If you liked
Books like My Life
by Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton's My Life is the kind of 957-page modern presidential memoir that turned out to be more revealing than its publication marketing suggested. If you are looking for what to read next in the political-memoir, big-figure-history, or sustained-American-character lane, these five.
The shortlist
What to read next
My Lifeby Bill Clinton
“My Life by Bill Clinton 2004 review. The 42nd President’s 957-page memoir, exhaustive on policy, charming on biography, evasive on Lewinsky, and surprisingly self-aware on race.”
The Hidden Manby David Ellis
“The Hidden Man by David Ellis 2009 review. A Chicago defense attorney walks his oldest friend through a child-murder trial. Twenty-seven years ago, the victim was the attorney’s own kidnapped sister.”
The Murder Houseby David Ellis
“The Murder House by David Ellis and James Patterson 2015 review. A Bridgehampton detective with a tarnished badge investigates a brutal mansion killing that mirrors a sixty-year-old open case.”
The Hoursby Michael Cunningham
“The Hours by Michael Cunningham review. The 1999 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel that triangulates Virginia Woolf, a 1949 LA housewife, and a contemporary NYC editor. One of the great American literary novels of its decade.”
The Light Of Other Daysby Arthur C. Clarke
“The Light of Other Days by Arthur C. Clarke and Stephen Baxter 2000 review. Wormhole technology lets anyone look anywhere, anytime. The end of privacy and the end of secret history arrive in the same decade.”
FAQ
Common questions about My Life read-alikes
- Why are there novels on a list for a presidential memoir?
- Because My Life works best for readers who like long, character-driven narrative more than for readers who only read nonfiction. The David Ellis legal thrillers and Cunningham's The Hours are the closest fiction kin to that reading appetite.
- Should I read this as audiobook?
- Yes, with caveats. Clinton narrates parts of the audiobook himself, which is the single feature that makes the audio edition meaningfully better than reading. The Audible Premium Plus credit is well-spent here.
- Are there any other presidential memoirs you would recommend?
- Obama's A Promised Land is the most obvious contemporary parallel. Reagan's An American Life is the structural ancestor of the modern presidential memoir.
The original