Top Ten Best-Selling Autobiographies
Ranked #11 in Books, Poetry & Writing, #271 overall
Autobiographies and memoirs - a popular, exciting, and mind-expanding way to learn about other people.
Are you looking for a good autobiography to read? This page lists the top ten best-selling autobiographies during 2010 and 2011. However, I got carried away because I love autobiographies so much, and listed a few more favorites.
Autobiographies, or memoirs as they are commonly called, are written by someone telling their intimate and personal life story.
If you're planning to write an autobiography or memoir, you'll want to read as many as possible to get a good grasp of what is expected in the genre. Also read this: How To Write Memoirs.
Woman Writing in the Court of Shah Abbas I 1585-1627
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1. A Stolen Life
by Jaycee Dugard
A Stolen Life: A Memoir
Amazon Price: $8.00 (as of 05/30/2012)
Everyone's heart goes out to this girl who was kidnapped and imprisoned at the tender age of 11. As I listened to the audiobook version of the book (read by Dugard herself) I was impressed by how she coped with years of abuse, focusing on her need for a pet! Available on Kindle, in a hardcover edition, and as an audiobook.
2. Ghost in the Wires: My Adventures as the World's Most Wanted Hacker
by Kevin Mitnick
Ghost in the Wires: My Adventures as the World's Most Wanted Hacker
Amazon Price: $11.25 (as of 05/30/2012)
As an elusive hacker he broke into Sun Microsystems, Motorola, and Pacific Bell computer systems, but with the FBI on his trail he went on the lam through multiple cities and identities. This real-life suspense autobiography is available in hardback, on Kindle, and in an audiobook version.
3. Auschwitz: A Doctor's Eyewitness Account
by Miklos Nyiszli, Richard Seaver, and Bruno Bettelheim
Auschwitz: A Doctor's Eyewitness Account
Amazon Price: $8.82 (as of 05/30/2012)
This autobiography is by a doctor who survived life in a Nazi concentration camp. His stories about what he saw while he was there will enlighten you to the nature of atrocities inflicted on those who perished. Available in softcover or Kindle editions.
4. Sliding Into Home
by Kendra Wilkenson
5. Medium Raw
by Anthony Bourdain
6. Coming Back Stronger
by Drew Brees
7. The Glass Castle
by Jeannette Walls
8. War
by Sebastian Junger
9. Born To Run
by Christopher McDougall
10. The Last Lecture
by Randy Pausch
More
Great Autobiographies
Same Kind of Different As Me
by Ron Hall and Denver Moore
The Happiness Project
By Gretchen Rubin
Home Team
by Sean Payton
A Long Way Gone
by Ishmael Beah
Autobiography of a Yogi
by Paramahansa Yogananda
Lost In the Fog
by Rachel Van Meer and Daniel Chase
Your comments are welcome
...as always.
What are your favorite autobiographies? I'd love to know!
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joanferrer
May 25, 2012 @ 11:21 am | delete
- I have never read a biography.. not one.. and I read a lot. I now have some recommendations for my first. Thanks :-)
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Mamaboo May 21, 2012 @ 4:25 pm | delete
- WoW! I now have a new list of books to read! Be blessed and thanks!
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Athena
May 14, 2012 @ 7:45 pm | delete
- slidding into home was a fantastic read truly enjoyed it.
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Kumar_PS May 9, 2012 @ 8:22 pm | delete
- An interesting list. I like "My Experiments With Truth" by Gandhi.
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faber80
May 9, 2012 @ 1:45 pm | delete
- Benjamin Franklin: my favourite one.
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peppermintpixel
Apr 27, 2012 @ 12:59 am | delete
- Loved "The Glass Castle"!
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siobhanryan
Apr 24, 2012 @ 9:08 pm | delete
- I will check out Born to Run
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mep
Apr 22, 2012 @ 10:36 pm | delete
- My favorite autobiography is "Infidel" by Ayaan Hirsi Ali. Great Book! Also "Desert Flower: The Extraordinary Journey of a Desert Nomad" by Waris Dirie, which was made into a movie.
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LubosLabik
Apr 14, 2012 @ 7:49 am | delete
- All of them :)
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JimDickens
Apr 12, 2012 @ 1:39 pm | delete
- The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin will probably be my favorite permanently
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Tugee
Mar 19, 2012 @ 12:16 am | delete
- I've never heard of any of these, but I'm interested in them. Thanks for compiling this list.
