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4.12 AVERAGE
4.12 AVERAGE
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Not every essay in this collection was a win for me, and I skimmed though or skipped over a few, but the ones that did hit hit hard. Favorites here are:
Where the Kissing Never Stops
Slouching Towards Bethlehem
On Keeping a Notebook
Rock of Ages
Los Angeles Notebook
Goodbye to All That
Where the Kissing Never Stops
Slouching Towards Bethlehem
On Keeping a Notebook
Rock of Ages
Los Angeles Notebook
Goodbye to All That
informative
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
emotional
funny
reflective
fast-paced
funny
informative
reflective
medium-paced
funny
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
My new Bible
funny
informative
reflective
fast-paced
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
all the cool girls i know have read didion books—i would like to join the club. i’ve read a few of her essays here and there, but never an entire collection. her prose is wonderfully crafted, very diaristic and precise, that dissects the disillusionment and counterculture in the 60s. the personal essays collections were some of her strongest, particularly ‘on keeping a notebook,’ while the rest weren’t outstanding but interesting nonetheless.
since i borrowed this epub from the library, here are some lines i highlighted:
“[…] a personality before she was entirely a person, and, like anyone to whom that happens, she is in a sense the hapless victim of what others have seen in her, written about her, wanted her to be and not be. the roles assigned to her are various, but variations on a single theme.”
“see enough and write it down. i tell myself, and then some morning when the world seems drained of wonder, some day when i am really going through the motions of doing what i am supposed to do, which is write—on that bankrupt morning i will simply open my notebook and there it will all be.”
“[…] when you are twenty-two or twenty-three, you figure that later you will have a high emotional balance, and be able to pay whatever it costs. i still believed in possibilities then, still had the sense […]”
since i borrowed this epub from the library, here are some lines i highlighted:
“[…] a personality before she was entirely a person, and, like anyone to whom that happens, she is in a sense the hapless victim of what others have seen in her, written about her, wanted her to be and not be. the roles assigned to her are various, but variations on a single theme.”
“see enough and write it down. i tell myself, and then some morning when the world seems drained of wonder, some day when i am really going through the motions of doing what i am supposed to do, which is write—on that bankrupt morning i will simply open my notebook and there it will all be.”
“[…] when you are twenty-two or twenty-three, you figure that later you will have a high emotional balance, and be able to pay whatever it costs. i still believed in possibilities then, still had the sense […]”
What I've gathered from this is that the 60s were a weird and crazy time.
What I've also gathered is that Joan Didion is a wonderful writer.
Some of the essays felt definitely "of their time", others were weirdly relevant, some I didn't connect with at all, others spoke to me in a way I didn't expect. Overall, this if a fascinating book and a slice-of-life literary experience unlike anything I've read before.
What I've also gathered is that Joan Didion is a wonderful writer.
Some of the essays felt definitely "of their time", others were weirdly relevant, some I didn't connect with at all, others spoke to me in a way I didn't expect. Overall, this if a fascinating book and a slice-of-life literary experience unlike anything I've read before.