Sharp as a tack Wendy. I was half expecting Eamon Andrews. I loved that Pentangle track. Thank you for highlighting the beauty of memoirs and yours are always insightful. Let’s hope that Substack gets on board. You’re always introducing me to good writers. Thank you.
This was a fantastic read! Well done. You and I read many of the same things at the same times in life. I need to find some of these to read and re-read, it's been so long. Thank you for the reminder about how our life experiences meld and overlap. And my goodness, yes, the yard baths. Sometimes my parents would just bring the shampoo outside. No use in wasting water. ;)
Thanks, Lyndsey. Glad some of these reads were your favourites too. The spines on some of these books are broken from use, but it was good to scan through them again today, as it’s been a long time since I read most of them.
Hope your bathing facilities are a bit more comfortable these days :D
What a treat this was! I have always loved memoir and devoured the Simone de Beauvoir when I was a student. I loved May Sarton's too and, if letters count too, the Lyttleton - Hart Davis letters were wonderful.
Not memoir but I read Tolstoy's rather tortured youthful diaries when I was a teenager and tried to model my behaviour off of them. Diana Athill wrote a few absolutely super fantastic memoirs.
Crikey, modelling yourself on Tolstoy as a teen sounds a challenge, Anna. Kudos! I haven’t read his teenage diaries. I imagine the life that led up to him writing War and Peace must have been interesting. Or was he just moping about?!
I’ve read a lot about Diana Athill, but still not got round to reading her memoirs. I need to do that!
Love this, Wendy. Thank you. I discovered you via a restack in Notes. I’m going to do the same and spread your call for a memoir tag. The Four Marys feature in mine, by the way!
Thanks for the shoutout Wendy, and glad to have helped to get the ball rolling... so many good things in your post and the comments too. (How could I have forgotten Diana Athill?) My passion this summer has been Frances Partridge's Diaries. For some reason I started with 'Hanging On' the volume that starts in 1963 and I'm thrilled to discover she published more after that. Everyone I've lent Bess Kalb's sweet, funny Nobody Will Tell You This But Me has loved it (she's on Substack too).
I’m surprised looking back that I was allowed to stay up to watch the show. I wonder what time it was on?! I was obsessed with it, and I adored the theme song.
Wow, what a rich "This is Your Life" essay. I admit I need to come back to track more carefully as I am older but a late bloomer in the literary world.
This fills me with delight to zoom in on these authors, more than half I know, but have not read fully.
I will come back to this. Thank you.
I have read all of Abigail Thomas. She writes like no other and has given mine stunning appreciation.
I just finished "Getting Over Tom." it is hard for me to believe it is not memoir. I love everything she writes.
Substack is better than an MFA, as I hav e found great writers are not holding fast to rules.
I poured blood, sweat and tears into my memoir Edge of Grace, Fierce Awakening to Love — next month is a 10 year anniversary with a revised version. The first edition took seven years. I had 0 confidence in my writing, was rule bound, and blamed myself for too many things.
Writing is a freedom that took me to the belly of the beast and set who I truly am aflame.
I look forward to coming back to this and adding to my reading list.
Good to learn more about you — Wendy's World.
"It whetted my appetite for reading memoirs and diaries. I craved guidance on how to live and how to push the boundaries.
In my early twenties I devoured everything by Anaïs Nin
The famous quote, “We do not see things as they are, we see them as we are,” is hers."
Thanks, Prajna. There is so much out there to read. We’re never going to get to more than a fraction of it, but it’s great to compare notes on some of our favourites.
Loved the quiz. Of the memoirs I have read on the list, I recognized most. So much to say in praise of memoir and I'm lost when it comes to threads and as I can barely manage Notes. Digital overload today when I've got a a sick dog. Flagging to reread later.
Notes can be confusing, but I’m finding it useful to share ideas and pieces I’ve enjoyed and to find pieces and writers I might not have noticed otherwise. I find it easier to navigate on my desktop, where I can see properly, my fat fingers aren’t a hindrance and I have a proper keyboard!
Yes, the way Anais Nin has been viewed differently over time is really interesting. I think she was ahead of her time with the way she broke boundaries. I found reading her in my early twenties very liberating.
I realised when Elizabeth's book came out in 2008 that she'd had a similar experience to me: stillbirth, followed by another baby. Pregnancy after loss brings up such complex feelings.
This has jogged so many memories for me; the Four Marys, Take Three Girl, Anaïs Nun, Frost in May and also opened up a whole new world of things to read. I do so love a quiz. Thanks Wendy!