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SunshineLollipops
Mar 13, 2012 @ 9:44 pm | delete
- I love autobiographies! I have read the books: A Stolen Life and The Glass Castle off your list. Interesting list... thanks for your lens on this topic. :)
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taskeinc
Mar 11, 2012 @ 9:14 am | delete
- Favorite autobiography: Malcolm X .. also read A Long Way Gone
by Ishmael Beah, an excellent read, keeps you on the edge of your seat throughout the book .. makes whatever childhood we had seem like royalty, no matter what we had to deal with ..
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supermanfriday
May 5, 2012 @ 2:15 am | delete
- Malcom X was a fantastic bio..how he changed his views even though he knew it would eventually harm him..From a scheming bad apple to a man who knew what was right was right..
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Rosaquid
Mar 8, 2012 @ 4:18 pm | delete
- Oh, by the way, I loved Groucho Marx's autobiography. It begins: " I was born at a very early age ... "
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Rosaquid
Mar 8, 2012 @ 4:17 pm | delete
- Wow, I have some reading to do! Thanks for the lists.
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sandyswriter-review
Feb 27, 2012 @ 4:59 pm | delete
- Like reading autobiographies.
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BookMama
Feb 20, 2012 @ 11:07 pm | delete
- Steve Jobs... oh, wait you said AUTObiography, didn't you?
So how many of these have you read? I'm just curious and if it is several, did you have a favorite?
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ifuturz
Feb 20, 2012 @ 1:25 pm | delete
- A very interesting
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RocklawnArts
Feb 17, 2012 @ 7:43 pm | delete
- Out of Sheer Rage and Yoga for People Who Can't Be Bothered to Do It by Geoff Dyer. I've also enjoyed several of Shirley MacLaine's autobios.
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Edutopia
Feb 13, 2012 @ 12:40 am | delete
- You've left out a few of the classics like Ben Franklin and Julius Caesar. Those are great for any one to read regardless of their interests.
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Karin, South Africa
Jan 24, 2012 @ 5:44 am | delete
- LIFE KEITH RICHARDS
MY LIFE RAFAEL NADAL
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TrevorLedford
Jan 21, 2012 @ 10:55 pm | delete
- The Tao of Willie, by Willie Nelson has a lot of wisdom packed into a relatively small book. It's really good. I like several of the ones you recommend as well.
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kimmanleyort
Jan 18, 2012 @ 12:45 pm | delete
- A very interesting and diverse list of autobiographies. I love reading about other people's lives. Blessed.
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SmartPanky
Jan 12, 2012 @ 6:58 am | delete
- thanks
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Dec 30, 2011 @ 2:48 pm | delete
- Some awesome books there - looks like I have to go book shopping :)
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Fizza555
Dec 30, 2011 @ 6:42 am | delete
- Thanks for adding the lens. Some excellent recommendations. I am going to buy The stolen life, it sound awesome.l
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kerry
Dec 30, 2011 @ 5:30 am | delete
- Glass Castle was fantastic I read it in one day and was sad it was finished as I wanted to read more!!! really funny as well, I was in stiches so many times.... Jeannette Walls
had a really hard life but yet she is so positive it her writing,she inspires me.
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ernieplotter
Dec 29, 2011 @ 2:04 pm | delete
- Lee Iacocca, a great book about his way of thinking, achievements and success. He worked for Ford, Chrysler and Pepsi.
Great lens! I will look for some of those on ebook version!
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ernieplotter
Dec 29, 2011 @ 1:50 pm | delete
- Lee Iacocca, a great book about his way of thinking, achievements and success. He worked for Ford, Chrysler and Pepsi.
Great lens! I will look for some of those on ebook version!
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CaseyHutson
Dec 27, 2011 @ 1:46 pm | delete
- I myself am a fan of the Kiefer Sutherland biography, but then again I am just a huge Kiefer Sutherland fan.
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readtoawake
Dec 3, 2011 @ 1:00 pm | delete
- I have watched the last lecture video on youtube. It is very inspiring.
I like Randy Pausch when he says ?The key question to keep asking is, Are you spending your time on the right things? Because time is all you have. ?
Randy Pausch lived for 47 years.
?Time is all you have and you may find one day that you have less than you think.?
