New York, NY: Anchor | Random House (1995)

Paperback.

The twenty-fifth anniversary edition of Anne Lamott’s quintessential guide to the craft, and philosophy, of writing.

For a quarter-century, over a million readers—scribes and scribblers of all ages and abilities—have been inspired by Anne Lamott’s hilarious, big-hearted, homespun advice. Advice that begins with the simple words of wisdom passed down from Anne’s father—also a writer—in the iconic passage that gives the book its title:

“Thirty years ago my older brother, who was ten years old at the time, was trying to get a report on birds written that he’d had three months to write. It was due the next day. We were out at our family cabin in Bolinas, and he was at the kitchen table close to tears, surrounded by binder paper and pencils and unopened books on birds, immobilized by the hugeness of the task ahead. Then my father sat down beside him, put his arm around my brother’s shoulder, and said, ’Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird.’”

Celebrating generations of writers young and old who have already taken Anne’s instructions to heart, this twenty-fifth anniversary edition of Bird by Bird will continue to spark creative minds for years to come.