This text, written by Renee Gladman, is a series of connected essays inspired by her life and inner thoughts. Each essay in the collection begins with the phrase "I began the day...," and follows Renne's thoughts, memories and questions on that day. Each essay is different, focusing around a key thought or idea, and illuminates something about Renee's personal experience. As well as focusing on every day experienced, Gladman also explores the art of writing, making this book particularly relatable and interesting to fellow writers.
Renee's subject-matter is broad, focusing on a wide variety of daily struggles, from being fired to disagreements in a romantic relationship. Her essays often focus on her career as a university lecturer, and her relationship with fellow academics. In one particularly entertaining essay, Gladman details a vacation she went on with her mother and sisters. She wonders where might be a "suitable place for an academic to attend a vacation," and settles on somewhere nearby.
Explaining that it is the first family vacation they had gone on in 21 years, Gladman details how her younger sister had become "everybody's captain," even deciding when Gladman could eat snickers. Other essays are less humorous, but Renee always retains a philosophical and thought-provoking tone. As such, this collection is sure to get you thinking about everything from philosophy, to personal relationships and the art of writing.