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JoeCinocca
Nov 21, 2011 @ 10:38 pm | delete
- Several interesting books here. I didn't realize Sean Payton had one out about coaching the Saints. Nice!
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LindaJM Dec 1, 2011 @ 4:53 pm | delete
- So much to read - and so little time.
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yano_jl
Nov 16, 2011 @ 4:54 pm | delete
- "Autobiography of a Yogi" made quite an impression on my when I first read it (many years ago, now).
But I still have it on a bookshelf, and happily lend it out to friends from time to time (its amazing I still have it).
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- I've got a copy too. I LOVE that book... so couldn't make a lens about autobiographies without mentioning it.
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markettrol
Nov 12, 2011 @ 1:45 am | delete
- Steve Jobs will probably be added to the list!!!!
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- Yes! I'm about to revise so it should be here soon.
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HuntAndFishGuides
Nov 3, 2011 @ 9:48 am | delete
- I'm sure Steve Job's book will join the top 10 soon
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- Yes, this is on my list of lenses to update soon.
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Jack Paul
Oct 27, 2011 @ 5:57 am | delete
- The best anti-christian autobiography is entitled: Did God Screw Up? The book also explains where the US Government got its "Homeland Security Idea" from..a real shocker!
Also gives credit to the GOP and Bush for starting the worse worldwide recession in human history...much worse than the 1929 recession. The toxic dependency on American anti-intellectualism and anti-rationalism is proof religion has addled the minds of most Americans. Google the book Did God Screw Up? read it and get an education!
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- Jack Paul . . . sounds like a good mix of politics and religion - and very helpful for understanding the times we live in. Thanks for suggesting it.
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MJ
May 18, 2012 @ 1:57 am | delete
- Sonds like a lot of trash
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calistoeloi
Oct 25, 2011 @ 2:23 pm | delete
- Lovely lens. My favorite autobiography is "My Happy Days in Hell", by György Faludy. An extraordinary life by an extraordinary man.
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- Calistoeloi, sounds like a good one . . . I will look for it.
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creativeinc
Oct 21, 2011 @ 11:43 pm | delete
- I would love to read A Stolen Life.
Great lens!
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- I bought that one on audiobook (from Audible) and it is a good eye-opener for anyone curious about how it feels to be a kidnapped and abused child. She read it herself for the audio version.
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Steph
Dec 2, 2011 @ 10:21 am | delete
- I read "A Stolen Life," in two days! It is unbelievable what a person can live through and still come out on top. Its a great read.
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HartmanSteven
Oct 12, 2011 @ 10:37 am | delete
- Glass Castle and Last Lecture were very good. Confessions of a Master Jewel Thief is very interesting one to check out.
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- Thanks for the suggestion, Steve! I listened to The Glass Castle on audio and loved it.
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missrisy
Sep 14, 2011 @ 8:39 am | delete
- Ma he sold me for a few cigarettes. Such a sad story for a girl so young the follow up books also broke my heart.
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- Wow. Just the title is a tear jerker!
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tomtaz517
Sep 8, 2011 @ 10:12 am | delete
- The Last Lecture is amazing. Great lens :)
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mustreadmore
Aug 16, 2011 @ 11:23 pm | delete
- "Angela's Ashes" by Frank McCourt and if you really love that autobiography you will also enjoy the sequel "Tis." I held his hand as I turned every page. He passed somewhat recently and after reading his books I feel as if I lost someone I knew.
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Heather426
Aug 10, 2011 @ 3:31 pm | delete
- Autobiography of a Yogi is my favorite book of all time. Glad to see it here. I liked Randy Pausch's too.
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Catlyne
Jul 24, 2011 @ 4:20 pm | delete
- Andre Agassi's biography is such an inspirational book. I would recommand it to anyone
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Jul 23, 2011 @ 12:41 pm | delete
- I love Patrick Swayzee's autobiography. It came out after his death. It was written in a way that felt like he was just having a conversation with you. it was easy going and down to earth. I am a Swayzee fan and have been since he appeared in North and South. However, even if you were not an avid fan...the man's story is one of determination and guts. He was a true fighter and a real surviver who overcame numerous challenges. A real life inspiration for those of us going through a tough time.
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grace
Jul 20, 2011 @ 8:43 am | delete
- I read a book before called 'things the grandchildren should know' by Elliott Smith. It is amazing - I actually cannot describe the emotions conveyed in the book - Please read and review!
