May 16 is Biographers Day
May 16, 2012 | M | Comments (0)
Today is the anniversary of the first meeting between Samuel Johnson and James Boswell. The men met in 1763 in a London bookstore. The meeting and friendship led to the publication of Boswell's landmark biography, The Life of Samuel Johnson (also available as an eBook).
May 16 has been designated as Biographers Day in honour of this meeting. Why not celebrate by reading a biography?
These are books about extraordinary and sometimes unlikely friendships.
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Boswell's Presumptuous Task: the Making of the Life of Dr. Johnson by Adam Sisman
Sisman documents Boswell and Johnson's friendship, detailing Boswell's struggle to complete the legendary biography.
The Love Queen of Malabar: Memoir of a Friendship with Kamala Das by Merrily Weisbrod
Canadian writer Weisbrod was nominated for the 2011 Charles Taylor prize for this memoir about her friendship with controversial Indian writer Kamala Das.
Mrs Lincoln and Mrs Keckly: the Remarkable Story of the Friendship between a First Lady and a Former Slave by Jennifer Fleischner
Mary Todd Lincoln and Elizabeth Keckly were both born in 1818 but their early lives were radically different. The Todd family were well-respected and upwardly mobile; Keckly was the product of a relationship between her slave mother and her white master. Keckly's skill as a seamstress brought her to the attention of Mrs Lincoln and she soon became one of the First Lady's most trusted confidantes.
Sound and Fury: Two Powerful Lives, One Fateful Friendship by Dave Kindred
Although outwardly different, sportscaster Howard Cosell and boxer Mohammad Ali formed a complex relationship during the turbulent 1960s.
White Heat: The Friendship of Emily Dickinson and Thomas Wentworth Higginson by Brenda Wineapple
Although they only met twice, Dickinson and Higginson forged a complex and long-lasting friendship through letters. This account of their relationship is based upon 25 years of letters set to Higginson by Dickinson.
This is merely a small selection of the biographies available at Toronto Public Library. Please consult with staff at your local branch for more suggestions.
