I wanted to start a series of posts to share about my favorite books. These aren’t just reviews of books I’ve read. I read a lot of books and don’t want to suggest anybody waste their time on books that aren’t truly amazing. I also don’t know that I can say much about other people’s writing. Your time is probably better spent reading their books than reading reviews I might write about them. My goal with this series is just to share enough about books I find really amazing that you can know if it might be one you want to read. I wanted to start with a book that was recently recommended to me.
Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life
(This link will take you to where you can purchase this book on Amazon. I participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. I only link to the few products that I would recommend anyway.)
Bird by Bird is a simply amazing book. Anne Lammott had me hooked as soon as I started reading. Her writing style is amazing- humorous, witty, and sarcastic, but at the same time heart-felt, generous and kind. She could probably write about anything and have me hooked with her word choice and very unique voice.
The book covers her suggestions for writers, and is just such a joy to read because of her style. I would definitely recommend it to any writers out there but also feel many non-writers, especially avid readers, would enjoy it as well. Some of the advice is applicable to things other than writing as well.
Bird by Bird includes technical advice on writing including things like sitting down and just getting writing done, character and plot development, and finding writing groups. Anne Lammott also discusses reasons to write, the emotional impact of it and things like dealing with jealousy when your friend who doesn’t write nearly as well as you gets published before you.
The advice is amazing and heartfelt and made me feel motivated to want to write. That said, the number one reason why I would recommend this book is that I loved the writing style. I definitely have plans to read more books by Anne Lammott in the near future.