Alphabetical Diaries by Sheila Heti

Lida Richardson

“Just read for a class, and not to indulge in cliché, but it really feels like this book came to me at exactly the right time. The basic premise is that Heti took ~10 years of journal entries, sorted all the sentences alphabetically, and culled down to 60,000 words. I am shocked at how well it worked for me — I don’t read memoir often (or much nonfiction at all), and I’m usually really dependent on”

TDH

“Heti put years of her diaries in a spreadsheet and organized each sentence alphabetically. What results is an inventive exploration of a life that somehow holds together despite being out of order. "I’m always interested in how someone makes a story," says LaTonya.”

Coofandy

“What an interesting and compelling read. Ten years of journal entries in alphabetical order, edited down to these specific choices. It’s fascinating to read a book with characters who show up rarely, then suddenly over and over for several paragraphs, then never again. A book with a narrative, sort of, but no time passes and there’s no cause and effect. It’s somehow important to closely pay attent”