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Summary: Two by two got me going again.
Review: Much of my job required writing, and I was having difficulty keeping it fresh. I was procrastinating and getting depressed about it. A therapist friend told me to read Bird by Bird and Undoing Depression. Amazing how two such seemingly different subjects can have so much in common--inspirational writing, similar messages, down-to-earth authors; there were even some times I had to check to see which I was reading. Maybe it was just because of the problems I was having at the time, but two by two did the trick for me.
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Summary: One of the best non-fiction books ever written!
Review: I loved this book so much I ordered the hardcover version and sent my paperback off to another aspiring writer! I'm not much of a non-fiction reader, but I happened upon this in my closet just as I was beginning to focus on freelance writing--I had no memory of buying it--and started reading, hoping it would inspire me. Not only did it inspire me to write, but it was so engaging that I could barely put it down! Anne Lamott is witty and honest, and more than a little wicked, like your ideal best girlfriend...or the writing instructor you dream about! If you're looking for instruction, this is not your book. But if you're in need of inspiration, encouragement, or a little voice to say, "Hey, lighten up!" you'll definitely find it here!
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Summary: Thank you, Anne!
Review: If I could write as well and as honestly as Anne Lamott, I would consider myself a successful writer. The author holds back nothing and will have you laughing and crying and learning all at the same time. Read Bird by Bird and you will begin to understand yourself as a writer and a human being.
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Summary: Very, very funny. I feel less mentally ill now.
Review: One of the funniest, most touching books I've read in a very long time. If Anne Lamott ever needed money again, I'd send it to her. No questions asked.I would really like to have a cup of coffee and talk with her, although I feel like I already have. Her writing is personal, conversational and very self- revealing. Thank you, Thank you, for inspiring me to write again. I'm off to write a really crappy second draft of my book...
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Summary: she's kind of like a muse who's having a crunchy day
Review: she can be bitter and sarcastic but underneath it all is a lot of love however i don't think she's admit it (well not right away)i've given this book to the important people in my lifetold myself i'd drop them if they didn't love it it hasn't happened yet and i have already bought too many copiesyou don't have to be a writer to love this bookyou just have to be real trust meshe's a keeper
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Summary: in a word: inspirational
Review: lamott's amazing work BIRD BY BIRD breathes inspiration into even the darkest corners of any writer's block. her writing is humorous and straightforward, "telling it like it is". a must-read for any writer. if you read only two books on writing, make them ELEMENTS OF STYLE and BIRD BY BIRD.
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Summary: Lamott tells it like it is.
Review: Bird by Bird was one of the best things that I read while working on my memoir. Lamott made me look at all of the little intricate details of an event by using, what she calls, a one inch picture frame. She offers helpful strategies to get you writing, but doesn't glorify writing the way others do. She tells it like it is. It's not easy to get published, and then even once you are published, it doesn't mean instantaneous success.
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Summary: Wonderful, enchanting, brilliant and wonderful again
Review: I LOVE this book and have reread it many times. As a writer, I will be forever grateful to Ms. Lamott for the charm, joy, and encouragement that this book has brought to me. I have given it as a gift to many friends....it is a book that entices the artist in all of us. It is a heartfelt invitation to grow, be patient and be happy. And to write.
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Summary: Helping me find my voice
Review: I am a writer by trade in the p.r./marketing sense of the word. Reading this book inspired me to try to do the kind of writing I aspired to in the first place; to journal again, and flex my muscles by practicing the short writing excercises the author recommends. It's given me great relief to know that, according to Lamott, even the best authors don't write a book in one sitting, letting the prose pour out like butter. So I'm trying to write again, bird by bird, knowing it doesn't have to be perfect the first time (see the author's section on "sh**tty first drafts"!). This book is one of the few that has really made a difference in my life. My compliments to the author.
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Summary: "Bird by Bird " would be a perfect English Composition text.
Review: I wish that I would have known about Anne Lamott while teaching Freshman Composoition. What a great textbook, "Bird by Bird" would be starting with "shitty first drafts." So many times one sentence in a student's paper shone, "That's what your paper is about," I would say, or "What a great idea," or "I hear your voice here." As Lamott points, out all that writing was worth one good sentence and perhaps is the only way to achieve it - get the words down, even if most are cast away in a later draft. "Bird by Bird" provides guidelines for the writing process from a writer who has been there.
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