Rating: 
Summary: Good advice on writing -- bad advice on life
Review: I am at a loss to explain the glowing reviews of this book. Although Bird by Bird contains good advice on writing, I found the author extremely unlikable. Self-absorbed, egotistical, neurotic -- I guess if you take her as an example of how not to live your life, the idea works. I personally don't see how anyone could view her as a role model (cocaine and God? well, that's Northern California for you...).A more helpful book would have at least included some advice for us poor souls who are otherwise employable (and have jobs) but still want to write. She seems to assume that everyone reading her book has the entire day free to write (or whine, or do "retail therapy"). Finally, as a personal note to the author -- Ms. Lamott, it's called "shopping", not retail therapy. Get over yourself. And for your son's sake, stop doing drugs.
Rating: 
Summary: truth is all
Review: I must disagree with the previous reviewer and stand by Anne Lamott. Truth is everything in storytelling whatever it's genre. It is truth that engages the reader - seeing an element of their own life reflected in the narrative. Without that truth a story will simply not engage. There is as much truth in good Stephen King as in good Anne Tyler because he funnels the emotions and insights from his own life into his own characters. If as a writer you don't do that you will not entertain a reader.
Rating:
Summary: A valuable tool for the writer
Review: Wonderfully honest, delightfully funny. Valuable tips on how to handle the writing life. I checked the book out from the library to read, but loved it so much that I had to buy a copy so I could re-read sections at will. If you are a beginning writer who believes that getting published is the answer to everything, then you need to read this book. (Prepare to get a bit miffed!) If you have come to realize that writing is just a way of life and expression and that publishing is icing on the cake (that gets eaten quickly), then you will embrace this book.
I especially liked the sections where Anne tells us quite vividly about how she reacts to having others read her work (they go from friend to hated enemy to lukewarm then back to friend within a matter of hours.) How she realizes that writing is trying to capture the essence of living (and dying) and not just trying to fluff up some nice words on a page so that someone will pay you for it.
And throughout, I found myself laughing out loud from her wit, wry sarcasm, and ability to be brutally honest about her own life and her own shortcomings. Kind of an Erma Bombeck as a writing professor.
Rating:
Summary: Definately cool
Review: I love this book! Lamott took me, a mere spectator in the world of writing, on a short journey through her writing life and made me belive I could write, though I think I took away more about living life than writing. The book is full of sound advice that our culture needs to hear more often. I plan to buy it for several of my friends who aspire to write.
Rating:
Summary: Practical, Inspiring, Courageous
Review: (...) I read this book through, enjoyed it very much, and even recommended it to friends. There are some that may accuse Ms. Lamott of being chatty and self-absorbed. (...) But I found Ms. Lamott's book to be very practical and inspiring. She is a wonderful, witty, and hard-working writer. Yes, perhaps she curses a bit too much, but this brings authenticity to the work. (...) She is not a fake. She is no coward. And I'm certain that her prose is not composed of an abundance of curse words because she lacks in vocabulary or literary skill. She has allowed her life experiences to be something she can learn from, and that makes her a real trooper. I respect her for it, and I like her writing style. If you are someone that would like to write but experiencing a block about where to start, this book may be a tool to get you off and running. And it truly does contain gems about life and learning through your trials. The title "Bird by Bird" comes from her brother's dilemma about having to turn in a report at school about birds, and he was late on getting started. Their father sat down with him, as her brother asked "how will I get it done?" Their father responded "Bird by Bird". That's a simple philosophy that we often forget about when we are overwhelmed with the demands that we bring before ourselves in life. I like the book and anyone that would like to accomplish a difficult goal, whether it's writing or building a small business or whatever your goal may be, should read this book.
