BEING CONCHITA: WE ARE UNSTOPPABLE

CONCHITA WURST (AS TOLD TO DANIEL OLIVER BACHMANN)

John Blake Publishing £9.99 Memoir Was Conchita’s Eurovision win a triumph for equality and understanding in the face of prejudice and intolerance? Yes! Is she a fantastic symbol for the LGBTQ community? Absolutely! Is this book captivating and well-written? No. Conchita aka Tom Neuwirth had an idyllic Austrian childhood, later marred by homophobic harassment at school leading to his withdrawal into the sanctuary of his own company and the discovery of a love of singing and dress-making. A natural performer, Tom pursued his love of music through various talent programmes, germinating in the bearded persona of Conchita Wurst, the surname deriving from a German phrase for not giving a damn. Which is really the ultimate effect of this autobiography. Details are discussed too generally to become interesting and unfortunately Conchita comes over as worthy and somewhat affected. One for dedicated fans.

BREAKTHROUGH: HOW ONE TEEN INNOVATOR IS CHANGING THE WORLD JACK ANDRAKA WITH MATTHEW LYSIAK

Scribe Publications £12.99 Memoir The moving and inspiring story of American teen science prodigy, Jack Andraka, who overcame homophobic bullying, depression and bereavement through his extraordinary commitment to the principle that there is always a better way to solve problems. When Jack was thirteen a close family friend was dying of cancer so he set upon an idea for a simple and effective early detection test. Despite receiving almost two hundred rejections from leading scientists for lab research access, Jack finally got there; this young teenager made a breakthrough that is over four hundred times more effective than the medical standard and for a fraction of the cost. You root for this tenacious kid the whole way and marvel at his determination and insightfulness. Honest, funny and emotional, this story can’t fail to touch your heart and renew your sense of possibility.