Thura’s Diary:

My Life in Wartime Iraq

Thura al-Windawi

921 AL93A

As a 19-year-old Iraqi living in

Baghdad in 2003, Thura endures

danger, confusion, and hardships.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Maya Angelou

818.54 AN43YI

Memoirs from African American

poet and prose writer Maya Angelou.

Tasting the Sky: A Palestinian

Childhood

Ibtisam Barakat

956.94053 B231T

A Palestinian woman recalls her

childhood under military occupation

in the Middle East during the Six

Day War in 1967.

Warriors Don’t Cry

Melba Pattillo Beals

379.263 B368W

In 1957, Melba Beal faced abuse

and harassment as one of the first nine

African American students to attend

Central High School in Arkansas.

King of the Mild Frontier:

An Ill-Advised Autobiography

Chris Crutcher

813.54 C889YC

Crutcher, author of young adult novels

such as Ironman and Whale Talk, tells

of growing up in Cascade, Idaho, with

a strict father and an alcoholic mother.

Waukesha Public Library

The Invisible Thread:

An Autobiography

Yoshiko Uchida

+ 813.54 UC4YU

A Japanese American recalls being sent

to an internment camp during WWII.

Up From Slavery

Booker T. Washington

921 W276

A moving historical autobiography of

an African American leader, educator,

and former slave.

Ryan White: My Own Story

Ryan White

616.9792 W585R

In the 1990s, the author is discriminated

against after he contracts AIDS from

a blood transfusion.

Listening With My Heart

Heather Whitestone

791.62092 W588W

A biography of the first deaf Miss

America.

I am Malala : The Girl Who Stood

Up For Education and Was Shot

By the Taliban

Malala Yousafzai

921 Y882Y

When the Taliban took control of

the Swat Valley, one girl spoke out,

and refusing to be silenced as she

fought for her right to an education.

When I Was a Soldier: A Memoir

Valérie Zenatti

921 Z42W

The author describes her life in the

Israeli army, where she participated

in secret missions.

Knucklehead : Tall Tales &

Mostly True Stories of

Growing up Scieszka

Jon Scieszka

+ 813.54 SCI27YS

Jon grew up as one of six brothers

in Catholic school, with lots of

comic books, lazy summers at the

lake with time to kill, babysitting

misadventures, TV shows, and

jokes told at family dinner.

Upon the Head of a Goat

Aranka Siegal

921 SI15S

Siegel, a Jewish child during World

War II, recounts her terrifying

ordeal and her struggle to survive.

Ghosts of War: The True Story

of a 19-year-old GI

Ryan Smithson

956.70443 SM69G

Smithson writes about his

experiences during 9/11 and his

time serving in the Iraq War.

Memories of Clason Point

Kelly Sonnenfeld

921 SO59M

The author describes growing up

during the Great Depression.

Living Up the Street:

Narrative Recollections

Gary Soto

811.54 SO78YS

Gary Soto writes about his Mexican

American childhood in California.

Joni: An Unforgettable Story

Joni Eareckson Tada

921 T12T

The inspiring tale of Joni,

a quadriplegic.

The Hiding Place

Corrie Ten Boom

921 T251T 1996

Corrie’s story of upheaval in

World War II. 11/14 aw

Memoirs for teens

Autobiographies and

321 Wisconsin Ave.

Waukesha, WI 53186

(262) 524-3682

www.waukesha.lib.wi.us

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Breaking Through

Francisco Jiménez

921 J564JB (also +) Having come from Mexico to

California ten years before,

fourteen-year-old Francisco is still

working in the fields while fighting

to improve his life and complete his

education.

Girl, Interrupted Susanna Kaysen

616.8527 K184G Susanna Kaysen tells of her time

spent in a psychiatric hospital for

teenage girls during the 60’s.

What’s That Pig Outdoors?

A Memoir of Deafness

Henry Kisor

921 K642W

Henry Kisor writes of the pitfalls

and challenges of his hearing loss

at a young age.

Chinese Cinderella: The True

Story of an Unwanted Daughter

Adeline Yen Mah

PB YA MAH ( + 921 M2775MC) A girl describes the misery of her

life under a cruel stepmother and

an uncaring father.

Angela’s Ashes: A Memoir

Frank McCourt

921 M1377M

Born in New York and growing

up in Ireland, the author describes

his struggles with poverty, family

troubles, and survival.

Bad Boy: A Memoir Walter Dean Myers

813.54 M992YM Myers tells of his early years as

he grew up in 1940’s Harlem.

Boy: Tales of Childhood Roald Dahl

+ 823.914 D137YD

The creator of Charlie and the

Chocolate Factory recalls his

childhood.

Anne Frank:

The Diary of a Young Girl

Anne Frank

PB YA Frank and 921 F851F A Jewish girl writes about her life

while in hiding during World War II.

Hole in My Life

Jack Gantos

813.54 G158YG

As a young adult, Jack became

a drug user and smuggler, was

arrested, and did time in prison,

all while hoping to become a writer.

Eleanor’s Story

Eleanor Ramrath Garner

921 G1866G

The author describes her life

as an American trapped in

Germany during World War II.

Growing Up Latino

813.01 G919H

Memoirs and stories of life in

the U.S. by Julia Alvarez, Oscar

Hijuelos, Sandra Cisneros, and

many other Latino authors.

Rocket Boys: A Memoir

Homer Hickam

921 H524H

NASA engineer, Hickman,

recounts his childhood as a

teen growing up in the 60’s.

Red Scarf Girl: A Memoir

of the Cultural Revolution

Ji-Li Jiang

+ 951.056 J56R

Ji-Li recalls the nightmare of

China’s cultural upheaval

during her childhood.

The Lost Childhood:

A World War II Memoir

Yehuda Nir

940.5318 N629L

As a Jewish teenage boy in Poland

during World War II, Yehuda’s life

was a nightmare of evading capture.

Rascal, a Memoir of a Better Era

Sterling North

599.7632 N8 N811R (also +)

Sterling tells of his life in rural

Wisconsin as he grows up

with a pet raccoon.

The Upstairs Room

Johanna Reiss

+ 940.5318 R278U

Reiss was a Jewish girl hiding from

the Nazis during World War II.

The Pregnancy Project

Gaby Rodriguez

306.8743 R618P

Gaby tells her story about fighting

stereotypes and how she found the

strength to come out from the

shadow of low expectations.

The Burn Journals

Brent Runyon

921 R876R

Brent describes his suicide attempt

and his painful recovery.

Prairie-Town Boy

Carl Sandburg

811.52 SA56YSA

Poet Carl Sandburg recounts

memories of his childhood in

Galesburg, Illinois.

Persepolis

Marjane Satrapi

GRAPHIC BOOK SATRAPI

921 SA83S

The daughter of ardent Marxists

describes growing up in Tehran

in a country plagued by political

upheaval.