This was such an interesting read, Wendy. The differences between UK and US really stood out to me. I hadn't heard of many of these memoirs-- and none of the TV shows! For an American woman of my generation the equivalent career-woman story was definitely The Mary Tyler Moore Show, which my sisters and I loved (and which also had a very memorable theme song!)
The only books I've read on your list were Nin and Didion, I think, though some are indeed American. But then "memoir" wasn't really a category I grew up with, or read until recently. There were wonderful, influential books like Maxine Hong Kingston's No Name Woman but that was pitched as autobiographical fiction. Or Jamaica Kincaid's Girl and A Small Place, which were similarly "autobiographical" but not pitched as memoir. In some ways, I think it's a relatively recent literary category...? In the U.S. it really hit with Cheryl Strayed's Wild in 2012. To ponder!
Thanks, Victoria! I loved the Mary Tyler Moore Show as a kid, too. She was another really inspiring character.
Yes, memoir/autobiography/autobiographical fiction… it can be hard to exactly define them. But they're definitely distinct from fiction, and based on real lives.
Fantastic piece, Wendy. Took me right back to that childhood ambition and longing to do something brilliant with my life. Well done on all your successes too! And yes, we definitely need a Memoir tab - substack is chockablock with great memoirists.
Thanks, Georgina! Yes, I remember so well that feeling that I didn't want to be boxed in.
And yes, there's fantastic life-writing/memoir popping up here, every day! I need to catch up with my heaving Inbox now I've published this week's piece.
Sharp as a tack Wendy. I was half expecting Eamon Andrews. I loved that Pentangle track. Thank you for highlighting the beauty of memoirs and yours are always insightful. Let’s hope that Substack gets on board. You’re always introducing me to good writers. Thank you.
Thank you, Margaret. Your essays would often fit a Memoir category too. Always a great read.
This was a fantastic read! Well done. You and I read many of the same things at the same times in life. I need to find some of these to read and re-read, it's been so long. Thank you for the reminder about how our life experiences meld and overlap. And my goodness, yes, the yard baths. Sometimes my parents would just bring the shampoo outside. No use in wasting water. ;)
Thanks, Lyndsey. Glad some of these reads were your favourites too. The spines on some of these books are broken from use, but it was good to scan through them again today, as it’s been a long time since I read most of them.
Hope your bathing facilities are a bit more comfortable these days :D
What a treat this was! I have always loved memoir and devoured the Simone de Beauvoir when I was a student. I loved May Sarton's too and, if letters count too, the Lyttleton - Hart Davis letters were wonderful.
Thank you, Deborah. I’m not familiar with May Sarton or the Lyttleton/Hart Davis letters, so will add those to my own discovery list!
Echoing Deborah’s nod to May Sarton!!
Not memoir but I read Tolstoy's rather tortured youthful diaries when I was a teenager and tried to model my behaviour off of them. Diana Athill wrote a few absolutely super fantastic memoirs.
Crikey, modelling yourself on Tolstoy as a teen sounds a challenge, Anna. Kudos! I haven’t read his teenage diaries. I imagine the life that led up to him writing War and Peace must have been interesting. Or was he just moping about?!
I’ve read a lot about Diana Athill, but still not got round to reading her memoirs. I need to do that!
Excellent post, Wendy. I find memoir an excellent portal to compassion and human connection. It deserves its own tab.
Thanks, Ros. Yes, I find memoir good for the soul! I love a warts and all life story.
Love this, Wendy. Thank you. I discovered you via a restack in Notes. I’m going to do the same and spread your call for a memoir tag. The Four Marys feature in mine, by the way!
Oh, thank you, Emma! Glad you have fond memories of The Four Marys too!
Thanks for the shoutout Wendy, and glad to have helped to get the ball rolling... so many good things in your post and the comments too. (How could I have forgotten Diana Athill?) My passion this summer has been Frances Partridge's Diaries. For some reason I started with 'Hanging On' the volume that starts in 1963 and I'm thrilled to discover she published more after that. Everyone I've lent Bess Kalb's sweet, funny Nobody Will Tell You This But Me has loved it (she's on Substack too).
Thank you, Ann. It was great to see all the recommendations on your thread. And new ones here, too. I’ve got a lot more reading to do!
Loved this, especially’Take Three Girls’ How could I have forgotten them !
I’m surprised looking back that I was allowed to stay up to watch the show. I wonder what time it was on?! I was obsessed with it, and I adored the theme song.
I loved the theme song too.
Wow, what a rich "This is Your Life" essay. I admit I need to come back to track more carefully as I am older but a late bloomer in the literary world.
This fills me with delight to zoom in on these authors, more than half I know, but have not read fully.
I will come back to this. Thank you.
I have read all of Abigail Thomas. She writes like no other and has given mine stunning appreciation.
I just finished "Getting Over Tom." it is hard for me to believe it is not memoir. I love everything she writes.
Substack is better than an MFA, as I hav e found great writers are not holding fast to rules.
I poured blood, sweat and tears into my memoir Edge of Grace, Fierce Awakening to Love — next month is a 10 year anniversary with a revised version. The first edition took seven years. I had 0 confidence in my writing, was rule bound, and blamed myself for too many things.
Writing is a freedom that took me to the belly of the beast and set who I truly am aflame.
I look forward to coming back to this and adding to my reading list.
Good to learn more about you — Wendy's World.
"It whetted my appetite for reading memoirs and diaries. I craved guidance on how to live and how to push the boundaries.
In my early twenties I devoured everything by Anaïs Nin
The famous quote, “We do not see things as they are, we see them as we are,” is hers."
Exactly, Thank you!
Here is my memoir: https://prajnaohara.com/shop/
Thanks, Prajna. There is so much out there to read. We’re never going to get to more than a fraction of it, but it’s great to compare notes on some of our favourites.
Also, thank you for the link to your memoir.
Loved the quiz. Of the memoirs I have read on the list, I recognized most. So much to say in praise of memoir and I'm lost when it comes to threads and as I can barely manage Notes. Digital overload today when I've got a a sick dog. Flagging to reread later.
Thank you, Jill. Glad you enjoyed the quiz!
Notes can be confusing, but I’m finding it useful to share ideas and pieces I’ve enjoyed and to find pieces and writers I might not have noticed otherwise. I find it easier to navigate on my desktop, where I can see properly, my fat fingers aren’t a hindrance and I have a proper keyboard!
Hope your poorly dog improves.
Oh, I love this. The "quiz" what fun. I recently read Elizabeth McCracken's book. OW.
And, I took was immersed in Anais Nin's diaries, all of her writings, actually. Thank you for bringing me back to them.
Thank you, Nancy. Glad you enjoyed the quiz!
Yes, the way Anais Nin has been viewed differently over time is really interesting. I think she was ahead of her time with the way she broke boundaries. I found reading her in my early twenties very liberating.
I realised when Elizabeth's book came out in 2008 that she'd had a similar experience to me: stillbirth, followed by another baby. Pregnancy after loss brings up such complex feelings.
This has jogged so many memories for me; the Four Marys, Take Three Girl, Anaïs Nun, Frost in May and also opened up a whole new world of things to read. I do so love a quiz. Thanks Wendy!
Thanks, Rachael, glad you enjoyed and it stirred some memories. Sounds like we have a lot of reading in common!
So interesting, now I have added many memoirs to my must-read list. Thanks, Wendy
This was such an interesting read, Wendy. The differences between UK and US really stood out to me. I hadn't heard of many of these memoirs-- and none of the TV shows! For an American woman of my generation the equivalent career-woman story was definitely The Mary Tyler Moore Show, which my sisters and I loved (and which also had a very memorable theme song!)
The only books I've read on your list were Nin and Didion, I think, though some are indeed American. But then "memoir" wasn't really a category I grew up with, or read until recently. There were wonderful, influential books like Maxine Hong Kingston's No Name Woman but that was pitched as autobiographical fiction. Or Jamaica Kincaid's Girl and A Small Place, which were similarly "autobiographical" but not pitched as memoir. In some ways, I think it's a relatively recent literary category...? In the U.S. it really hit with Cheryl Strayed's Wild in 2012. To ponder!
Thanks, Victoria! I loved the Mary Tyler Moore Show as a kid, too. She was another really inspiring character.
Yes, memoir/autobiography/autobiographical fiction… it can be hard to exactly define them. But they're definitely distinct from fiction, and based on real lives.
Fantastic piece, Wendy. Took me right back to that childhood ambition and longing to do something brilliant with my life. Well done on all your successes too! And yes, we definitely need a Memoir tab - substack is chockablock with great memoirists.
Thanks, Georgina! Yes, I remember so well that feeling that I didn't want to be boxed in.
And yes, there's fantastic life-writing/memoir popping up here, every day! I need to catch up with my heaving Inbox now I've published this week's piece.
Loved looking through those memoir book spines. Smarty Pants- what a title
Thank you for reading and commenting, Caroline! Tina Fey's memoir, Bossypants, is as hilarious as you'd expect from the woman who created 30 Rock!