If the “Outline” novels were an exercise in listening to, and weighing, the stories of others, in these essays, Cusk is similarly contending with inherited narratives — marriage, civility ...

The book is a memoir about growing up in the village from 1949-69. In it, ... Bain said writing the book began as a long essay, rather than starting with an outline of topics.

Outline. Outline. Outline. “Unlike with fiction, it’s easiest to write a memoir from an outline. You have your experience and your truth to draw from, but there’s so much there.