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| Thinking About Memoir (AARP) | 
 enlarge | Author: Abigail Thomas
Publisher: Sterling
Category: Book
List Price: $14.95
Buy New: $8.66
You Save: $6.29 (42%)
New (36) Used (13) from $7.45
Avg. Customer Rating:  12 reviews
Sales Rank: 7710
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 128
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 4.4 x 0.7
ISBN: 1402752350
Dewey Decimal Number: 808.06692
EAN: 9781402752353
ASIN: 1402752350
Publication Date: April 1, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: BRAND NEW
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| Customer Reviews:
 Thinking "more deeply" about memoir. July 17, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Although a small book it is more thoughtful and deeper than the recent Natalie Goldberg tome. Thomas is a completely honest writer, very affirming for those of us who aspire to this style. When she gives the instructions at the end of each chapter it is clear that they are ideas and not the main point of the book.
 Not what I expected or wanted from the book June 14, 2008
1 out of 8 found this review helpful
This book was not what I expected or wanted. It's too basic and not very inspiring! It's not a book I'll keep and use. I was really disappointed.
Take the best from this helpful book and GET WRITING !! For an inspirational example of a fascinating memoir I recommend June 10, 2008
1 out of 5 found this review helpful
That's How the Light Gets In: Memoir of a Psychiatrist by Susan Rako, M.D. The title comes from a song by Leonard Cohen: "There is a crack, a crack in everything. That's how the light gets in." Rako's book is remarkably candid, insightful, and wonderfully well-written. It's a great read. The writing just flows.
Captivating and Inspiring June 9, 2008
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
A completely charming book about memoirs encouraging you to write your life stories. Captivating stories, fascinating vignettes, and superb writing combine to make this an inspiring book. Her writing exercise suggestions are interesting enough to tempt even non-writers and provide more experienced writers a great chance to warm up.
"Writing memoirs is a way to figure out who you used to be and how you got to be who you are." Based on this book, I am looking forward to other titles in this AARP "Arts of Living" series. I only wish that this quite small book was twice as long!
Excellent suggestions for memoir writing May 31, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
"What is memoir? How do you write one? What if you can't remember anything, or worse, what if you remember it all?"
"AARP The Magazine" has started publishing an "Art of Living" series of books, and this passage begins Abigail Thomas's excellent contribution. She shares lessons about how to get started and stay motivated while writing your own personal history.
Thomas helps wannabe writers find a "side door" with writing exercises. It's great fun to watch her apply her hints in practice: "Trust the work to find its own way," Example: "take any 10 years of your life and reduce them to two pages. Every sentence has to be three words long--not two, not four, but three words long. You discover there's nowhere to hide in three-word sentences."
Other useful hints:
Cut ruthlessly.
Write every day.
"Make a start".
I really enjoyed this book, but also consult Writing Life Stories: How To Make Memories Into Memoirs, Ideas Into Essays And Life Into Literature by Bill Roorbach. One of his first writing exercises was to make a map of the earliest neighborhood I could remember. It was fascinating to compare the map I came up with against an aerial map published by the government.
These two fine books use a similar approach, but each writer has their own distinctive "voice", just as you will if you take their advice and just "make a start".
Robert C. Ross 2008
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