• Booklist Reviews : Booklist Reviews 2022 December #1
  *Starred Review* Writing is a lifestyle, an attitude, a labor, and a joy. In this craft guide from inimitable writer and feminist philosopher Griffin (Wrestling with the Angel of Democracy, 2008), readers will also find a guide to life. As Griffin expounds on how to start, commit, choose words, navigate plot, and finish writing projects, she also offers lessons on how to meditate, dream, capture memory, and emote. The power of the book is when the two strands become one, as when Griffin likens using metaphors to reaching for the stars and reminds readers that sentences should mirror the constant movement of life. Griffin fiercely encourages meditation (à la David Lynch's Catching the Big Fish, 2006) as an entry portal to the heightened state of a writerly mind. Guiding readers as they go, the narrative is marked with questions to incite reflection and contemplation in the middle of every essay. Short chapters cut straight to the point—great writerly advice by example. Some pieces are ethereal, while others, like "And Hemingway," about Ernest Hemingway's use of and, are concrete. Budding writers will find a bottomless well of wisdom, and seasoned ones will see the great lessons of their lives re-spun in beautiful, glowing prose. Copyright 2022 Booklist Reviews.

SUSAN GRIFFIN has written over twenty-two books, including nonfiction, poetry, and plays. A Chorus of Stones: The Private Life of War was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and a New York Times Notable book. Woman and Nature, considered a classic of environmental writing, is credited for inspiring the ecofeminist movement. She and her work have been awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship, an Emmy, and the Fred Cody Award for Lifetime Achievement & Service, among other honors. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.