That autobiography in ancient literature is fictional has long been recognized. The purpose of Longman's study is to delineate the genre of fictional autobiography in Akkadian texts with similar texts from other ancient Near Eastern cultures.

Included are the texts of all relevant fictional Akkadian autobiographies, as well as an appendix containing English translations of them. The results of the study are of interest to Assyriologists, but also have implications for students of comparative literature and the Bible.