Biographies and Memoirs i'm putting into wish list

This is Irving Stone's powerful and passionate biographical novel of Michelangelo. His time: the turbulent Renaissance, the years of poisoning princes, warring popes, the all-powerful Medici family, the fanatic monk Savonarola. His loves: the frail and lovely daughter of Lorenzo de Medici; the ardent mistress of Marco Aldovrandi; and his last love--his greatest love--the beautiful, unhappy Vittoria Colonna. His genius: a God-driven fury from which he wrested the greatest art the world has ever known. Michelangelo Buonarotti, creator of "David", painter of the Sistine ceiling, architect of the dome of St Peter's, lives once more in Irving Stone's marvellous book.

With The Rolling Stones, Keith Richards created the songs that roused the world, and he lived the original rock and roll life.

Now, at last, the man himself tells his story of life in the crossfire hurricane. Listening obsessively to Chuck Berry and Muddy Waters records, learning guitar and forming a band with Mick Jagger and Brian Jones. The Rolling Stones's first fame and the notorious drug busts that led to his enduring image as an outlaw folk hero. Creating immortal riffs like the ones in "Jumping Jack Flash" and "Honky Tonk Women." His relationship with Anita Pallenberg and the death of Brian Jones. Tax exile in France, wildfire tours of the U.S., isolation and addiction. Falling in love with Patti Hansen. Estrangement from Jagger and subsequent reconciliation. Marriage, family, solo albums and Xpensive Winos, and the road that goes on forever.

With his trademark disarming honesty, Keith Richard brings us the story of a life we have all longed to know more of, unfettered, fearless, and true.

Hector Berlioz was one of the most significant artistic figures of the 19th century. Intended for medicine, he turned instead to music and became one of its most original composers. His first major work, the semi-autobiographical Symphonie Fantastique, revolutionised the sound of the orchestra and its use in storytelling. Unhappy with the quality of performance of his works, he took up the baton himself and became a great conductor, celebrated across Europe and in Russia. Requiring large numbers of performers, his works were expensive to perform and he was condemned (as he saw it) to earn extra money from writing - at which he also excelled.

His was a passionate life driven by love: of music, but also of three women in particular. First came the Irish actress Harriet Smithson, then the singer Marie Recio, and in his final years, he communicated with Estelle Fournier, a woman he had been infatuated with when they were both children. His experience of the artistic politics of the Paris music scene, the itinerant life of the guest conductor and the upheavals in the world around him called out to be told - and fortunately, his masterly use of the written word enabled him to do so with an irresistible combination of exuberance, humour, and indignation. His portraits of friends, enemies, and organisations are perfectly drawn, taking us back to his time but also allowing us to recognise parallels with our world now.

The translation of the Memoirs is the definitive version by David Cairns, whose two-volume biography of Berlioz won many prizes, and captures to perfection the dazzling prose of the original. It is read by the distinguished actor and Berlioz enthusiast Malcolm Sinclair, who brings the man’s personality and style brilliantly to life.

Barbra Streisand is by any account a living legend, a woman who in a career spanning six decades has excelled in every area of entertainment. She is among the handful of EGOT winners (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony) and has one of the greatest and most recognizable voices in the history of popular music. She has been nominated for a Grammy 46 times, and with Yentl she became the first woman to write, produce, direct, and star in a major motion picture. In My Name Is Barbra, she tells her own story about her life and extraordinary career, from growing up in Brooklyn to her first star-making appearances in New York nightclubs to her breakout performance in Funny Girl on stage and winning the Oscar for that performance on film. Then came a long string of successes in every medium in the years that followed. The book is, like Barbra herself, frank, funny, opinionated, and charming. She recounts her early struggles to become an actress, eventually turning to singing to earn a living; the recording of some of her acclaimed albums; the years of effort involved in making Yentl; her direction of The Prince of Tides; her friendships with figures ranging from Marlon Brando to Madeleine Albright; her political advocacy; and the fulfillment she’s found in her marriage to James Brolin.