Today the lives of the famous, the infamous, and the ordinary citizen are told and shown across a plethora of forms and platforms. Julia Round and Bronwen Thomas should be congratulated on putting together a collection of road maps for this new life-telling that are consistently critical and compelling.

- Ben Highmore, Professor of Cultural Studies, University of Sussex, UK,

Thomas and Round do a brilliant job of bringing together two hot areas of study – celebrity culture and real lives – and figuring them in terms of narrative. This collection of innovative and highly original articles will be of immense interest across a number of disciplines. The contribution on 9/11 families by Lambrou is, on its own, worth the price of the entry ticket.

- Paul Cobley, Professor in Language and Media, Middlesex University, UK,

Here is a collection which is timely, thought-provoking and innovative. Its strategic deployment of narrative, linguistic and media theory puts it at the vanguard of current academic work. I strongly recommend this book to scholars and students who want to understand the stories we live by and the ways in which we narrativise our own lives and the lives of others.

- Anita Biressi, Reader in Media Cultures, Roehampton University, UK and author of Class and Contemporary British Culture,