Check out this smart, cutting take on the recent flood of published memoirs, by Neil Genzlinger in last weekend’s New York Times book review. Good memoir writers discover and share new truths about their story through their writing, he suggests: “An ordeal, served up without perspective or perceptiveness, is merely an ordeal.”
bonus tracks 
Thanks so much for this! I have to admit I was embarassed when I realized my upcoming book of stories about my pediatrics residency (Bewteen Expectations http://amzn.to/ibTMfb) was being promoted as a memoir. The stories weren’t really about me. I am not inherently that interesting. I’m not as young as I used to be but certainly my life has only just started and my ‘memoir’, if I ever deserve one, is hopefully decades yet in the making at least. That said, I only recently was recommended to read your own books, but am quite enjoying so far. So my thanks for that as well.