Recommendations based on Farewell to the East End: The Last Days of the East End Midwivesby Jennifer Worth

* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans

  1. Shadows of the Workhouse

    by Jennifer Worth
    A nurse's journey of compassion, courage and determination amidst the harsh realities of a workhouse in 1950s London.

    In this follow up to CALL THE MIDWIFE, Jennifer Worth, a midwife working in the docklands area of East London in the 1950s tells more stories about the people she encountered. There's Jane, who ... (Goodreads)

  2. The Midwife: A Memoir of Birth, Joy, and Hard Times

    by Jennifer Worth
    A midwife's story of bringing life into the world and the joys and struggles of living in poverty-stricken East London.

    At the age of twenty-two, Jennifer Worth leaves her comfortable home to move into a convent and become a midwife in post war London's East End slums. The colorful characters she meets while ... (Goodreads)

  3. Twelve Years a Slave

    by Solomon Northup
    A man's journey of survival and resilience after being kidnapped and sold into slavery in the antebellum South.

    Twelve Years a Slave, sub-title: Narrative of Solomon Northup, citizen of New-York, kidnapped in Washington city in 1841, and rescued in 1853, from a cotton plantation near the Red River in ... (Goodreads)

  4. The Six Wives of Henry VIII

    by Alison Weir
    A historical account of the tumultuous lives of Henry VIII's six wives, their political and religious struggles.

    The tempestuous, bloody, and splendid reign of Henry VIII of England (1509-1547) is one of the most fascinating in all history, not least for his marriage to six extraordinary women. In this ... (Goodreads)

  5. The Lost Child of Philomena Lee: A Mother, Her Son and a 50 Year Search

    by Martin Sixsmith
    A true story of a mother's search for her son, who was taken away from her by nuns and sold for adoption in America.

    When she became pregnant as a teenager in Ireland in 1952, Philomena Lee was sent to a convent to be looked after as a “fallen woman.” Then the nuns took her baby from her and sold him, like ... (Goodreads)

  6. The Lady in the Tower: The Fall of Anne Boleyn

    by Alison Weir
    A detailed account of the events leading to the execution of Anne Boleyn, second wife of King Henry VIII.

    The imprisonment and execution of Queen Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII's second wife, in May 1536 was unprecedented in English history. It was sensational in its day, and has exerted endless fascination ... (Goodreads)

  7. All But My Life: A Memoir

    by Gerda Weissmann Klein
    A gripping account of one woman's survival of the Holocaust and her struggle to reclaim her life.

    All But My Life is the unforgettable story of Gerda Weissmann Klein's six-year ordeal as a victim of Nazi cruelty. From her comfortable home in Bielitz (present-day Bielsko) in Poland to her ... (Barnes & Noble)

  8. Not That Bad: Dispatches from Rape Culture

    by Roxane Gay
    A collection of essays exploring the pervasive culture of sexual violence and harassment, and the impact it has on survivors.

    Cultural critic and bestselling author Roxane Gay has edited a collection of essays that explore what it means to live in a world where women are frequently belittled and harassed due to their ... (Goodreads)

  9. The Hiding Place: The Triumphant True Story of Corrie Ten Boom

    by Corrie ten Boom
    A remarkable testament to faith and courage in the face of unfathomable odds and unspeakable horrors.

    The book begins with the ten Boom family celebrating the 100th anniversary of the family business; they sell and repair watches under the family's elderly father, Casper ten Boom . The business takes ... (Wikipedia)

  10. The Good Women of China: Hidden Voices

    by Xinran
    Xinran shares the stories of women in China, revealing their struggles and triumphs in a male-dominated society.

    When Deng Xiaoping's efforts to "open up" China took root in the late 1980s, Xinran recognized an invaluable opportunity. As an employee for the state radio system, she had long wanted to help ... (Goodreads)

  11. Elizabeth: The Struggle for the Throne

    by David Starkey
    An in-depth look at the rise of Queen Elizabeth I, detailing her turbulent and triumphant reign.

    The legend of Elizabeth I, the untouchable, charismatic Virgin Queen, is a powerful and enduring one. Most biographies focus on the years of her reign, during which she proved herself as adept a ... (Goodreads)

  12. Life and Death in Shanghai

    by Nien Cheng
    Autobiographical account of a woman's survival during China's Cultural Revolution.

    In August 1966 a group of Red Guards ransacked the home of Nien Cheng. Her background made her an obvious target for the fanatics of the Cultural Revolution: educated in London, the widow of an ... (Goodreads)

  13. I Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Up for Education and Changed the World

    by Malala Yousafzai
    The inspiring story of Malala Yousafzai, who stood up against the Taliban for girls' education and survived an assassination attempt.

    When the Taliban took control of the Swat Valley in Pakistan, one girl spoke out. Malala Yousafzai refused to be silenced and fought for her right to an education. On Tuesday, October 9, 2012, when ... (Goodreads)

  14. The Big Burn: Teddy Roosevelt and the Fire that Saved America

    by Timothy Egan
    The heroic story of how Teddy Roosevelt and the US Forest Service fought the largest wildfire in US history.

