Voice of Her Own : Women and the Journal Writing Journey

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Work!
Review: This is not a "how-to" book AT ALL. (It could be used that way if you want it to be that sort of book - and it would probably be among the best!) It's a book about all that it means to be a woman and to keep a journal while living a life. Absolutely wonderful work - great thinking and great writing. If you've kept a journal, or have possesion of a family members journal, if you've ever wanted to keep a journal, or if you wonder what journal keeping is all about - this is a first rate book.

Enjoy!

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Work!
Review: This is not a "how-to" book AT ALL. (It could be used that way if you want it to be that sort of book - and it would probably be among the best!) It's a book about all that it means to be a woman and to keep a journal while living a life. Absolutely wonderful work - great thinking and great writing. If you've kept a journal, or have possesion of a family members journal, if you've ever wanted to keep a journal, or if you wonder what journal keeping is all about - this is a first rate book.

Enjoy!

Rating:
Summary: A Good Overview of Women's Journal Writing
Review: This is not so much an exercise book, as it is a book about the practice of women's journal writing. It provides a really good overview of different aspects of keeping a journal. Ms.Schiwy gives suggestions for things such as choosing a journal and journal privacy, the reasons for keeping a journal and it's importance in a woman's life. Also included are excerpts from published diaries, and an extensive bibliography.

Rating:
Summary: In between journaling, treat yourself to this book...
Review: This is such a lovely read, I enjoyed it thoroughly and always looked forward to getting back to it. Schiwy has a psychoanalytic approach and an accessible writing style that bond together beautifully. She mixes techniques, encouragement, and deep thinking about why and how women can keep journals. The excerpts from various journals merge seamlessly with her own text, and I am now enjoying researching some of the journals to which she has introduced me. An appendix gives a long list of journal-writing topics, corresponding to the chapter themes, and the endnotes and bibliography are similarly extensive.

Schiwy demonstrates such respect and love for the women's journals into which she has either peeked or delved, she sidesteps the voyeuristic aspect of reading someone else's most private words. Perhaps to narrow her theme, Schiwy focuses on women's journals, but using a journal to break free of patriarchic strangleholds is not limited to women only, and I found some of the feminism to come dangerously near to male-bashing, so gents, approach with caution. Some of these journals are from famous women; some are the you and me of the secret society of diarists. Still, women's journals should not be of interest only to women, so gents, take the plunge along with us! This is both a practical and a theoretical handbook, one of the best overviews of journal writing I've had the pleasure to read.

Rating:
Summary: In between journaling, treat yourself to this book...
Review: This is such a lovely read, I enjoyed it thoroughly and always looked forward to getting back to it. Schiwy has a psychoanalytic approach and an accessible writing style that bond together beautifully. She mixes techniques, encouragement, and deep thinking about why and how women can keep journals. The excerpts from various journals merge seamlessly with her own text, and I am now enjoying researching some of the journals to which she has introduced me. An appendix gives a long list of journal-writing topics, corresponding to the chapter themes, and the endnotes and bibliography are similarly extensive.

Schiwy demonstrates such respect and love for the women's journals into which she has either peeked or delved, she sidesteps the voyeuristic aspect of reading someone else's most private words. Perhaps to narrow her theme, Schiwy focuses on women's journals, but using a journal to break free of patriarchic strangleholds is not limited to women only, and I found some of the feminism to come dangerously near to male-bashing, so gents, approach with caution. Some of these journals are from famous women; some are the you and me of the secret society of diarists. Still, women's journals should not be of interest only to women, so gents, take the plunge along with us! This is both a practical and a theoretical handbook, one of the best overviews of journal writing I've had the pleasure to read.