8 memoirs perfect for writers to read

Check out our list of favorite memoirs, and find out why you should read them

The memoir is my absolute favorite genre to read. I love being invited into someone’s life or to gain a totally new perspective I haven’t considered before in just a few short hours. I've found there is so much to be learned in these pages, as someone pours out their life and heart—and the best memoirs often help us envision our best selves as well.

Which memoirs should we as writers read? I struggled to narrow my list down because there are so many I love and so many more that I could recommend.

Below are eight memoirs from different genres to consider as you gather your Summer reading. Some are considered classic Christian memoirs, some are secular and quite recent, and all of them have been meaningful to me in some way.

(Want to learn more about memoirs, and especially how you can write them yourself?

“How to Write a Memoir that’s Personal and Deeply Researched” from Writer’s Digest

“Resources for Writing Memoir” from The Creative Penn )

The books are not only meaningful to read, but they can also provide special insight to you as a Christian writer. (As we often say here on “The Ready Writer,” one of the best ways to learn how to be a good writer is to read good writing.)

The Hiding Place, by Corrie Ten Boom

Safe to say, this is one of the great Christian classic memoirs.

I have a bit of a personal story to share with this one: as I was growing up in the Baptist church, I was constantly active in Mission Friends, GAs and Acteens (all part of the Women’s Missionary Union) and, in my small church, these were all led by the same two amazing, mission-minded older ladies. These two ladies encouraged us frequently to read Corrie’s book, but I was young and distracted and thought I was too busy doing other things. Thank goodness, I finally decided to read it this year. Now that I can appreciate it and see it as absolutely breathtaking, I would give anything to be able to talk to Emily and Jackie about it now.

If you are not familiar with the story of Corrie Ten Boom, she and her family were watchmakers in the Netherlands who became active leaders in the Dutch underground during the Nazi occupation of World War II. They helped to save the lives of more than 800 Jewish people and countless other workers as well. In 1944, they were betrayed and taken to concentration camps, where only Corrie survived to tell their story—which became this memoir.

Definitely, please, read this one. It is life changing.

Purchase The Hiding Place on Amazon.

Will the Circle Be Unbroken? A Memoir of Learning to Believe You’re Gonna Be Okay, by Sean Dietrich

We were blessed to have Sean as a keynote speaker a few years ago at the Southern Christian Writers Conference and he has become one of my favorite writers. I love following him and his wife Jamie on Facebook and I look forward to his daily “Sean of the South” posts.

That said, this memoir is remarkable. Sean shares his story of an incredibly difficult life, growing up in poverty and losing his father to suicide, with honesty and clarity and yet somehow also with humor, as only he can. Even more, though, he tells a story of hope, resilience, and overcoming the most daunting obstacles this life can place before us.

Somehow, no matter how heavy the theme he is sharing, his writing is also pure joy and I would read a cookbook if Sean wrote it.

Miracles and Other Reasonable Things, by Sarah Bessey

Sarah Bessey is one of the co-founders of the Evolving Faith conference and has published several excellent books as well maintaining an active presence on Substack. I have long been a fan of her work, but this book in particular spoke to my heart; her experiences of developing a severe chronic pain condition following a terrible car accident and how it shook her faith to its core is raw and honest. As I also live with chronic illness, I felt seen and understood as I read along.

I recommend it for anyone, but especially for those of us who live with chronic health issues.

See the book on Sarah’s website.

The Bright Hour, by Nina Riggs

Nina Riggs wrote this memoir, subtitled “A Memoir of Living and Dying,” as she faced a Stage IV breast cancer diagnosis in her thirties while mothering two young boys. At the same time, she was just losing her own mother to a long-fought cancer. Somehow, her memoir manages to be honest about the depth of her sorrow, yet filled with life and light and humor as well. She is the great-great-great granddaughter of Ralph Waldo Emerson, with tales of their family also woven masterfully throughout, and he would be proud.

