Judging from media reviews coming out of the U.K., expectations were low for John Lydon’s autobiography Anger Is an Energy: My Life Uncensored (HarperCollins Canada), but it appears that the former Sex Pistol has pulled the great rock ’n’ roll writing swindle. Praised for his storytelling prowess and for being “ridiculously entertaining,” this is one for music fans to watch for this spring, along with Kim Gordon’s much-anticipated Girl In a Band: A Memoir (also from HarperCollins Canada). Already compared to Patti Smith’s Just Kids, the Sonic Youth founding member returns to her younger years in ’60s California through to her present-day role as mom, musician, and icon of cool.
ALWAYS ON MY MIND
Ten-time Grammy winner and Country Music Hall of Famer Willie Nelson, now 80 years old, sheds light on his musical and personal life in his autobiography It’s a Long Story: My Life (Little, Brown).
Rich with history and interviews spanning more than a decade, Ishmael Reed’s The Complete Muhammad Ali (Baraka Books) promises an uncompromising portrait of a renowned black athlete, steeped in racial and cultural context.
Sally Mann, named America’s best photographer by Time in 2001, releases a comprehensive collection, Hold Still: A Memoir with Photographs (Little, Brown), pairing images from her life and career with a revealing personal narrative.
Actress Mindy Kaling follows 2011’s Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) with Why Not Me? (Doubleday Canada), a collection of essays reflecting on her life since becoming the creator and star of her own TV show.
Alexandra Fuller ruminates on her youth in Africa and an unorthodox marriage to (and later, painful divorce from) an American. Leaving Before the Rains Come (Random House Canada) is the writer’s forthright reflection on her identity as woman, citizen, wife, child, and mother.