17. Born Standing Up (207 pp.) by Steve Martin (Apr 11). One of my friends at work told me he had just read this book and really enjoyed it and then I went home that night and found, by coincidence, my husband was reading it. Steve Martin writes about how he became a stand-up comedian starting as a kid doing magic tricks and then through the huge success of his comedy tours until he gave it up and focused on movies. There's something very sweet about the way he tells his story and he should be the poster child for all things related to perseverance because when you read about the early days, it's hard to imagine how he stuck with it and how he ended up so successful. Recommended.