Whose Line is it Anyway?

I'm attracted to the Bildungsroman. The coming-of-age stories serve as existential proof: I am, my narrative is not, unique. (Your reflections on Jante's Law?)
This Boston Globe review of essays by DeWitt Henry suggests similarity in Henry's narrative and that of Latent Print. However, in the review we learn that Henry perseveres. "Henry describes how he improvised a life," we're told.
Improvised? A dubious reduction of the coming-of-age narrative. The proper demi-glace intimates why one cooks at all.
I hope Henry's account of founding Ploughshares smacks of something grander.
I'll add the Emerson professor's book to my queue at the local library.