Tag Archives: Memoir

In My Hands Today…

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Handwritten: The Founding Story of Yuppiechef – Andrew Smith

In 2006, from a lounge in Cape Town, two friends launched an online kitchen-tool store with 32 products, no credit-card facilities, and zero marketing budget. They packaged orders themselves, dropping in a handwritten card with every purchase to prove to skeptical consumers that there were real humans “on the other side of the internet”.

Over the next 16 years, Yuppiechef evolved into a retail pioneer. Handwritten takes you on the rollercoaster journey of scaling an e-commerce empire. From sharing a rusted 1989 Toyota Corolla and battling early credit card fraudsters, to securing multi-million-dollar backing from global venture capital giant Tiger Global. It chronicles the chaotic highs of holiday-season and warehouse floods, the bold move into physical retail, and the ultimate acquisition by the Mr Price Group in 2021.

But beyond the timeline of a successful startup, this is a deeply human memoir drawn from decades of the author’s private journals. It strips away the glossy veneer of the “optimistic, confident” entrepreneur to reveal the profound emotional toll of leadership.

Inside Handwritten, you will discover:

  • The Bootstrapper’s Reality: How Yuppiechef survived its fragile early years without funding, driven by the philosophy of “growing as fast as we can and as slowly as we need to”.
  • Culture as a Strategy: Why true customer loyalty and teamwork is built on genuine human connection, empathy, and “relational hygiene”.
  • The Cost of Success: An honest look at the burnout, anxiety, and imposter syndrome that accompany the relentless pursuit of startup growth.

Whether you are founding a company, leading an organization, or simply someone who often feels like you’re not good enough, Handwritten proves that you can build something extraordinary without having to be perfect.

In My Hands Today…

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Madam Commissioner: The Extraordinary Life of an Indian Police Chief – Meeran Chadha Borwankar

The incredible memoir from one of India’s most uncompromising police officers.

Meeran Chadha Borwankar graduated from India’s National Police Academy as the sole woman of its 1981 batch. From there, she would go on to investigate a long string of sensitive and controversial cases, fighting crime together with corruption and discrimination, never compromising on her integrity.

Meeran’s steadfast efforts saw her become Maharashtra’s first female district police chief as well as its first woman police commissioner. She also held senior roles at the Central Bureau of Investigation and Mumbai’s crime branch, eventually retiring as Director General of the Bureau of Police Research and Development and the National Crime Records Bureau. All through she remained unafraid to critique the country’s criminal justice system, challenging even those in the highest echelons until the rule of law prevailed.

In this candid account of her thirty-six years in Indian law enforcement, Meeran details the sensational cases that defined her from the Jalgaon sex scandal to jewellery heists, highway dacoities to communal riots, brutal murders to gang rapes, port thefts to financial frauds, and brushes with notorious criminals such as Chhota Rajan and Dawood Ibrahim’s sister Haseena Parkar.

As the state prisons chief, she navigated intense media and government pressure while overseeing Sanjay Dutt’s imprisonment and the executions of Ajmal Kasab and Yakub Memon, thereby outlining both the significance and challenges of donning the khaki. Gripping, thought-provoking and always inspiring, Madam Commissioner is as honest a memoir can get about life as a woman officer of the Indian Police Service. It is essential reading for anyone interested in the uniform and indeed for concerned citizens everywhere.

In My Hands Today…

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Two Women Walk into a Bar – Cheryl Strayed

Cheryl Strayed, the bestselling author of Wild and Tiny Beautiful Things , finds humor and connection in a poignant short memoir about love, family secrets, and reconciliation.

Twenty-one years after Cheryl Strayed set off on the Pacific Crest Trail to heal from the death of her beloved mother, Cheryl’s mother-in-law, Joan, is given weeks to live.

As she and her husband help see Joan through her final days, Cheryl reckons with their complicated relationship, determined to connect with a woman who both showed her love and (sometimes hilariously) held her at a distance. Cheryl reflects on their two decades together as she comes to a deeper understanding of the secrets and sorrows in Joan’s complicated past. At Joan’s bedside, it’s time to contemplate the challenges they’ve faced, to accept their differences, and to find some healing in goodbye.

In My Hands Today…

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French Revolutions: Cycling the Tour de France – Tim Moore

Not only is it the world’s largest and most watched sporting event, but also the most fearsome physical challenge ever conceived by man, demanding every last ounce of will and strength, every last drop of blood, sweat, and tears. If ever there was an athletic exploit specifically not for the faint of heart and feeble of limb, this is it. So you might ask, what is Tim Moore doing cycling it?

An extremely good question. Ignoring the pleading dictates of reason and common sense, Moore determined to tackle the Tour de France, all 2,256 miles of it, in the weeks before the professionals entered the stage. This decision was one he would regret for nearly its entire length. But readers–those who now know Moore’s name deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as Bill Bryson and Calvin Trillin–will feel otherwise. They are in for a side-splitting treat.

French Revolutions gives us a hilariously unforgettable account of Moore’s attempt to conquer the Tour de France. “Conquer” may not be quite the right word. He cheats when he can, pops the occasional hayfever pill for an ephedrine rush (a fine old Tour tradition), sips cheap wine from his water bottle, and occasionally weeps on the phone to his wife. But along the way he gives readers an account of the race’s colorful history and greatest heroes: Eddy Merckx, Greg Lemond, Lance Armstrong, and even Firmin Lambot, aka the “Lucky Belgian,” who won the race at the age of 36. Fans of the Tour de France will learn why the yellow jersey is yellow, and how cyclists learned to save precious seconds (a race that lasts for three weeks is all about split seconds) by relieving themselves en route. And if that isn’t enough, his account of a rural France tarting itself up for its moment in the spotlight leaves popular quaint descriptions of small towns in Provence in the proverbial dust. If you either love or hate the French, or both, you’ll want to travel along with Time Moore.

In My Hands Today…

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I Hate Your Face …And Other Things I Wish I Could Tell My Coworkers – Connie O’Reyes

Connie has had bad luck with coworkers ever since her lemonade stand partners pushed her out at the age of six.

In her debut collection of humor essays, Connie provides entertainment with hysterical stories about awkward workplace situations, ridiculous coworkers, and enough happy hour cocktails to make you question her life choices.

From low paying high school gigs to “real world” marketing jobs in Chicago, Connie presents stories about life both in and out of the office that will have you laughing out loud in the break room.