis will get an exclusive deep dive into his life as Stiel balances stories about both his work and home life and her own perspectives of him as a filmmaker and as a person. So many memoirs from Hollywood children can come across as exploitive or even precious, but Stiel is a talented writer who knows how to straddle fan service with personal reflection.

A Mother’s Reckoning: Living in the Aftermath of Tragedy by Sue Klebold

A Mother’s Reckoning was written by the mother of Dylan Klebold, one of the two high schoolers who opened fire at Columbine High School back in 1999. In it, she tells the story of her son’s life and she and her family’s experiences after the tragedy as well as her work in learning more about the human brain in an attempt to better understand her son’s motivations and mindset in an attempt to head off the actions of any teen who thinks about attempting the same.

This book came onto my radar as a recommendation mentioned during an episode of the true crime podcast, My Favorite Murder. Having come of age at the time of the shooting, this was a day that has stuck in my head as one of those experiences where innocence is lost and tragedy feels real.

Klebold sets the record straight about a bunch of rumors that surround the tragedy. She also works to help the reader understand her own perspective of her son both before, after, and since learning more about mental health. It’s a tightrope walk of maintaining her understanding that her son was completely to blame for his own actions while at the same time sympathizing with the internal and external factors that led him to make that choice, and based on my willingness to keep returning to this audiobook to learn more about her story, I feel that Klebold pulled it off well.

The In-Between: Unforgettable Encounters During Life’s Final Moments by Hadley Vlahos

In The In-Between, hospice nurse Hadley Vlahos shares stories from her time taking care of the dying in their own homes and of the spiritual, paranormal, and psychological experiences that she and her patients experienced together. Vlahos’ training prepared her for all of the standard care she’d need to administer, but it didn’t prepare her for the range of personalities, life lessons, regrets, and new understanding of death, dying, and living that she’d accrue in her job.

I learned about Vlahos through videos that she posted on Facebook where she retold and even reenacted the stories that she wrote about in her book. The stories were captivating, and I wanted to hear their full, written versions as well as others that she saved exclusively for the readers.

Again, I’m going to use any excuse to delve into the topic of death and the afterlife. Vlahos has a gift for storytelling and knows how to pace, retell, and move her readers in the same way that she guides her patients to their last breath.

One in a Millennial: On Friendship, Feelings, Fangirls, and Fitting In by Kate Kennedy

One in a Millennial is a single perspective of millennial culture told by Kennedy, a podcaster whose millennial experience checked many pop culture boxes of the day. It’s a memoir disguised as a history book which both pokes fun at and dissects very girl-centric interests of its day.

I’d never heard of Kennedy, and I feel like I chose to read this book on a whim while scrolling through Libby for something to listen to while I did yardwork on a hot, summer day. Nonfiction audiobooks are very similar to podcasts, and I would catch myself nodding along to certain parts while shaking my head at others but still wanting to hear the author’s personal thoughts on a topic I may have no interest in or know anything about.

The past 40+ years have been such a whirlwind of change that you can’t help but chronically look back to try to unravel all that has gone down. It’s also comforting to go back to “simpler times” when childhood interests could provide both distraction and create obsession in a young girl’s brain. This book doesn’t necessarily transport you to back to childhood, but it feels like talking it over with a new friend.

Which of these books have you read or are most interested in reading? Leave your answers in the comments below!

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