    On the afternoon of August 20, 1910, a battering ram of wind moved through the drought-stricken national forests of Washington, Idaho, and Montana, whipping the hundreds of small blazes burning ... (Goodreads)

  15. A Night to Remember

    by Walter Lord
    An account of the fateful night of the sinking of the Titanic, told through the stories of survivors.

    First published in 1955, A Night to Remember remains a completely riveting account of the Titanic 's fatal collision and the behavior of the passengers and crew, both noble and ignominious. Some ... (Goodreads)

  16. Geisha, a Life

    by Mineko Iwasaki
    Autobiography of a geisha, recounting her life of beauty, art, and traditional Japanese culture.

    "No woman in the three-hundred-year history of the karyukai has ever come forward in public to tell her story. We have been constrained by unwritten rules not to do so, by the robes of tradition and ... (Goodreads)

  17. The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics

    by Daniel James Brown
    An inspiring story of a rowing crew battling against the odds to win gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics.

    This novel is about the University of Washington eight-oared crew that represented the United States in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, and narrowly beat out Italy and Germany to win the gold medal. The ... (Wikipedia)

  18. Wishful Drinking

    by Carrie Fisher
    An autobiographical account of the author's life and struggles with fame, addiction, and mental illness.

    In Wishful Drinking , Carrie Fisher tells the true and intoxicating story of her life with inimitable wit. Born to celebrity parents, she was picked to play a princess in a little movie called Star ... (Goodreads)

  19. The Nazi Officer's Wife: How One Jewish Woman Survived the Holocaust

    by Edith Hahn Beer
    An incredible true story of a Jewish woman's courage and determination to survive the Holocaust.

    Edith Hahn was an outspoken young woman studying law in Vienna when the Gestapo forced Edith and her mother into a ghetto, issuing them papers branded with a "J." Soon, Edith was taken away to a ... (Goodreads)

  20. The Road to Little Dribbling: Adventures of an American in Britain

    by Bill Bryson
    A humorous account of an American's journey through the British Isles, exploring its customs and culture.

    The hilarious and loving sequel to a hilarious and loving classic of travel writing:, Notes from a Small Island, Bill Bryson’s valentine to his adopted country of England In 1995 Bill Bryson got into ... (Goodreads)

  21. Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void

    by Mary Roach
    Exploring the science, technology and culture of human space travel.

    The best-selling author of Stiff and Bonk explores the irresistibly strange universe of space travel and life without gravity. From the Space Shuttle training toilet to a crash test of NASA’s new ... (Goodreads)

  22. Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain

    by Oliver Sacks
    Exploration of the power of music and its effects on the human brain.

    With the same trademark compassion and erudition he brought to The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, Oliver Sacks explores the place music occupies in the brain and how it affects the human ... (Goodreads)

  23. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

    by Jean-Dominique Bauby
    A paralyzed man's memoir, transcribed through blinking his left eye.

    On December 8, 1995, Bauby, the editor-in-chief of French, Elle, magazine, suffered a stroke and lapsed into a coma . He awoke 20 days later, mentally aware of his surroundings, but physically ... (Wikipedia)

  24. An Anthropologist on Mars: Seven Paradoxical Tales

    by Oliver Sacks
    Study of human behavior, exploring the complexities of neurological conditions.

    Paradoxical portraits of seven neurological patients, including a surgeon consumed by the compulsive tics of Tourette's syndrome unless he is operating; an artist who loses all sense of color in a ... (Goodreads)

  25. Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness

    by Susannah Cahalan
    A journalist's journey of survival and recovery from a rare autoimmune disorder.

    An award-winning memoir and instant New York Times bestseller that goes far beyond its riveting medical mystery, Brain on Fire is the powerful account of one woman’s struggle to recapture her ... (Goodreads)

  26. Half Broke Horses

    by Jeannette Walls
    A novel based on the life of the author's grandmother, Lily Casey Smith, a resilient and adventurous woman who overcomes numerous obstacles in the American West.

    Jeannette Walls's memoir The Glass Castle was "nothing short of spectacular" (Entertainment Weekly). Now, in Half Broke Horses, she brings us the story of her grandmother, told in a first-person ... (Goodreads)

  27. Dear Ijeawele, or a Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions

    by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
    A guide for raising children with feminist values, and advocating for gender equality.

    From the best-selling author of, Americanah, and, We Should All Be Feminists, comes a powerful new statement about feminism today–written as a letter to a friend. A few years ago, Chimamanda Ngozi ... (Goodreads)

  28. Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books

    by Azar Nafisi
    Memoir of a professor's struggle in Iran, using literature to find freedom.

    The book consists of a memoir of the author's experiences about returning to Iran during the revolution (1978–1981) and living under the Islamic Republic of Iran government until her departure in ... (Wikipedia)

  29. I'll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman's Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer

    by Michelle McNamara
    A true crime book chronicling the author's investigation into the unsolved case of the Golden State Killer.

    A masterful true crime account of the Golden State Killer—the elusive serial rapist turned murderer who terrorized California for over a decade—from Michelle McNamara, the gifted journalist who died ... (Goodreads)