Book Review: Bird by Bird, Some Instructions on Writing and Life, by Anne Lamott

Rating: 2 of 5 stars

Bird by Bird started off really well for me. The language Anne uses is engaging and descriptive. She uses narrative to teach and her stories made me want to keep reading. I was thoroughly enjoying the book at first, and appreciated some of the golden nuggets scattered throughout.

One of the passages I especially loved was this:

“…for some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet or excite you. Books help us understand who we are and how we are to behave. They show us what community and friendship mean; they show us how to live and die. They are full of all the things that you don’t get in real life - wonderful, lyrical language, for instance, right off the bat. And quality of attention: we may notice amazing details during the course of a day but we rarely let ourselves stop and really pay attention. An author makes you notice, makes you pay attention, and this is a great gift. My gratitude for good writing is unbounded; I’m grateful for it the way I’m grateful for the ocean.”

Later, though, it started to feel more muddy and I started feeling like I was having to slog through it. It lost some interest for me and started to sound more jaded and troubled. I found myself feeling like I had to force myself to keep reading. Though I did finish it, I will admit that I read through the last chapters more hurriedly than I had the first ones.

I routinely take a star off of my ratings for the presence of strong language in books (it’s just not for me), so do note that without that, my rating for this book would have been 3 stars.