Truth in Memoir

I think that a non-fiction book has to be somewhat true. The whole point of a non-fiction book is to be a true story but if you stretch the truth a little it wouldn’t hurt. The most that you should be able to lie in a non-fiction is 5% of the whole book. I think that 5% of a book is not significant and it won’t change the outcome. On the other hand, you shouldn’t be able to lie about big details like killing someone or marrying a fake person. Those details can change the book in a big way.

 I don’t think that half true books are good because you are changing half of what actually happened. If you are making a half true book then it shouldn’t be called a non-fiction book. I think that what Mortenson did was ok because he only change how many schools he built. On the other hand what Frey did is not acceptable. He changed his involvement in the death of two high schooler’s and his rehab from drugs. His book should have been a fiction story not a non-fiction.

I don’t agree with David Shields because as a reader I need a group of books that are similar in style. I hate when I sit down to read a book and realize it’s a historical fiction and I wanted to read a fantasy. Without those guild lines, people wouldn’t be able to find books that they have interests in easily. They would have to sit down and read the first ten pages which can take a long time. It would be very inconvenient to sit down and read a book just to find out you don’t like it.