Patti Smith’s M Train

Dreams. Time. A clock with no hands. Coffee. Cafes. Memories. Travel. Books. Mystery.
The dead, the lost, and the found.
These are some of the important themes in M Train. This is no ordinary work. It is the
author’s memoir, to be sure, but it is much more than a collection of memories and not at
all like other memoirs. Like all of Smith’s creative work (her other writing, her poetry, her
music), this book does not conform to convention, follows no rules but her own, and thus
boldly and strangely asserts itself into the reader’s mind.
Prompt: How do Smith’s themes (just pick one or several) relate to her quest for
meaning or understanding?