Under Construction - MHWA Retreat

I'm with Lilli ☕ VACAY! back on 4/29 on this one. I read the first two books she mentioned, and I agree, they are phenomenal stories that leave an imprint on the reader. What makes memoirs like this stand out is they are doing more than just telling one person's story. They share an aspect of history through a more personal account.

Another memoir that I enjoyed reading is Grant and Twain: A story of an American Friendship. Mark Twain wrote the Memoirs for Grant and it is the story of their friendship. The book shares the parallels between how the two grew up in two very different worlds, one very poor and the other from a prominent family.

What I'm not personally a fan of is memoirs based on traumatic experiences that do not have an uplifting aspect. I mean, who wants to read something that pretty much says, "Hey, I grew up in a horrible way and am screwed up for life." Of course, we want to be lifted up instead by being shown that even though we start off in a horrible place, we can rise above it and do something wonderful and meaningful in our lives.

No, I would never write a memoir about my life. Honestly, being a child abuse and domestic abuse survivor is not something I want to be the prominent thing people know me for. Personally, I don't think I have anything original to share in that department. Plus, it is not like I've done anything noteworthy that a lot of people would find interest in.