The Year of Magical Thinking

Having never read Didion before, I wasn't sure what to expect but had high hopes. I was definitely not disappointed. I found The Year of Magical Thinking to be one of the most relatable books I've ever read. The loss of Didion's husband, John, mirrors the loss of my father almost exactly - in both the cause and fallout. As such, her emotional journey resonated deeply and much of her thoughts felt at home in my own mind.

A devastating, but exquisitely written account of grief in the wake of illness and death. Didion is a master at her craft and this work is a testament to that, and to her love and devotion to her late husband and daughter.

I think I might read this again and then review it.

The people who didn't care for this tend to be bothered by the author being successful, or having successful friends – but I knew that going in. Reading is supposed to make you more empathetic, and all the money and famous friends in the world can't shield someone from loss, mourning, and grief.

Joan Didion is called a cool customer early on in the book, and that sums it up – she is calm, measured, and thoughtful in her writing, not at all prone to histrionics, which made me as a reader respond in a similar manner as she explores a very bad year in her life.

“You sit down to dinner and life as you know it ends.” Didion does a wonderful job of letting us experience her mind in the year after her husband died of a heart attack. Memories and stories from the past are loosely told as she gives us the sense of how her thought process became “mudgy.” If you like meandering stories capturing a life experience, you will enjoy this memoir.

This was my first [a:Joan Didion 238 Joan Didion https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1335450818p2/238.jpg] and I was left a bit cold. Parts of it were interesting, where it read as a personal memoir rather than a list of events. Towards the end she described on how her grief had changed over the twelve months, which I found interesting. I also liked when she looked back on her last years with her husband to identify any signs that had foreshadowed his death. These personal stories about him and what kind of man he was helped to connect with the grief that she was feeling.I didn't read this book to be inspired or as comfort, but even so it felt a bit flat. I look forward to reading some of her other books, despite this not being the best introduction.

I wanted to like this book. I have read excerpts from some of Joan's more academic papers and loved them. I was hoping to find similarities in this highly acclaimed and widely popular memoir. I will say, the language itself did not disappoint. It is written in her easily identifiable voice; this detail being one of the few saving graces.

For a person going through their own period of bereavement, this may bring an instant relief. I see this relief manifesting itself in one of two ways. It is possible that reading, rather than, say, hearing about another's grief and mourning could be comforting. When you need someone to relate to, you pick up the book. When you need that person to be done, you put down the book. This logic makes sense to me.

I also foresee this helping those in mourning quickly determine they refuse to mourn the way Joan had. While the clinical, if not sterile, viewpoint we are presented with has its place. This point Didion grants herself the permission for quite early in the book. She quotes some scholarly source, opining that some respond to the death of a loved one with a cold, calculating response. The point made, Didion goes on to explain how she did just that. Those in mourning may well benefit from comparing their thoughts and experiences with Didion's, and determining to never be as pretentious.

The title is also perplexing. The use of the term “magical thinking” in this context seems a self-important euphemism for “denial with a side of academic reasoning.” I found nothing magical about this journey I took through the grieving process. There was little I found profound, inspiring, or moderately uplifting. Half of the book is a re-telling of her, appropriately termed, “magical past.” A past she shares with us as we are paraded around to meet the famous people she knew, the exotic places she lived or visited, and the disbelief that her life must change.

Finally, as I purchased this book from Audible.com, I must ask what the heck was up with the odd piano music? It came at the most awkward moments and seemed to have no clear purpose. It was a further distraction to an already bewildering use of my time.

I guess... I had different expections for this book? Which I realize is on me, not on Joan Didion? I thought it would be more of a narrative of her grief after her husband's sudden death and her daughter's illness (she died right before this was published but after the book was written, in fact). But like... I would say at least 1/3 of this book was descriptions of beach houses and hotels she and her husband used to stay in.The parts where she actually describes her grief and weird, magical emotions are the most interesting.I kinda feel like she published this too soon after her husband's death and if she'd waited awhile and revised it maybe the book would have been stronger for it. But perhaps it is more honest for its immediacy, even if the immediacy led to me wondering if this book was sponsored by the Beverly Wilshire hotel. (In fairness, it sounds like a very nice hotel, and if I could afford to stay there I suppose it might figure heavily into my own memoir.)Also, why did this win the National Book Award?? Like... did people feel bad for her, or was everything else published in 2005 terrible, or did I just completely not get this book?IDK, for my money if you want to read a compelling narrative about grief, try [b:A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius 4953 A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius Dave Eggers http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327714834s/4953.jpg 42857]... but I know a lot of people hate that book so your mileage may vary.

lovely and traumatic.

I suspect that I wouldn't be a huge fan of Didion's fiction, since she seems to be the type of woman to pride herself on not being a “typical woman” (you know, lots of slightly misogynistic male friends, blah blah blah), which drives me bonkers. However, I guess everyone is made a little more vulnerable by grief, and I found much of her memoir to be deeply moving. Well-written without ever slipping into cliches, which is a pretty formidable accomplishment given the subject matter. Strangely uplifting at the end.

When you have never read an author, a well-known author, a highly respected author, it is always a happy feeling to pick up that first read and find everyone was right. With Didion, for me, it wasn't a case of love at first sight; she grew on me. I finished the book last Sunday, but I thought about it every day this week. Truthful. I think that's the word I'd use for her writing. She seemed to write as clearly and as objectively as she could. Her subject matter, the death of her beloved husband, was so emotional, yet she was able to look at the event almost like Jane Goodall with her chimps.