false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173923487m/345822.jpg 345822 2 More of a literary adventure than an actual autobiography, David Shields's <I>Enough About You: Adventures in Autobiography</I> presents a collection of loosely organized, self-reflective essays, ranging from such disparate topics as the author's past, dreams, and heroes to his thoughts on basketball, Jewish culture, and Bill Murray. Uniting the book is Shields's examination of autobiography, his interest in the way we identify ourselves, and the most effective ways of investigating and communicating our identity. <p> Shields writes with convincing intelligence and fluidity on the book's more academic topics, such as the effectiveness of Nabokov's structure by memory association in <I>Speak, Memory</I> and Renata Adler's use of collage in <I>Speedboat</I>. Yet when he emulates such works with random glimpses into his own past and character, he doesn't provide enough personal detail to make effective use of these techniques. He's a bit too preoccupied with theory to offer a satisfying self-portrait. Ultimately, Shields seems distracted by the need to cover all his critical bases and make a postmodern statement, consequently distracting and distancing the reader from establishing much of a connection with the author. He writes in the book's prologue that he "wants to cut to the absolute bone" of "his own damned, doomed character," yet admits in the epilogue to having falsified much of its personal information. It's unfortunate that he doesn't let his academic guard down more often, because what personal insight he does provide (accurate or otherwise) is very entertaining. He recognizes the absurd self-absorption inherent in memoir, and that goes a long way in a book about the subject. An interesting if flawed experiment, <I>Enough About You</I> should nonetheless appeal to memoir enthusiasts looking for perceptive and humorous views on our own perpetual self-fascination. <I>--Ross Doll</I> 336127 23 4 2002 Enough About You: Adventures in Autobiography total:43|5:0|4:1|3:1|2:0|1:1| 43 140 67 7 3 0 false false Mon Mar 16 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Feb 28 15:00:52 -0800 2009 Mon Mar 16 17:18:12 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun Aug 10 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sat Apr 04 11:43:54 -0700 2009 Sat Apr 04 11:44:39 -0700 2009 2 0 false false Mon Jan 19 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 08 15:16:07 -0800 2009 Tue Jan 20 13:55:52 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sat Jan 19 22:13:04 -0800 2008 Sat Jan 19 22:20:38 -0800 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sat Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Mon Oct 01 08:30:42 -0700 2007 Mon Oct 01 08:42:51 -0700 2007 more...]]> 3 0 false false Wed Aug 19 14:35:39 -0700 2009 Sun Mar 22 11:05:06 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 19 14:35:39 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Tue Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Jan 14 11:48:15 -0800 2009 Wed Oct 07 13:04:51 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Tue Nov 03 12:44:53 -0800 2009 Tue Nov 03 12:44:53 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Fri Oct 09 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Oct 06 10:37:50 -0700 2009 Fri Oct 09 11:20:50 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sat Oct 03 14:17:32 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 03 14:17:32 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Wed Aug 26 18:05:38 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 26 18:05:45 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Tue Aug 18 10:29:49 -0700 2009 Tue Aug 18 10:29:49 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Fri Jul 24 11:32:30 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 24 11:32:30 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Sat Jul 04 10:11:25 -0700 2009 Sat Jul 04 10:11:25 -0700 2009 2 0 false false Mon Jun 22 14:29:01 -0700 2009 Mon Jun 22 14:29:01 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Tue Aug 11 19:14:42 -0700 2009 Fri Jun 12 18:42:02 -0700 2009 Tue Aug 11 19:14:42 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Wed May 27 12:52:45 -0700 2009 Wed May 27 12:52:45 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Wed May 20 08:56:06 -0700 2009 Wed May 20 08:56:06 -0700 2009 1 0 false false Fri Apr 10 10:47:48 -0700 2009 Wed Apr 01 16:01:12 -0700 2009 Fri Apr 10 10:47:48 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Fri Mar 20 12:55:42 -0700 2009 Mon Sep 28 08:07:29 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=345822