I just finished this beautiful wee book this morning. Anne Lamott is one of those writers I had heard about time and again, but had never got round to reading any of her work. Well, it was worth the wait! Bird By Bird (or, Some Instructions on Writting and Life) is full of charm, wit, and seasoned advice. Lamott writes with an honesty I have found in so few Christian writers, and she does it with style. There’s no faffing about, she’s down the line. The book is peppered with personal accounts of pain, struggle and joy – when her dad died, stories of her son Sam, the students she’s taught at courses, writting groups, and so on.

It has honestly been one of the most refreshing things I’ve read this year. I thoroughly recommend you go get it. I want to read one of her other books now, Traveling Mercies… anyone have a copy I could borrow?

“And I don’t think you have that kind of time either. I don’t think you have time to waste not writing because you are afraid you won’t be good enough at it, and I don’t think you have time to waste on someone who does not respond to you with kindness and respect. You don’t want to spend your time around people who make you hold your breath.”

(p. 170)