Nick’s review of Childhood / Youth / Dependency > Likes and Comments

I understood this was autobiography, Nick, but shaped by the adult writer to recall only what she chose to recall and express only what she chose to express—and isn't that what all memoirists do as opposed to diarists who record everything. But yes, the term 'auto fiction' is very current.

Fionnuala wrote: "I understood this was autobiography, Nick, but shaped by the adult writer to recall only what she chose to recall and express only what she chose to express—and isn't that what all memoirists do as..."

Fi, i find it very interesting to reflect on how crafted the retelling of a life must be. The same way we might consider how a work of fiction is crafted. Even the reconstruction of memories from diaries must be a craft, too. No less interesting because of it, though.

I think what's happened to me is that I see all this language around me about truth and reality when it really masks the opposite. the word 'authentic' has really bothered me for some time as it seems to be the one word in circulation that rounds up our thoughts into believing something to be true.

I love the discussion in the comments. Yes, in some ways, memoir is also fiction -- we construct something unreal merely by choosing what parts of reality to leave out, what parts to keep, and by presenting them in a certain order.

Yules (some notifications are dropping whyyyyy) wrote: "I love the discussion in the comments. Yes, in some ways, memoir is also fiction -- we construct something unreal merely by choosing what parts of reality to leave out, what parts to keep, and by p..."

I enjoy this element of storytelling.
If you think about it Yules, we are an unsavory species full of neuroses, self-interests, venality, ego, needs, you name it. And some good bits, too, in that some people do miraculous and important things, so we might gain something by reading their life story. And at the same time, readers have a ready made set of expectations when buying a memoir, autobiography - they equally have needs that are full of their human good and bad bits. So, the point at which they come together can only be by some narrative efficiency that satisfies the needs of both. I mean, anyone who wants to write a memoir has a problem in that something drives them. In a sense there is another story behind every memoir/autobiography, the needs of the teller of the story. And its only really in fiction that that drive becomes exposed or interesting.

Nick wrote: "anyone who wants to write a memoir has a problem in that something drives them. In a sense there is another story behind every memoir/autobiography, the needs of the teller of the story."

Fascinating point. As someone who tried to write a memoir, I certainly had these background needs. My motives had little to do with telling the story of my life (in fact, this did not really interest me at all); they were entirely political. Ultimately, I failed: perhaps a true memoirist must be a little bit more interested in themselves than I was ;p

"I just have a wish that people appreciate fiction for what it is, carefully crafted, full of ideas, themes, observations, stylistic effects that leave us with a sense of something genuinely good, not genuine, an unnecessary element."

I really liked this comment, Nick, especially after your observations about the narrative style. It reminds me that there is so much to appreciate about fiction (and other kinds of writing) above whatever message the author might be trying to impart. Some of those points to appreciate are, perhaps, authorial intentions (beliefs to cultivate, actions to incite) but sometimes it is just to look at something familiar through the narrative filter the author provides.

Nice review. This book sounds like something I would like.

Path, I feel like I went on a bit of a bender with my ideas about fiction here. Worse thing is i feel that many people have lost the skill (or never had it) to appreciate what fiction is doing. To me it's part of our critical functions to be able to read fiction as a troubling point of connection to our humanity, rather than stuff that affirms what we are or what we identify with.

You know how eventually ideas track you down when you're immersed in them. I recently discovered some interesting articles on AI and literature, especially from Will Self, the novelist who is on a kind of mission about this. But also on the function of the critical mind with a well-trained literary abilities. Anyway, I thought I was critical. He's got a merciless view of modern publishing.

I've been confused by the word "autofiction" myself. Is it the same as a roman à clef? How about a bildungsroman? Doesn't every fiction writer mine his or her own life and experience for material? Isn't it understood that memoir is as much "truthiness" as truth? Even autobiography is going to suffer the fate of an unreliable narrator, a biased author, in other words a human being.

Whatever, Labels notwithstanding, I enjoyed this book too, though it's been a while.

Ken wrote: "I've been confused by the word "autofiction" myself. Is it the same as a roman à clef? How about a bildungsroman? Doesn't every fiction writer mine his or her own life and experience for material? ..."

I have a radical plan that all of it should be under the 'fiction' label. No point sorting through the differences. Once there, readers will need to start using their critical abilities and hone their literary skills to determine what goes on. One great rebranding for good.

Call it the Voracious Reader Games.

Thanks for this introduction Nick. Not a writer I know.

David wrote: "Thanks for this introduction Nick. Not a writer I know."

Me either. I only heard about her from my peers at GR.