A bird house

I think I've got it! Several of my previous posts have questioned memoirs as a literary genre but I now realise that adding a memoir to a book title is the publisher's construct. Authors writing about important parts of their life are not confined by genres - they are telling their own story. Annie Proulx in her latest book Bird Cloud is telling the story of her dream house and woven into that story are many strands of history, genealogy, zoology, geology, ecology, philosophy and literature, in wonderful crystal clear writing. Penelope Lively in A House unlocked described her childhood house through its many generations of residents discussing the relevant social conditions of the day and the psychology of families and relationships.

These books are more than memoirs, wider than biography and deserve not to be pigeon-holed into any particular genre. They do deserve wide reading!

5 bells

Character studies of four people who visit Sydney's Circular Quay one bright sunny day are carefully created, echoes from their past are carefully constructed into their present preoccupations, while hints about their future are carefully implied in their musings in the latest novel by Gail Jones. Five bells is a novel about individuals but it explores connections: personal, social, historic and literary. It is accurate, evocative writing and includes four different brilliant descriptions of the Sydney Opera House.

I enjoyed reading this book, becoming fully involved in the lives of the characters. The entry of the fifth person and the impact of the ending have kept me thinking about the story ever since I put it down with a sigh.

Gail Jones, who has written four previous novels, will feature in the Auckland Writers and Readers Festival in May. I am looking forward to finding out more about her and reading the other novels.

Navigating memories

Another example of how memoir is becoming the preferred genre to autobiography. When approached to write her autobiography Joy Cowley was reluctant but by putting together her memoirs, she has created in Navigation a set of stories on the main themes of her life that combine description, analysis and insight. A writer for children, teenagers and adults, Joy Cowley has produced hundreds of readers for schools and is a founding member of Storylines, the Children's Literature foundation of New Zealand. Her literary life is extremely interesting and it is fascinating and enlightening to read about the background to Mrs Wishy-Washy and The Silent One to name just a couple of outstanding examples of her story making.



I like the title as it suggests navigating through life to reach a destination but I found myself wanting to know more; how did she manage to write Nest in a falling tree while raising four children and helping to run the family farm? Joy Cowley is an amazing woman - what is it that shapes such creativity and output?


I'm drawn to literary biography for answers to such questions but it seems that currently I will only find such information from authors themselves through their selective memoirs.