A review by bonnieg
I Came All This Way to Meet You: Writing Myself Home by Jami Attenberg

4.0

No time for a lengthy review, but this is a lovely little travelogue through the life of a writer. That certain kind of writer, literary, well thought-of, but not the type who sells tons of books. Attenberg's prose is wonderful but I always hate her characters (unrealistic, almost cartoonishly overblown, frequently irksome) so I have not enjoyed her novels. For the record, it is not that I do not understand her characters -- Attenberg and I are both Jewish women from suburban towns adjacent to Midwestern cities, we both felt the pull of New York, travel widely, love good food and good liquor and good men, have lived part of our adult lives in the South, and value our friendships deeply. I understand her. I just don't think she understands typical non-artsy people and her character development suffers as a result. She makes normal people into vacant people or ridiculous quirky people. People I don't know at all. I like this book though. Attenberg understands herself even if she doesn't get others, and for this book that is all she needs to understand. The book is quiet and thoughtful and it pulled me in. If you enjoy books about writers' genesis and about the artistic spirit, I think you will like this.