by Florence Boyle

After a few attempts I have concluded that autobiographies make for disappointing books. Very few remain in my memory and if they do it’s down to good writing and/or they reveal something about the author which is surprising or has made me reflect and reconsider an opinion.

Perhaps autobiographies need to be judged by a different yardstick and that measure should be left to the subject to judge. For them, it is often a rare opportunity to enter into the record, an unfiltered, unedited version of their story, however unsatisfactory that is for the reader.

Florence Boyle is Open House treasurer