Welcome to February and the second month of the 2025 Read with MLC Reading Challenge! This month's goal is to read a book by or about someone you admire. The book industry produces an astounding number of biographies and memoirs each year. According to the Library and Book Trade Almanac, there were 4,887 biographies published in the first year of this millennium. Just over 20 years later, in 2022, that number remained just as high, at 4,949. Why do we enjoy reading about other people so much? A quote often misattributed to C.S.Lewis says that "we read to know we are not alone". Even though the quote comes from screenwriter William Nicholson instead of Lewis, it still rings true. Biographies and memoirs humanize the people we admire, showing us their foibles and faults as well as their heady accomplishments. They show that we are all out here in the world, living our lives and doing our best. Which biographies and memoirs have staff members of the Mississippi Library Commission enjoyed? Scroll down to find out!
