Section 1: Introduction Summary and Analysis

This non-fiction book, published in 1994, is like a written course on writing and life in which Anne Lamott provides intimate details of her life. These life experiences form the basis for her approach to writing. Her life also provides the material from which she writes. Bird by Bird is a collection of very personal and sometimes tragic life experiences intertwined with various writing methods.

The author, Anne Lamott, sets herself up as a fellow student of writing. In the introduction she sets the foundation and her credibility as one who has experienced the same things as her students. She uses the introduction and its flashbacks to make herself the central figure of the book. Anne is able to teach because she has worked through all the experiences under girding each of her approaches to writing. The lessons for Anne...