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

Larry Smith (Author), Rachel Fershleiser (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2009

One life. Six words. What's yours?

True tales of love, loss, good friends, and bad hair days filled Not Quite What I Was Planning, the New York Times bestselling first book in the Six-Word Memoir series—and an international phenomenon. Some of the most compelling were by teens, so now SMITH Magazine has compiled a book written entirely by these bold, brash truth-tellers. From cancer to creativity, prom dates to promiscuity, and breaking hearts to breaking laws, the memoirs in this collection reveal that often the youngest writers have the most fascinating stories to tell.

Met online; love before first sight.

Hair's pink to piss you off.

I fulfilled my awkwardness quota today.

I'm seventeen, engaged, and not pregnant.

My mom had my boyfriend deported.

Late for school every single day.

According to Facebook, we broke up.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 7 Up—Almost 800 authors, ranging in age from 13 to 19, contributed to this thought-provoking collection of individual memoirs. Based on the interest resulting from the publication of Not Quite What I Was Planning (HarperCollins, 2008), the editors of SMITH Magazine decided to challenge teens to write the story of their lives in a few brief words. The result is a compelling compendium that will provoke laughter—"Mom just revoked my creative license"; sadness—"Grandma is dying while I'm out shopping"; and empathy and thought—"In the nest, twigs are sharp." Less than a dozen of the selections, most of which are not as good as those by "obscure" authors, are written by famous teens. The short length, relevant topics, and authentic emotions will ensure that this book will appeal to a wide variety of teens, including reluctant readers. English teachers, theater teachers, and student book-club sponsors will revel in the instructional possibilities that could spring from this anthology. It may require some initial hand selling, but ultimately this book will find broad appeal in most collections.—Lynn Rashid, Marriotts Ridge High School, Marriottsville, MD
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About the Author

SMITH Magazine founding editor Larry Smith has worked as an editor at Men's Journal, ESPN: The Magazine, and Might. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Popular Science, on Salon.com, and many other places. Larry lives in New York City

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 13 and up
  
• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: HarperTeen (September 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061726842
• ISBN-13: 978-0061726842
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #221,540 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #46 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > People & Places > Social Issues > Abuse

More About the Author

Larry Smith is founder and editor of the personal storytelling community SMITH Magazine, smithmag.net, the creator of the Six-Word Memoir project. An original content innovator, he's built his career around getting people, young and old, to tell their stories in fresh and enriching ways. He's reinvented the notion of "writer" and revolutionized the genre of "memoir," inspiring thousands of individuals, classrooms, clubs, nonprofits, churches, and even hospital wards to start telling their best personal stories.

He's also a contributing editor of ESPN Magazine and has been the articles editor of Men's Journal, executive editor of Yahoo Internet Life, a founding editor of P.O.V., as well an editor at Might magazine. His writing has appeared in The New York Times, Popular Science, Men's Health, Salon, Slate, and other places. He has contributed personal essays to the anthologies "Maybe Baby" and "Modern Love: 50 True and Extraordinary Tales of Desire, Deceit, and Devotion." He has spoken on the future of media, and power of personal storytelling, in schools across America, to foundations and nonprofits, and at companies such as ESPN and Google.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars 3.5 Stars -- Will Hold Strong Appeal for Some Teens, February 28, 2010

By 

Jennifer Donovan "5minutesforbooks" (Houston, TX) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: I Can't Keep My Own Secrets: Six-Word Memoirs by Teens Famous & Obscure (Paperback)

This book has received some critical acclaim, and I was a bit skeptical. I wondered how much of an impact 6 words could have.

Well, while it's still not the kind of work that can transcend age or genre preference (which is the kind of book I give 5 stars), I can definitely see this appealing to some teens.

In fact, I can see teens copying certain of the entries out onto their notebooks or putting them up in their lockers as they think "Finally -- someone else understands!"

Another strong point -- they are indexed in the back by topic, so a teen who was in fact dealing with abuse or or rejection or death would be able to find the lines that might speak to them.

They deal with typical teen issues, but seem to lean more heavily towards homosexuality and sexual dalliances or abuse than perhaps is the norm. However, having something for every teen from every experience -- from drop out to over-achiever to good girl to slut -- is part of the appeal.

A note -- though the title promises memoirs by teens "famous and obscure," there are only a small handful of famous memoirs, and the rest are quite obscure, and noted only by a first name and last initial. I think that some people will buy this book expecting more famous memoirs, while in fact, I think that the anonymity and universality of the memoirs is what will cause it to have a strong impact.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's a firework show of awesome!, December 22, 2009

By 

Catt "The Dreamer Reader" (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: I Can't Keep My Own Secrets: Six-Word Memoirs by Teens Famous & Obscure (Paperback)

The Good: This is my first anthology and it totally sky rocketed through my expectations.

Some made me want to track down these people and just give them a huge hug. Some made my day a whole lot brighter and better. Some really hit the nail on the head, made me think, "Damn straight!", and give them a huge round of applause. Some just made me snort milk out my nose because they were hilarious!

But, what all of them did was make me feel less alone.

The Bad: It may be a little too short for some... but, that's okay since it's a paperback! But yeah, it flies by really quickly (I read it in under 30 minutes) and by the time you blink, you're done.

Overall: Read this book. You will love it.

Grade: A+

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you want to know about the younger generation, this book is a good starting point!, December 13, 2009

By 

D. Fowler "Dragonfly77" (Vermont) - See all my reviews
(TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: I Can't Keep My Own Secrets: Six-Word Memoirs by Teens Famous & Obscure (Paperback)

Everyone has a story to tell about themselves, but few can tell their story in six short words. Six hundred authors between the ages of thirteen and nineteen have done just that. They talk about their sorrows, their fears and their hopes. Some want to talk about their gaming, food, friends and family. From best friends to love, lies and war, it's all in this book. Every life is special and unique and you're going to hear a slice of life from young people in six words, no more no less!

"Defined by numbers: age, weight, SATs."

"Loved college until I got there."

"I will be that cat lady."

"Always the friend, never the girl."

"The distance could never break us."

I loved this wide assortment of memoirs, memoirs that could just as easily have been written by adults. The variety of emotion, hope, fears and day to day topics was amazingly fun to read. This book is very light on the illustrations and photographs because the written word creates the power in this one. If you want to know about the younger generation, this book is a good starting point!