Roof Beam Reader
A Writer and His Reading
Category: Memoir
The Lover by Marguerite Duras
While I was reading Marguerite Duras’ The Lover, which is labeled “Fiction” on its back cover, someone told me, “Oh, that’s a memoir!” To which I responded, “you’re full of sh*t!” Or something more delicate and intellectual, if you’d prefer to think of me… Continue Reading “The Lover by Marguerite Duras”
From the Land of Green Ghosts by Pascal Khoo Thwe
Pascal Khoo Thwe’s memoir, From the Land of Green Ghosts: A Burmese Odyssey is a powerful and powerfully-written representation of Burma just before the war for independence (the rise of Aung San Suu Kyi and establishment of Myanmar). Thwe begins his odyssey as a… Continue Reading “From the Land of Green Ghosts by Pascal Khoo Thwe”
Children of the Land by Marcelo Hernandez Castillo
If you’ve kept up with the hoopla surrounding the American Dirt release and are looking for an alternative, “own voices” book to read that covers similar issues (immigration, the U.S. southern border, living undocumented in America), then you might want to get your hands on… Continue Reading “Children of the Land by Marcelo Hernandez Castillo”
Becoming by Michelle Obama
The first book I read in 2019 was Michelle Obama’s honest and compelling memoir, Becoming. To be honest, some part of me expected that the book would focus primarily on her time as First Lady; I was pleasantly surprised, however, to find that, instead,… Continue Reading “Becoming by Michelle Obama”
