Beg, Borrow, Steal - A Writer's Life by Michael Greenberg

“Beg, Borrow, Steal: A Writer’s Life” by Michael Greenberg isn’t the kind of book I normally read, but I’m glad I read this one. The book is a collection of short stories, all around eleven to twelve hundred words that capture a snippet of the author’s life. Some are sad, some funny, others mundane, but all a part of the life of writer Michael Greenberg.

When I first picked the book, I believed it to be more about the life of writing. Maybe like the ones on my shelf by Stephen King (“On Writing”) or David Morrell (“Lessons of a Lifetime of Writing”). It is very different, and focuses more on life. It just happens that the life focused on is Greenberg’s who is a writer.

There are forty-some short stories in this collection, which, according to the note to the reader at the beginning of the book, were written for the “Times Literary Supplement” with instructions from the editor to spill a drop of blood with each piece and give them a sense of personal necessity and urgency. I’d say Greenberg accomplished that through sharing moments of his life, along with a cast of characters that include family as well as some that you most likely would only encounter in The Big Apple. Greenberg lives in New York City, and through these stories you glimpse a part of that city than only a native would ever see. For all of us that live outside, we can voyeur a bit through these well-written stories.

The stories are not exciting. This isn’t your action movie or television show set in New York. The tales are of real people, real experiences, and like much of real life, common and ordinary. However, the way they are told is interesting, moving, honest, and at times familiar. Again, this book is quite different from my normal reading, but one that I am very glad I picked up. For anyone who enjoys short stories about real life, especially the life of a writer living in New York, this book will be enjoyable. For those looking for something a little different, this book provides a view of life that just may make you think about your own existence and experiences.

Beg, Borrow, Steal - A Writer's Life by Michael Greenberg