Picking our brains = checking out our brains?

Sort of, but I use the term a little more specifically. When I say to someone, 'I want to pick your brain on such and such topic,' I mean that they are someone I specifically want to ask about a certain topic because I feel that they will have interesting insights or information about that topic that will be relevant to me and that I feel (or some other person) may not have.

In other words - they will be somewhat more of an 'expert' on a topic than I know myself to be on that topic.

For instance, if I'm planning on going to visit a city I've never been to, but I know someone else lives there, I might say to them, 'I want to pick your brain - what are some interesting things to do in ___________?'

So in terms of memories - this works - as everyone has individual and specific memories.

That's my take on it. I don't know if I did a very good job explaining it - and someone else might have a different take on it. It's sort of an amorphous concept.

aidan's right--that's the way the term's generally used. I'd say the author is not using it the way most people would understand it, but rather more like your "checking out our brains"--she's the atypical one here.