Book cover of False Starts

Book description

Malcolm Braly spent the better part of his life behind bars. Arrested for a botched teenage burglary, he made one mistake after another, always returning to the institution that turned a sensitive young man into a hardened con. This is his story, an indictment of both his own failings and…

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

1 author picked False Starts as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

I love this book because it resonates with my sense of self-discovery and how society often muddles it.

It took me a lifetime of questioning who I was to finally discover the motivations behind why I was behaving in certain ways, or why I was getting involved with certain people and certain activities.

While none of what I have done in life was illegal, the sense of identity confusion remains, and reading about Malcolm finding who he is was most gratifying and inspiring.

If you love False Starts...

Ad

Book cover of Aggressor

Aggressor by FX Holden,

It is April 1st, 2038. Day 60 of China's blockade of the rebel island of Taiwan.

The US government has agreed to provide Taiwan with a weapons system so advanced that it can disrupt the balance of power in the region. But what pilot would be crazy enough to run…

Want books like False Starts?

Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 73 books like False Starts.

Browse books like False Starts

Book cover of The Things They Carried
Book cover of The Suicide Index: Putting My Father's Death in Order
Book cover of The Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit

Share your top 3 reads of 2025!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,210

readers submitted
so far, will you?

Ad

📚 If you like False Starts, you might also like...

Book cover of Old Man Country

Old Man Country by Thomas R. Cole,

This book follows the journey of a writer in search of wisdom as he narrates encounters with 12 distinguished American men over 80, including Paul Volcker, the former head of the Federal Reserve, and Denton Cooley, the world’s most famous heart surgeon.

In these and other intimate conversations, the book…

Book cover of Lane and the Inventor

Lane and the Inventor by Amy Q. Barker,

A grumpy-sunshine, slow-burn, sweet-and-steamy romance set in wild and beautiful small-town Colorado. Lane Gravers is a wanderer, adventurer, yoga instructor, and social butterfly when she meets reserved, quiet, pensive Logan Hickory, a loner inventor with a painful past.

Dive into this small-town, steamy romance between two opposites who find love…

5 book lists we think you will like!