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Inventing the Truth: The Art and Craft of Memoir Paperback – May 20, 1998

by Russell Baker (Author), Toni Morrison (Author), Alfred Kazin (Author),
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 196 ratings
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For anyone who enjoys reading memoirs—or is thinking about writing one—this collection offers a master class from nine distinguished authors, including Annie Dillard, Frank McCourt, and others.

The events, memories, and emotions of the past often resist the orderly structure of a book. Inventing the Truth offers wisdom from nine notable memoirists about their process (Ian Frazier searched through generations of family papers to understand his parents' lives), the hurdles they faced (Annie Dillard tackles the central dilemma of memoir: what to put in and what to leave out), and the unexpected joys of bringing their pasts to the page.

Featured authors include Russell Baker on Growing Up; Jill Ker Conway on The Road from Coorain; Annie Dillard on An American Childhood; Ian Frazier on Family; Henry Louis Gates Jr. on Colored People; Alfred Kazin on A Walker in the City; Frank McCourt on Angela's Ashes; Toni Morrison on Beloved; and Eileen Simpson on Poets in Their Youth.
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Previous page
  1. Print length
    240 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Harper Perennial
  4. Publication date
    May 20, 1998
  5. Reading age
    14 years and up
  6. Dimensions
    5.5 x 0.64 x 8.25 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    9780395901502
  8. ISBN-13
    978-0395901502
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Every time Inventing the Truth appears in a new edition, editor William Zinsser can't help but add to it. The first edition (1987) evolved from a series of New York Public Library talks, for which the mandate was not to lecture about the genre of the memoir but to explain how a specific memoir came to be written. In the book's 1995 edition, Russell Baker, Annie Dillard, Alfred Kazin, and Toni Morrison were joined by Jill Ker Conway, Eileen Simpson, Henry Louis Gates Jr., and Ian Frazier. This time around, Zinsser has added a rich and charming reminiscence by Frank McCourt (Angela's Ashes).

The authors do stick to their assignment: Russell Baker credits his huge family with helping him "learn a lot about humanity from close-up observation"; Jill Ker Conway talks about her desire to write a female memoir that was not a romantic happily-ever-after; and Henry Louis Gates Jr. discusses "want[ing] to write a book that imitated the specialness of black culture when no white people are around." But there is also plenty of advice for writers here, and some general thoughts about the genre. Conway addresses the difficulty of "going back as a historian" and trying to understand "all the things you took as a given when you were a child." Gates warns us to "be prepared for the revelation of things you don't even dream are going to come up." And Annie Dillard contemplates the strangeness of spending "more time writing about [a scene or an event] than you did living it." --Jane Steinberg

About the Author

Toni Morrison was a master storyteller. Her groundbreaking novel Beloved won the 1988 Pulitzer Prize in fiction. In 1993 she became the first black woman to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012.

Alfred Kazin has lectured and taught at many prestigious universities in both the U.S. and Europe. His books include A Walker in the City, The Inmost Leaf, and Starting Out in the Thirties.
 

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ 0395901502
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harper Perennial; Subsequent edition (May 20, 1998)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 240 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780395901502
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0395901502
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 14 years and up
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8.6 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.64 x 8.25 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 196 ratings

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Russell Baker

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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
196 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

