Moore, Lorrie. Birds of America. New York: Picador, 1998.

I had read essays out of Lorrie Moore’s Birds of America before. And I liked each one individually. As a collected whole each individual essay losses so much. Moore’s voice is a constant – and it begins to drone a bit. Her “characters” are all the same (perhaps all her?). When reading fiction I expect a variety of voices and this text lacks that.

I found myself wondering, would I like this if I were reading just this? Does it stand well alone? In most cases I believe the answer would be yes. Each piece is well crafted and interesting on its own, when added to the collection it reads like more of the same. There is a lesson there for writers of nonfiction as well—even though the expectations are very different in the reader: variety of voice. It’s a good lesson for me. Moore has a strong voice, a strong character, singular. I found myself wondering if these stories were not nonfiction simply fictionalized. I know that the last story “Terrific Mother,” which was my favorite, was thought to have been autobiographical. I wonder how many of the others are based in fact.