Writing a memoir seems deceivingly easy at first. Anyone can write about their own life, right? Yet crafting a good memoir – one that vividly communicates and mesmerizes with its words – is a difficult task. As this book’s title infers, a memoir consists of the writer’s life becoming the words, which in turn take on a life of their own. Its author Beth Kephart teaches writing at workshops and an Ivy League university (the University of Pennsylvania). She additionally counts several well-received memoirs of her own. As in her classroom, she guides readers through various facets of composing an effective – and hopefully successful – memoir.

Kephart divides this journey into four parts: technical aspects, self-awareness, form, and the writing life. Each section contains several, relatively short essays. Many essays contain prompts for further pondering, and some essays have been published before. Each contains a spin on a foundational principle related to the section’s theme.

Kephart has put forth much effort in exploring the genre of memoir. She cites many different books as inspirations and illustrations. She has clearly mastered understanding prior literature, and she has developed multiple memoirs as an author. This comprehensive, rigorous understanding flows into each chapter.

To be frank, I did not connect with Kephart on every essay’s topic. I found some more interesting than others. None of the essays were bad, however, and fortunately, all of the essays were short. This meant that my curiosity was quickly satiated by a new topic soon after a given connection lacked. Also, professionally, I write software, not literature, so my interaction with words tends on side of the technical, not the literary. This may have limited shared life experiences.

Nonetheless, this book excited my imagination about the various components of communicating my story. I’ve pondered some day writing a memoir to pass on lessons learned through hardships, and understanding the issues from a master teacher (like Kephart) is certainly a helpful prerequisite. I’ll never read as many memoirs as she has, I’m certain. Accessing a large repository of human experience through these essays accelerates my ability to form my own voice and approach. ( )