Recollections of My Nonexistence: A Memoir Hardcover – Illustrated, March 10, 2020

There is nothing to dislike about this beautifully written memoir. As a self-identified white, straight, male who has had every opportunity from birth, I say this book is a must read, because whatever assumptions the most "enlightened" among us may have dispelled, there are others Ms. Solnit identifies. And again, did I mention she is a great writer?

I have waited years for a writer whose language gives voice to the language in my own mind. This is a fascinating and beautifully written book. It's relaxing to read the poetic prose, and she takes you on a journey that is so much like your own journey, and transports you to another realm, a little like being under the influence. I pace myself reading it so I can savor all of the dense insights. Rebecca Solnit evokes Susan Sontag and Simon de Beauvoir and many other thinkers. But Solnit has a bravery for stating truths that has allowed her to claim a territory all her own.

From the spot-on title to only 27% into my Kindle reading, this book describes experiences I didn't even realize I had, putting words around some of the alienation I've felt my whole life. It is masterful, deep, and subtle. I'm savoring it, and I crave it, and I don't want it to end. I'm about the same age as Ms. Solnit, and I'm in awe of they way she doesn't just validate my experience, but she helps me recognize it, past and present.

I'm having a very hard time getting into this book. I devoured a lot of Solnit's books of essays and listened to interviews and really enjoyed her take on feminism, Trump, and the inequities in our politics and life. I'm not really interested in stories about people who used to live in her neighborhood or the history of the area or what kind of cars people drive or where they are parked. It's slow going. Yes, she's a good writer which is probably why this book was published as it was. Like Joan Didion, if you're well known and sell books you have a lot of editorial leeway. An unknown writer, even one good with prose, could not get a meandering book like this one, taking many chapters and saying little, published. I'm going to donate my copy to the library unread.

I have read this book 2x and will keep it on my shelf to re-read again and again. The art work at the start of the chapters is delightfully explained and fills in nicely as a frame for a life lived well and with great wisdom. I am now inspired to read more of her books and I keep thinking about her life and her awakening and happiness. My book group will not read memoir and I think that is a mistake with this book because there is so much history and knowledge shared within the pages it is dynamic history and political analysis of coming of age and beyond into worldly understanding of violence and human recovery to satisfaction with a good life well lived.

Solnit is an excellent writer and I was drawn to this book because of our shared San Francisco past. But as a gay man I lost interest in this book at the midpoint when she describes a dream she had in 1987. I believe women may find this illumination of trials and tribulations of being female a bona fide revelation. For most men Solnit’s lengthy essay will be a bridge too far.

This is an amazing memoir that journeys through history and teaches you about women having/not having a voice. It is much more than her life story, it is a vessel of experiences that matter to all of us. I highly recommend this book to both, women and men.

Rebecca Solnit speaks to people but especially to women and her words become your words. This is a beautiful depiction of a woman’s growing up that reveals an era, a place, and a context that might be specific, but nonetheless resonates.