Rating:
Summary: Practical, and Insightful
Review: Orrin Judd's review above is pure rubbish. This book was great. Yes, Orrin, you are out of step with the other reviewers and life on this planet too! Anyone who writes or aspires to needs this book. True, Anne Lamott's experiences, which she writes about, may not be of interest to all people. However, for me, I always liked to write at school as a student and on the job too. I always wondered about writers because although I enjoy it, I marvel at those who do it so well. In another of Anne Lamott's books, "Operating Instructions", she writes about her pregnancy and the birth of her son. I am a male, and found that book fascinating. I find her writing about her personal experiences gives me insight into the human condition and that book gave me insights into motherhood, as this book gave me insights into being a writer. Thanks Anne. The title of "Bird by Bird", by the way, refers to an anecdote that the author put in the book about her brother. Her brother almost fatally procrastinated for a school report about Birds.
Anne's father sat down with him, and guided the nascent writer to merely take on this enormous project, "bird by bird". The insight of starting somewhere, and getting some tasks accomplished, is very apropos to many projects in our lives that seem overwhelming. Thus, this anecdote, is not only apropos to writing, but to life in general. The book's chapters are divided into topics like First Drafts, Plot, Characters, Dialogue, Getting Started etc. I found the manner in which Anne parsed/segmented/broke down the writer's tasks into these smaller components helpful.
Rating: 
Summary: my wife has her number
Review: (...) I'm not sure how long it was on the air, but for at least five years, Roseanne Barr's show was one of the most popular TV series in America. Meanwhile, I personally would have only tuned in to watch her be fed, piece by large piece, into a woodchipper. So I recognize the frequent possibility, even likelihood, that I am significantly out of step with popular opinion. But let me say this, Bird by Bird, a memoir of the writing life by Anne Lamott reads as if it was written by Ms Barr. Ms Lamott too is screechy, self-pitying, profane, and profoundly annoying. She is one of those people who has made a complete hash of her own life--alcoholic, drug addict, bulimic, single mother, born again but calls God, Her, all the time--therefore, thinks that life is really difficult in general and that her's is especially trying, and for some reason thinks that we should all hear about it and that we have something to learn from her. Now, I hardly consider myself prudish and I must acknowledge that one of my own most troubling character defects is a tendency to be excessively gutter-mouthed, but there is simply no excuse for Lamott's foul language in this book. If an author is rendering dialogue in a novel, they must obviously use strong language in order to be realistic. But here, in a book that is purportedly about writing, her frequent resort to swearing smacks of affectation and a forced attempt to keep the tone of the book chatty, rather than pedantic. Instead, it is merely unprofessional. What do we have to learn about writing, never mind life, from a woman who can't express herself without resorting to profanity? The sole moment of pleasure in the book comes in the form of a rejection letter that an editor sent to her, in which he states: You have made the mistake of thinking that everything that has happened to you is interesting. We can safely go one step further and say that the mistake lies in thinking that anything that has happened to her is interesting. (...) GRADE: D
Rating:
Summary: Gets you off your butt!
Review: One of the best recommendations for a book on writing, in my opinion, is that it creates the urge to write in everyone. My mother bought me this book on a friend's recommendation when I was at a lag in my writing. My mother read it as well and she needed to write. So she began writing letters to her past acquaintances. We have given this book to anyone with a mild interest in writing. Every one of them has loved it and has sat themselves down at their computer aafter reading it. What is better than that?
Rating:
Summary: An Appraisal
Review: Bird By Bird is a perfect display of gracful and experienced writing. Anne Lamott captures and inspires the reader with her life stories and experiences. Lamott is humorous, candid, but real in this non traditional guide book on successful writing. Five stars to a brilliant writer and an outstanding guide that will continue to motivate future writers.
Rating:
Summary: Letting It Flow
Review: Lamott explores the writing process in a way that will touch every individual. Her humorous, laid back, conversational style allows the reader to read the novel, like Lamott is speaking to them. This personal approach to writing is easy for the reader to understand, and it affords the reader the opportunity to relate personal experiences to the book. The book is a must read novel.
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