I Can't Keep My Own Secrets: Six-Word Memoirs by Teens Famous & Obscure

This was a lovely little capsule of teen reality. There are six word memoirs in here that made my eyes fill with tears as well as those that made me snort with laughter. It's amazing what a person can pack into six words. I think that this should be in every middle and high school library.

Reviewed by Andrea for TeensReadToo.com

After NOT QUITE WHAT I WAS PLANNING: SIX-WORD MEMOIRS BY WRITERS FAMOUS & OBSCURE came out, many teens wrote in to Smith Magazine with their own six-word memoirs. And the editors put them together to create a book that is filled with teenage thoughts and insights.

This was an incredibly easy book to fly through. And totally engaging. There were so many great things that the teens said. And a lot of them were shocking.

There were memoirs about falling in love, being heartbroken, being gay, having parents who were neglectful, having diseases, missing family members who passed away, and so much more!

I think my favorite one was actually the very last one in the Advanced Readers Copy that I have: "My life show more story: to be continued.~by Cassie H." And it made me think. Just what would I say if I had to write about my life in six words?

How about:

Huge Florida Gator fan and bookworm. show less

Link to my review: http://taylorsawesomebookreviews.wordpress.com/2013/08/11/book-review-i-cant-kee...

Review's text:
I Can’t Keep My Own Secrets: Six-Word Memoirs by Teens Famous & Obscure by Larry Smith

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a collection of six word memoirs from teens from all over. There is no plotline or anything of that nature – just a collection of interesting bits of people’s lives.

This would be a great book to use to introduce students to poetry (even though these weren’t necessarily poems). Like the book suggested, it might be interesting to get students to write their own six word memoir.

This book was an easy read and one that I think many students would enjoy. After finishing the book I found myself wanting to show more create my own six word stories. I hope the same would be true for my students.

View all my reviews

***

What I want to Add:

I had no idea what to expect when I picked up this book. I checked it out from the library for a class. Honestly I mostly grabbed it in an attempt to expand the variety of books that I had for an assignment. The results ended in me finding something that I really enjoyed!

The title really sums up what the book is – a collection of six word memoirs. Some of them were funny and others seemed to be more serious. It was a bit hard to tell with only six words.

I read this book in under a day. I liked trying to figure out what the deeper meaning was behind the six words on the page . Of course, as soon as I put the book down, I wrote some of my own. Once I started, I couldn’t stop!

I think my future students would enjoy this book and an activity. It is different from any assignment that I ever did in high school (or middle school … or ever in my education that I can remember….). This book might help students get in the mood for poetry … Maybe.

I would recommend this book for anyone in middle school (or older). The only reason elementary students might not be a good match is because some of the memoirs have “adult content” in them. However, I am sure if teacher were to actually go through and pick out some “appropriate” ones, then it could be a fun activity for younger kids too!

My rating: 4/5 stars

Sincerely,

Taylor

Have questions or requests? Then feel free to e-mail me at taylorreadingblog23@yahoo.com show less

This book is a collection of humor, sass, and anguish. We start off with a 6 word memoir by none other than Ernest Hemingway “For sale: baby shoes, never worn”. It was a perfect starting point and a challenge to every other teen to mimic Hemmingway’s short story. How much of the truth can you hide in just 6 words? A lot it seems.

Contemplated joining the circus. Foolishly chose college—Sally C.

My dad has more MySpace friends—Darlye J.

These are just two 6-word memoirs that popped out for me. This book has something for everyone with such a diverse voice of which hundreds (800 I believe) teens spoke out and gave their life story. Teens across the country can relate to at least one memoir out of the many. You may see both show more familiar and unfamiliar names as you embark on a read of their worlds, their life stories, their 6 word memoirs.

The famous teens gave some of the uninspiring meant to be inspiring 6 words that elicited a yawn. I wanted something more powerful but what can you do. Luckily it was just a mere few pages with the rest as mesmerizing as can be.

Overall: Addicting and with such a short read, this book packs a punch. show less

I bought this for my daughters, because it looked like it would be fun and quirky. Some of the entries were, but there was way too much about death, suicide and abuse, which really disturbed one of my girls.

As expected from a book compiling 6-word memoirs from teens, many of the results were intensely emotional, melodramatic and self-important, with the occasional humour. It was a quick read with few gems, and not all that interesting to me.

Review from library copy

Okay, six word review (in keeping with the theme):

My life sucked hard. You too?