Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous and Obscure (edit title)

C R edited the summary of Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous and Obscure 7 days ago.

• Short thrill—interesting book about memoir. Launched online by SMITH magazine, this book is a collection of six-word memoirs written by famous and ordinary people. The editors hoped to inspire, challenge and record in “a battle for brevity” the life stories of the masses. The editors explain the origin for the book’s premise, yet do not explain how they chose the memoirs included or who the memoirists are. Just like people’s personalities, the stories are diverse, creative and interesting. The graphic design makes this book even more appealing; it has numerous font types and sizes, varied background colors and a few photographs or illustrations throughout. The pictures correlate to the memoir on that page, yet there is no documentation that the photograph identifies the memoirist. There is no logical sequence to the memoirs included or laid out within the book. It does seem as if popular authors’ memoirs were featured with their own page or larger font. Emotional passages stand out in bold font, while romantics speak through curvy script. Even the book’s cover in its bold black, red, yellow and white colors make the book stand out. This book will appeal to many, as its passages are short and sometimes shocking or sad. Due to the language however, it should be reserved for senior high or college libraries. Writers mention sex, alcohol, and at times, comment by cursing. Teachers can take worthwhile samples and present the idea of a six-word memoir to younger students, but should be aware of the older content. It’s difficult to read this book and not think of your own six-word memoir. Short thrill—need I say more?

Shelfari edited the description of Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous and Obscure Saturday, August 8 2009.

• Deceptively simple and surprisingly addictive, Not Quite What I Was Planning is a thousand glimpses of humanity—six words at a time. One Life. Six Words. What's Yours? When Hemingway famously wrote, "For Sale: baby shoes, never worn," he proved that an entire story can be told using a half dozen words. When the online storytelling magazine SMITH asked readers to submit six-word memoirs, they proved a whole, real life can be told this way too. The results are fascinating, hilarious, shocking, and moving. From small sagas of bittersweet romance ("Found true love, married someone else") to proud achievements and stinging regrets ("After Harvard, had baby with crackhead"), these terse true tales relate the diversity of human experience in tasty bite-sized pieces. From authors Jonathan Lethem and Richard Ford to comedians Stephen Colbert and Amy Sedaris, to ordinary folks around the world, everyone has a six-word story to tell.

Shelfari edited the contributors of Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous and Obscure Saturday, July 25 2009.

• Added a contributor: Larry Smith: (Primary Author)
• Added a contributor: Rachel Fershleiser: (Primary None)