I
noticed a trend. It started in my reading but, by taking my nose out of my
book, I realised it extended to the larger literary scene. Famous women are writing
personal memoirs. Droves
of women and very few men have released high profile autobiographies, personal essay
collections and the like in the last five years. They veritably populate
non-fiction bestseller lists. And these women are coming from all walks of
life; writers, sure, but also actresses, musicians and entrepreneurs. Why have
women suddenly flocked to this form?
My
favourite book – Pilgrim at Tinker Creek
by Annie Dillard – is a collection of non-fiction essays written by a women, which may make me
biased but I have thoroughly enjoyed what this genre has offered me so far. It
goes without saying that this volume of published work is a triumph for women
so I won’t say it. Honestly, the fact that all these books were written by
women seems somewhat coincidental to me. They are diverse but there is a gem of
commonality. These stories are intimate, emotionally connective, sometimes
funny, sometimes sad and always inspiring.
In
the last six months, I have read eight memoirs by women. This was by no means
an intentional decision. It stemmed mostly from curiosity. I already owned Just Kids by Patti Smith and I knew it
had received excellent reviews. I watched Orange
is the New Black and Girls and
was curious how much of it was true. And Wild
by Cheryl Strayed fit perfectly into the parameters of my dissertation. Before
I knew it, this was practically all I was reading and I was actively seeking
out new releases.
For
the most part, these books have an unnamed quality that I find so alluring.
Maybe they feed into a younger sister complex in me, always searching for a
role model. The ingenuity of
Sophia Amoruso, starting a company from nothing, or the perseverance and
self-reliance of Cheryl Strayed, hiking the Pacific Crest Trail, were fodder
for my naïve early-twenties ambition. Or maybe they are just fun to read, the
ultimate escapism within the confines of non-fiction. On a kind of metaphysical
level, I can see the reason this genre has been in the spotlight.
My
distinct hope is that these works mark a rejuvenation of literature.
In the days of YouTube and Netflix, I fear the average attention span is
shrinking, my own included. But maybe it is quite the opposite. Maybe in this
time of unlimited information and content readily available, consumers are
craving a return to more challenging or calming intellectual pursuits. Maybe
this boom in personal writing is comparable to the boom in meditation practices
or in minimalist mindsets. Whatever the case may be, it is bringing non-readers
back to literature and making books a topic of conversation again. And this can
only be good.
What
I’ve read:
Just Kids – Patti Smith
Bossypants – Tina Fey
Eat, Pray, Love – Elizabeth Gilbert
#Girlboss – Sophia Amaruso
Orange Is The
New Black –
Piper Kerman
Wild – Cheryl Strayed
Not That Kind
of Girl –
Lena Dunham
Yes Please – Amy Poehler
The Art of
Asking –
Amanda Palmer
*For
full reviews please visit my GoodReads.
What
I’ll read next:
The Opposite of Loneliness – Marina
Keegan
Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? –
Mindy Kahling
The Year Of Magical Thinking - Joan Didion
Let’s
Pretend This Never Happened – Jenny Lawson
How To Be A
Woman –
Caitlin Moran
The Glass
Castle –
Jeannette Walls
Bad Feminist – Roxane Gay
If you’ve read Wild and want more from Cheryl Strayed, check out her advice Podcast, Dear Sugar Radio with Steve Almond.
And if you like Lena Dunham
and have 1 hour and 7 minutes to kill, click HERE for a great and unexpected interview.
Happy
International Women’s Day!
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