Your heart will ache with this memoir - and it will stay with you.

Nobody Will Tell You This But Me, by Bess Kalb

When Bess Kalb’s grandmother was alive, Bess saved every voicemail she left. When her “Bobby” passed away at 90, she set out to tell the story of her vivacious, hilarious grandmother and their relationship through stories, photos, and, yes, those voicemails.

This memoir is different from any of the others on our list and it is a treasure. It just shines.

As someone who was raised in part by my own grandmother, it absolutely owned my heart and I highly recommend it.

Check the book out on Amazon.

Dear Writer, by Maggie Smith

As the title suggests, this book (subtitled, “Pep Talks and Practical Advice for the Creative Life”) is part writer’s manual and part memoir. It is well-written and filled with excellent guidance and inspiration for writers, and Maggie’s writing never disappoints.

Especially for our Ready Writer readers, this is an excellent addition to your Summer reading list.

Learn more about the book on Maggie’s website.

I Guess I Haven’t Learned That Yet, by Shauna Niequist

Shauna Niequist has been a well-known Christian writer for many years now, but this memoir is a significant departure from her previous work and it resonated with me deeply the first time I read it.

To make a *very* long story short, she and her family moved to New York for her husband to attend seminary after she had lived in the same community in Illinois for many years. This move occurred during a time her father, pastor of a nationally known megachurch, was involved in a very public and devastating fall from grace. All of this (as well as other things that just happen in life) left her searching for her footing.

When I sat down to tell you all about this book I love and why you should read it as well, two things happened. First, I was drawn to start listening to the audiobook again. Second, at the end of the introduction, I came across a stunning passage where Shauna describes what this memoir is for - and it is perfect:

“This is the book I wish someone had written for me when I was in a season of near-constant untethering and unbelonging, wandering and fumbling, and ultimately discovering a million beautiful surprises after a couple of very dark years. There are seasons for tidy prose, and this is decidedly not one of them. This is everything I know–wild and messy, accompaniments for the hardest stretches of the journey.

This is not about what I’ve been through; This is about what remains, in all our lives, when the deals and agreements and myths and illusions have been washed away by pain and loss and years.This is about a search for grounding when nothing feels stable, the yearning for peace in a raging storm.”

Purchase the book on Amazon.

Life: My Story Through History, by Pope Francis

For my blog writing, I am forever working on assorted themed reading projects and it happened that when Pope Francis passed away I had just finished reading several of his books, intending to write about him because he was already so dear to my heart. One of them was his autobiography, Life: My Story Through History, and it is truly outstanding.

As the title suggests, he shares his memories of major world events from his perspective, among them: World War II from his home in Argentina, the Cold War, the Moon Landing, political shifts in Argentina throughout his lifetime, the fall of the Berlin Wall, September 11th, the Covid pandemic, and his thoughts as we move forward. It is fascinating to read all these events through his eyes and I am so thankful he shared this before he went to be with the Lord.

Learn about all of Pope Francis’ books.

Bird by Bird, by Anne Lamott

And as a bonus: This is another combination of writing manual and memoir (like Maggie Smith’s listed above).

It seems a perfect fit for our Ready Writer readers, and it is filled to the brim with helpful advice for authors and as well as Anne’s witty and brilliant insights that make for fantastic reading.

(Much like Sean Dietrich, if Anne begins moonlighting as a Keuring instruction manual writer, well, I’ll be reading those too. She’s incredible.)

I hope that this list has given you some ideas to add to your Summer reading list and that they may inspire you to write your own personal stories.

“In the end, we will all become stories.” (Margaret Atwood)

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Miranda Herring is a contributing writer for “The Ready Writer” who began blogging her journey living with autoimmune disease as a way both to express what she was experiencing and to connect with others who were walking a similar path. Since then, she has written a devotional for those living with chronic illness and is now at work on her second book. Check out her book on Kindle. Read her blog.