Discover the incredible lives of some of the world’s most influential historical figures. The Folio Society publishes a selection of fascinating biography books, from autobiographies of great leaders, including Mahatma Gandhi, to the personal memoirs of ordinary people in extraordinary times. Folio books include carefully researched images and photographs and come with beautiful hardback bindings. See below for the full list of Folio Biographies.
Unpublished until 1998 because of the Official Secrets Act, Leo Marks's memoir of his time as part of SOE has been acclaimed as one of the greatest accounts of espionage in the Second World War. An unforgettable story of heroism under fire, gallows humour, unswerving loyalty and fatal mistakes.
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Written in the 2nd century AD and featuring a new preface by Annabel Lyon, this account of Alexander's conquests is a classic of ancient military history.
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In his inspiring account of the first half of his life, Gandhi recounts his childhood in India, education in England and early legal career in South Africa, before his return home to take up the cause of Indian self-determination.
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Sebastian Haffner’s penetrating study helps us understand Hitler’s rise from obscure failure to powerful dictator, examining his motives and his ultimate downfall. Mark Roseman, prize-winning author of books on Nazism, introduces the Folio edition.
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David Niven was a member of Hollywood's inner circle during its golden age, so when he published his hilarious memoir, it delighted readers around the world with its uproarious mixture of racy reminiscences and intimate portraits of show-business legends.
Out of print Price: US$ 54.95
Benjamin Cowburn parachuted into France in 1941 as an SOE. This is his story – a magnificent, spirited portrait of life as a secret agent. In his introduction to ‘this astonishing story of secrets, lies and big bangs’ novelist Giles Foden praises the skill that made Cowburn’s memoir a classic.
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The lawyer and magistrate Pliny the Younger (AD 61-112) left behind a correspondence that gives insight into an extraordinary life at the height of the Roman Empire.
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A simple, chilling and at times deeply moving story of one man's journey through the unimaginable brutality of war. In this personal memoir Ernst Jünger shows us the often macabre realities of his life on the Western Front, an account that is beautiful, powerful and unashamedly honest.
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These autobiographical essays by physicist Richard Feynman show us the formation of a genius. Introduced by Brian Cox.
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An aristocrat who became a revolutionary; a churchman with a string of mistresses and an addiction to gambling; a trusted minister of Napoleon – this extraordinary figure is known to history simply as Talleyrand. First published in 1932 and never out of print since, this biography is both a literary and a historical classic.
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As Poland's greatest foreign correspondent, Kapuściński saw most of the Cold War's conflicts and revolutions first hand. Travelling across the globe, he always carried with him a copy of Herodotus, and in this exhilarating memoir Kapuściński compares his own experiences with the writings of his hero.
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