Steve's review
Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life
by Anne Lamott
Steve's review
Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott
Steve's review
rating:
I can see why this is a popular book. Lamott is funny, self-deprecating, and encouraging even in the face of cold, hard realities. She means what she says in the title, too. It really does set out to be instructions on writing and life. There are undoubtedly better books covering particulars of the craft, but this may be one of the best at construing a writer’s perspective. I liked her advice about making incremental progress (the meaning of “bird by bird”), about getting something/anything down that can then be refined in later drafts, and about finding characters, plot, voice, and truth from distinct parts of yourself. She also made clear how writing can make you a more appreciative reader.
Another bit of advice Lamott offered rang true: readers want to like the storyteller. I would say she achieved most of that goal herself as she laid out the story of her own literary life. Every once in a while it seemed like she had favorite anecdotes she shoehorned into the narr...more
Another bit of advice Lamott offered rang true: readers want to like the storyteller. I would say she achieved most of that goal herself as she laid out the story of her own literary life. Every once in a while it seemed like she had favorite anecdotes she shoehorned into the narr...more