John David Lionel Brooke
5.0 out of 5 stars Sparkling Gems of Insight
Reviewed in the United States on June 13, 2015
Verified Purchase
Found this mother lode of memior writing In the midsit of rewriting the final draft of the of my concluding memoir of the" Mother Lode" trilogy. The thoughts and machinations of their own memoir stories. The agony of soul searching, what to put in and what sensitive stuff to leave out. The humor of people and situations of family and friends from the perspective of the past. The importance of the time gap to distance themselves form the events in their past lives Ten successful writers, with ten different viewpoints and methods provided an priceless insights in how I should tackle my own story. As I complete my own memoir; "My Mad Mother" I definitely plan on augmenting my work by reading the memoir of these reverse and wonderful writers; William Zinsser, "Introduction", Russell Baker; "Life With Mother", Jill Ker Conway; "The Road from Coorain", Frank McCourt, "Angela's Ashes" a reread, Eileen Simpson; "Poets in Their Youth", Henry Louis Gates Jr., "Colored People", Alfred Kazin; "A Walker in the City", Annie Dillard; "An American Childhood", Ian Frazier: "Family", Toni Morrison; "The Site of Memory". All these authors have enriched my craft of writing the memoir.
6 people found this helpful
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Hawley Roddick
5.0 out of 5 stars To learn by example from experts
Reviewed in the United States on January 25, 2008
Verified Purchase
As a personal and corporate biographer, I hear many different life stories and have learned that no one approach or format fits all. This collection of essays is a splendid example of how different individuals see their lives in their own ways. The essays together also serve to reassure any would-be memoirist that there is no one Right Way to write about your life experiences. When I was very young, I read Dr. Zhivago and wrote a fan letter to the author, Boris Pasternak. In his response, he wrote to me: "And if a letter like yours arrives, it is as if... the person of the sender should rise to her full height from the bottom of the letter wrapped in words and letters and thoughts like in a dress." The Zinsser collection of essays illustrates the importance of the writer coming right off the page "wrapped in words and letters and thoughts."
8 people found this helpful
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April
4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting look at memoirs.
Reviewed in the United States on February 18, 2021
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I've read most of these authors and now enjoyed a different view of their lives. Interesting! Bibliographies are very useful.
One person found this helpful
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Earl W. Armstrong
3.0 out of 5 stars Good read for beginners
Reviewed in the United States on August 11, 2015
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Not as good as I had hoped but worth reading anyway. Zinsser didn't write the book. He collected thoughts from other writers who contributed their skills about the art and craft of writing. A couple were entertaining.
2 people found this helpful
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Allison LaCombe
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book- ordered for class but love it
Reviewed in the United States on July 21, 2020
Verified Purchase
I had to order this for a Memoir class, but I actually enjoy this book quite a bit. We didn't get to review and examine the whole thing, so I am doing that now. I am pleased with the digital copy that I got. It is easy to follow and the bookmarks are incredibly convenient.
6 people found this helpful
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Phoebe S Wagner
5.0 out of 5 stars THe best book on Memoir writing, and why or why not to write them that I have ever read...You will love it!
Reviewed in the United States on November 29, 2013
Verified Purchase
Perhaps the best book on memoir writing I have ever read, or that has ever been written, since I go back to it each time I start again...NOthing like it anywhere. Even with the new writers added, it has only been improved. A few books are like this one, EB Whites book on language is like it. And some few others. I would simply add that this is a must read for anyone who think he or she wants to write about her or his life...DONT until you have read the lessons that you will glean from this wonderful little book. It won't steer your wrong. It cannot. What one writer says that doesn't speak to you, another will fully make up for. And then you go back and reread the ones you didn't like at first and you find that AH they too have something to say to you!
16 people found this helpful
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all our stories
5.0 out of 5 stars An enjoyable and helpful read
Reviewed in the United States on October 2, 2022
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Not only did I enjoy this book, I also found it helpful in understanding the writer’s process.
One person found this helpful
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Bill
4.0 out of 5 stars Good book to get you thinking about life
Reviewed in the United States on November 29, 2014
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I gave it 4 stars since it has contributions from several memoir authors, and some were 5 stars, some were ok. A good book to get you thinking about life and the process of writing about it.
2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Sophie Cayeux
5.0 out of 5 stars How different authors write memoirs
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 27, 2019
Verified Purchase
Excellent. Very useful book on how different authors write their memoir/ biographies; how they structure their work to make it of universal relevance ; why they choose to focus on one particular theme; what is their personal view on what are memories.
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Bev
4.0 out of 5 stars Good to hear the authors write about their memoir-writing process
Reviewed in Canada on July 16, 2021
Verified Purchase
The book was a little disappointing, but generally was interesting in that some well-known authors wrote about their memoir-writing process. Even just the chapter written by Frank McCourt about writing Angela's Ashes was worth the cost of the book.
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Wood Sliver
2.0 out of 5 stars Poor Paperback Book Quality
Reviewed in Canada on January 26, 2021
Verified Purchase
I received my book today and was immediately unimpressed. The paper quality is very poor and the font size varies to keep the page count of some previous edition. If I saw this version in a book store, I would not buy it.
(A good reason to try a Kindle format)
I haven't read any content yet but hope it is not affected. I may change my rating upon book completion.
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