Preface: My life as a fictional character -- Part one: The book of memory -- Part two: The waters of Lethe -- Part three: Bright islands in the night -- Part four: Negotiating with the past -- Postface: My afterlife as a fictional character

"Reveals how memories aren't fixed. They soften and consolidate -- and are distorted -- each time we revisit them, even those memories most deeply ingrained. The way we call on memory is closer to a 'negotiation with the past.' From episodic memories like 'shining islands in dark waters' and forgotten 'Rilkean' memories that underpin our personalities and essential style to the memories we might hold that have been authored by others close to us, The Book of Memory draws on philosophical argument, a range of writers and thinkers, the latest neurological research, and psychology experiments to chart how memories are made, lost and remembered, with important consequences for how we understand ourselves."--