Childhood dilemmas and adult dramas are fodder for the autobiographical essays in Jo Ann Beard's new book "The Boys of My Youth." The title is a bit misleading, suggesting tales of wild, passionate antics. But this collection of essays actually probes how relationships and experiences shape a young woman. Beard wrote most of these essays as class assignments for the University of Iowa Writing Program. She told Minnesota Public Radio's Greta Cuningham the essays are proported to be fiction, but they all contain a nugget of truth.

This file was digitized with the help of a grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC).