Alphabetical Diaries

Sheila Heti has done it again! I adored ALPHABETICAL DIARIES. For a project that relies on such stricts rules (collating diary entries alphabetically, by sentence) there is still somehow a sense of narrative propulsion. I was able to fill in the story being told, the one of the various men our narrator is juggling alongside her writing, and also her preoccupations with money/capitalism. It's a generous and insightful book, rich and poetic. Thanks so much to the publisher for the e-galley!

The concept shouldn’t work but it just does. I loved this, such a quirky idea taking lines from diary entires over a decade and compiling them alphabetically. I was shocked just how coherent and absorbing it actually was. Shelia Heti is a genius and I will be recommending this book to every one.

For fans of Sheila Heti, this will by no means surprise you with how enjoyable this is. I personally couldn't think of something I like more than a autopsy one of my favorite authors' personal diaries. The alphabetical structure is continually fascinating, how it shows one their own repetitive nature and keeps the reader engaged with the content. I found myself curious about the editing process of this collection and trying to decipher whether or not two paired sentenced even originally belonged within the same year of writing.

It is very Sheila Heti to turn the form of personal diary upside down. Within a cyclical exploration of family, career, men, sex, etc. you will find many golden nuggets of sentences you could possibly live by. Brilliant!

I loved this. I can't believe no one has thought to do this before, but then again, who but Shelia Heti would do this and do it well. Somehow the arbitrary structuring device of alphabetization made this all the more intimate. Who wants to know how many times they start a sentence with their ex's (perhaps??) name? Juicy and frustratingly beautifully. I want to be a voyeur of Sheila Heti's life forever.