my take: annie lamott and i must be twins separated at birth … her non-fiction works have shown me how vastly different people can be the same. we are!

hubby, parents, and i went to hear her speak in grant, michigan in spring 2010. i gushed and blubbered as she signed my copy of imperfect birds. during her talk, hubby leaned over and said, “how can she know these things about you?” i think he was baffled that there could be two of me.

she coached aspiring writers to spend an hour a day writing. do it! write! so i thought about that for several months – wouldn’t that be great? write! about what? i concocted a story in my head about a depressed woman. and added a teenage daughter. and gave them both time to air their opinions about the other. (never wrote one word down, mind you.)

a couple months later i read imperfect birds and about fell over when i got far enough to see that anne’s written about a depressed woman and her teenage daughter. huh. we really are kindred spirits. and she’s written my book! except she added all sorts of drug use and sex for which, frankly, i don’t have the imagination.

my source: bought directly from anne. you can read my signed copy.

my verdict: i liked this a lot.