Magical Memoir Moments
Jonathan Franzen’s Genre-Bending FREEDOM: Part II
On September 24, 2010, Part I of Lanie Tankard’s comprehensive review of Freedom was published here. Today the review concludes with a fascinating report on Jonathan Franzen’s visit to Austin, TX, Lanie’s home. Channeling Walter Cronkite, Lanie makes you believe that “You Were There!” If you can, I suggest that you get a cup of…
Jonathan Franzen's Genre-Bending FREEDOM: Part I
Freedom by Jonathan Franzen New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, August 2010. Available in hardcover, CD, digital audio, and ebook formats. Reviewed by Lanie Tankard Author Jonathan Franzen, an avid birder, has trained his binoculars here on a different species: Homo sapiens. While he does deal extensively with our fine feathered friends in his new…
Review of Ander Monson's Vanishing Point: Not a Memoir
Lanie Tankard is back! This time she has read and reviewed a memoir that challenges the boundaries of the genre–and in the process tells a life story (indirectly). I think you will find her review fascinating. I know she would love your comment, no matter what you think. Anyone teaching the genre, and brave…
Tom Callanan's Biking Memoir: A Story of Transformation
Last summer my friend Tom Callanan rode from Kalamazoo to Martha’s Vineyard–921 miles–in eleven days. Was he young? Not really (55). Was he an experienced biker? Not really–prior to this trip he just rode in the evenings for an hour or so. Was he crazy? Well, maybe. But at least he lived to tell some great stories…
Keith Taylor's Memoir Essay: At Springhill Farm
Keith Taylor directs the Bear River Writers’ Conference and a whole lot of other things, chiefly, the undergraduate creative writing program at the University of Michigan. He’s a giant among the writers of this state and beyond, offering his writerly wisdom and love of nature freely and fully. Keith and I discovered one connection deep enough to…
Kay Redfield Jamison's Nothing Was the Same: A Review from WomensMemoirs.com
Lanie Tankard has honored me with several guest blogs, and womensmemoirs.com has hosted guest reviews from both Lanie and me. So it is only fitting that when Lanie reviews a new memoir–Kay Redfield Jamison’s Nothing Was the Same— for Matilda Butler on womensmemoirs.com, I want to share it with my readers also. Here is a…
If You Loved The Glass Castle–Will You Love Half Broke Horses?
My friend and occasional guest blogger Lanie Tankard has written a stellar review of Jeannette Walls’ new book. One of the interesting things she ponders in the review is Walls’ choice of the label true-life novel. Those of you who have weighed in on the issue of memoir versus novel when the author is using…
All in the Family: Memoir Q & A
As promised, here is an interview with today’s memoir expert, Linda Joy Myers. Dr. Myers was kind enough to answer six questions about specific cases concerning what, if anything, an author owes to family and friends in a memoir. This post is also Day Two of the giveaway. If you leave a comment below, you…
How To Write Your Memoir and Still Go Home for the Holidays: A Guest Blog
The day has come for both the guest blog by Linda Joy Myers and the first day of our giveaway contest. Below is the guest post that addresses the question of how to deal with our fears of offending family members from Dr. Myers, a therapist, writer, and teacher. I invite you to offer your…
Laughing Out Loud: Mennonite in a Little Black Dress
If you too made the bedposts shake while you read Rhoda Janzen’s Mennonite in a Little Black Dress, you might enjoy this guest post over at womensmemoirs.com. The book uses seven classical elements of comedy to great effect. Thanks, Matilda Butler and Kendra Bonnett, for the invitation. While you are on their site, check out…