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Matt
Jul 21, 2011 @ 10:03 am | delete
- Mark Oliver Everitt? I agree, I couldn't put the book down.
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smithlights
Jul 19, 2011 @ 9:05 pm | delete
- I'm gonna look into these! I LOVED In a Heartbeat!
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Shanir
Jul 6, 2011 @ 9:55 am | delete
- Nice lens! definitely gonna check some of these out :)
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newbizmau Jul 4, 2011 @ 9:29 pm | delete
- I think I want to read the Happiness Project
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Ella90
Jul 2, 2011 @ 5:11 pm | delete
- Great lens, I love reading autobiographies and will be adding quite a few of these to my "To Read" list
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???
Jun 28, 2011 @ 3:15 pm | delete
- What you see is what you get - Alan sugar ( Lord Sugar )
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Carolyn
Jun 10, 2011 @ 5:58 pm | delete
- My favorite as of now is Open, by Andre Agassi.
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OhMe May 11, 2011 @ 4:47 am | delete
- I enjoy reading autobiographies and haven't read many of these so will be adding them to my list. Thanks.
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westaylor32
May 4, 2011 @ 9:56 pm | delete
- Russell Brand - My Bookie Wook
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Jewelsofawe Apr 16, 2011 @ 11:30 pm | delete
- I've only read one of these
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bejeezers Jan 5, 2011 @ 5:15 pm | delete
- Nice lens.
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raosrinivas
Jan 4, 2011 @ 12:23 pm | delete
- Very informative lens. Through this we can pick right book. Thanks for sharing.
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bunyip
Dec 14, 2010 @ 6:32 pm | delete
- My favourite autobiography is Autobiography of a Yogi, by Paramhansa Yogananda. Its a very inspiring book and I was happy to see it on your list.
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BarbaraCasey Dec 10, 2010 @ 7:11 pm | delete
- The new Mark Twain autobiography is on my Christmas list. Hope Santa remembers!
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Dec 6, 2010 @ 8:16 pm | delete
- Great lens and I do agree that these are great autobiograhy books.
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MikeEssex
Nov 23, 2010 @ 4:27 pm | delete
- Is it wrong the name of Kendras book always sounds rude to me?
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vallain Nov 9, 2010 @ 10:15 pm | delete
- I read lots of biographies too. Angela's Ashes made a big impression on me.
I've lensrolled this to:
If You Liked Angela's Ashes, Try These Books
Miserable Childhoods Make Great Biographies
Octogenarian Self-Publishes Memoirs
Children Remembering World War II
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Oct 10, 2010 @ 7:24 am | delete
- I love reading and wish I had the time to read more often. Thank your for your informative list it saves me the trouble and makes choosing my next book to read much easier. Thank you
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sandralynnsparks
Oct 6, 2010 @ 3:06 pm | delete
- My favorites were the series of autobiographies written by British actor Dirk Bogarde, starting with Snakes and Ladders...I love autobiographies, too!
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janices7 Oct 1, 2010 @ 9:30 am | delete
- Wow - I need to get reading. Loved Born To Run and recommend that to anyone. One of my other favorite autobiographies that I read last year was Andre Agassi's Open. Thanks for sharing.
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pkmcr Sep 22, 2010 @ 2:42 pm | delete
- I tend to read autobiographies of folks from the UK and with the advantage of now having a Kindle I am getting through lots more. Well put together as always! Blessed by a passing Squid Angel :-)
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Ramkitten
Sep 12, 2010 @ 7:30 pm | delete
- I haven't read too many autobiographies, but I do really enjoy them. Two I did read and really liked were Michael Caine's and Trace Adkins', although the latter is more about his opinions on various issues. "Eat, Pray, Love" is on my list, though. From what I've heard about it, I've recently had a semi-similar experience, so I'm looking forward to it in that respect as well.
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wahm4u
Sep 10, 2010 @ 9:33 pm | delete
- memoirs are one of my favorites! just read meghan daum's Life Would Be Perfect If I lived In That House! she's my new bff although she doesn't know it yet...
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- That sounds like a great autobiography! I will go look it up at Amazon!
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Mary Beth
Jul 31, 2010 @ 2:24 pm | delete
- I love autobiographies. it is so interesting to get a glimpse of someone's life. Thanks for the recommendations.
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- Glad you like them, Mary Beth... though it isn't like I picked them. These are just the most popular at Amazon right now. ;)
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