Is the memoir dead?

As a relative newbie on LT and Good Reads I have been dismayed at the inane comments by many of the members, the bickering; the sniping, even hostile criticism. Reviews seem to be five stars for poorly written but evidently appropriately gory story lines: Except for this group. Reviewing the topics listed over the last few years suggests members ignore the chaff and dig deep into interesting matters.

Here is my matter. Are memoirs a dying breed? Has the market been saturated with recovery stories? Do any of you read memoirs?

Of course, I wrote one, my search for the meaning of life. Which I think is an interesting topic, but now I’m beginning to wonder. Who cares? Are LB and Good Reads primarily for dystopian, romance and zombie writings to the almost elimination of the memoir? Has the memoir strangled itself?

Good heavens, no. Quite the opposite. Though I almost wish they were. Everyone and his brother thinks their dysfunctional lives interest the rest of the world. And if they can't find a reputable publisher, they self-publish. We're drowning in such books!

During the years of 2009-2012, I read over 100 memoirs, which is probably more than the average reader. Memoirs sparked my interest after a hiatus from reading for many decades. In fact, during that time I read mostly non-fiction, to the exclusion of everything else. Being a member and participating in LibraryThing has resulted, much to my enjoyment, reading different genres. Do I still read memoirs? Occasionally (5 during 2013-2014), but they do need to be well written and a subject or person I am interested in. Therefore, for me, the memoir is not dead but my tastes have changed.

There are as many tastes in reading as there are members of LibraryThing. Memoirs, zombies, romance and dystopian writings are the minority not the majority of what is read and cataloged. Presuming LT is anything like other sites, is just that, presumption.

I read and write sci-fi. Currently, I am working my way through Philip K. Dick's "Exegesis", most definitely his search for "the meaning of life". I don't think it would count as a traditional memoir since it is an edited 900 page selection from four years of his autodidactic writing. However, I am reading it to find clues to his writing style and the inspirations for his stories. So, if you are worried that memoirs are a dying breed, I would say that they still have value to those who are looking for specific things.