Scores of interesting people in all walks of life have put their thoughts, fears, passions and positions down on paper over the years. So how does one choose the best--and limit it to ten, for that matter? 

    It can't be scientific. Memoir is an art, after all, not a science. In picking the best, we can't throw over to surveys, bestseller lists, calculations or any other formal or quantitative measures. That would be...inhumane. We've got to go with heart, gut, feeling and fury.  

    Memoir is one of the most popular categories of writing for a reason: It's as personal as fingerprints, as open and free as the sky, and as vivid as one's imagination has the capacity to be. That leaves a lot of space and time for story, voice and emotion. 

    I know that when I am hooked by a great memoir I don't want to put it down, and if it's truly won me over it'll be with me or near me for a long time to come. I have gotten up from a chair in tears when reading some of the truly great ones and then rushed to tell someone about it. Or I've laughed out loud, delighted with a great turn of phrase or insight that deserve to be relished again and again. I have gotten to know hundreds of people (thousands, maybe?) through the pages of books over the years--and am ever so grateful. Every person, whether I love them or not, leaves a mark. 

    With memoir, of course, one needs to readily tolerate quirks of style, lapses or jumps in time, quiet asides or thoughtful digressions (and sometimes those digressions can tell the best stories of all. Or not... as the case may be). And that's what we do with people--not to mention ourselves, isn't it? 

    So it's a pleasure to list some great memoirs here, for enjoyment, debate, and thought. Do let us know if you agree or disagree! (And see the honorable mentions right below--they're worth talking about too.)

   1. Personal History by Katharine Graham. The woman who ran the Washington Post and saw it through the Pentagon Papers and the Watergate crises comes alive in the pages of this outstanding memoir. Actually, outstanding is an understatement. She is honest, blunt and real—fragile, tough and forthright—as she takes the reader through her childhood and upbringing, her marriage to Phil Graham, his passing and her ascendancy to the top spot at one of the most powerful newspapers in the country. The book won the Pulitzer Prize, for its incredible readability and the richness of its stories, plus the way it peels back the pages of our own cultural and political history, guided by a great narrator. Run, do not walk, to either buy or borrow this book if you've not read it before. 

    2. Father, Son & Co: My Life at IBM and Beyond by Thomas J. Watson Jr. and Peter Petre. What life was like running the company founded by one's father. Far from being stiff, formal or obligatory in any way, this book is deeply human and revealing (and stands the test of time--it was written in 1990). "I knew I was supposed to follow in my father's footsteps," writes the younger Watson early on. "But I did not see how that was possible. I was in awe of the man, yet we both had such hot tempers that it was hard for me to be in the same room with him, much less try to learn from him how to run a company." Dip in to experience the drama, the turmoil and the incredible chunks of learning on the part of both father and son, as well as to understand how a remarkable company handled all manner of growth and challenge.

    3. Too Soon to Say Goodbye by Art Buchwald. The late Pulitzer-prize winning columnist's account of the last years of his life. As funny as it is poignant, with terrific (and highly quotable) lines throughout. As in:  "The thing that is very important, and why I'm writing this book, is that whether they like it or not, everyone is going to go. The big question we still have to ask is not where we're going but what we were doing here in the first place."

    4. Flags of our Fathers by James Bradley with Ron Powers. What really happened on that hill at Iwo Jima--and in the six lives of the men who were there, by one of their sons. Each man went on to leave lasting marks, some more exhilarating (and tragic) than others. This book was widely praised well before Clint Eastwood got involved, by the way. So if you've only seen the movie and not yet read the book, do give it a try. It's a formidable achievement. 

    5. Me: Stories of My Life by Katharine Hepburn. Candid, witty and scratchy-real, from the great actress and personality. If you can tolerate her jumping around in time throughout her narrative, you'll enjoy her tart voice and her pull-up-a-chair-and-let-me-tell-you-something inside accounts of just about everyone she worked with and knew. A comfort. Fun. Entertaining. 

    6. Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt. Heartbreakingly honest, vividly written account of growing up Irish and of the profound influence of the author's mother. It's astounding the man actually survived (this is not an exaggeration--some of his younger siblings did not). Even more astounding is that he was able to write about it so well years later, capturing the misery, the sacrifice, the humiliation and the small bit of eked-out happiness a family experienced. Required: strong heart and soul for some of the truly gut-wrenching scenarios. But it is so, so, so worth it. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize. 

    7. Let Me Hear Your Voice: A Family's Triumph Over Autism by Catherine Maurice. A mother's poignant battle to "save" her daughter from autism. She's not a name (in fact, "Catherine Maurice" is a pseudonym to protect the family's privacy). But nowhere is it written that great memoirs can only come from well-known people. What they need to do is tell a story that's real, that's honest, and that's human. This is that. This is a triumph. And you needn't be a parent to think so. 

    8. Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant by Ulysses S. Grant. The president wrote this on his deathbed, as he was battling throat cancer. Need one say more? Kirkus Reviews called this "among the finest works of literature to have emerged from the Civil War." No worthwhile list of great memoirs should leave this book out. The Civil War, in all its rage and excess, as experienced by one man and those in his charge, is alive forever. 

    9. Home Before Dark by Susan Cheever. A daughter's account of her writer father's noble, flawed, and endlessly hopeful life. I've written about this book before. Probably will again. One could read it ten more times and get something new out of it every time. Between the lines are love, frustration, anger, admiration. And love again. 

   10. Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly by Anthony Bourdain. Think you know what really goes on in the kitchens of restaurants? This book was written well before the reality shows dished the dirt, camera on shoulder, as they do now. But Bourdain lays it all out clearly, from waiters' tricks to chefs' prayers, packing his book with worthwhile advice for choosing restaurants, eating in them, observing them, and otherwise living with them. It's also just plain clever. And all the potshots he takes are as directed as himself as they are others.   

And Honorable Mentions:

    * Night by Elie Wiesel. The horrors of the Holocaust, laid bare by a Nobel Peace Prize winner who not just witnessed it, but lived it. 

    * The Tender Bar: A Memoir by J. R. Moehringer. An "homage to the culture of the local pub," as Publishers Weekly noted. Beautifully written.

    * Kitchen Privileges: A Memoir by Mary Higgins Clark. You don't really know the mystery writer's vast talents until you've read her nonfiction account of her life. This is where her heart is--this is the early life of one of the most prolific American mystery writers of our time.  

    * The Liars' Club: A Memoir by Mary Karr. Get ready for a rough, tough life, brilliantly told.

    * Act One: An Autobiography by Moss Hart. What show business was like in our grandparents' time, by the great director and collaborator. Delicious. Not to be missed if you have even an iota of interest in the theater today. And yes it is still relevant. 

    * What I Saw at the Revolution: A Political Life in the Reagan Era by Peggy Noonan. Her first book is still her best, in my view; and you needn't agree with all of her political opinions to relish the material. This is a true insider's account, very nicely written, a door thrown open as few can. Again, whatever your political persuasion, this is worth reading to understand how government works, as one individual saw it and experienced it.