great novel. classic from start to finish. highly recommended

I agree with other reviewers that the narrative is not relatable. You feel very disconnected from her trials largely because of how privileged she portrays herself.

Did this lady have all her rich and famous friends give her 5 stars? I feel bad for her, but this book is so unrelatable, and showed no "magical thinking." It was self loathing at best.

I have read many grief books, and this is by far the worst one. The author focuses heavily on the facts of what happened and the day-to-day events following the deaths of her husband and daughter. There is little to no emotion or personal reflection.Maybe it's her journalistic writing style—trying to express her feelings through facts—but it just doesn't work. I couldn’t care less about any of it. The narrator makes it even worse, making her sound like an elite, entitled woman who is extremely annoying. I couldn't finish the book and felt extremely annoyed.

For some reason, didn’t live up to the hype

This was my first Didion and I'll read her whole catalog now. I love her voice and how she phrases and calls back. I love how she has this dreamlike way of writing. This story specifically brings you into her worst year but also her best years and moments. I loved it. I'm sure I'll read it again with the paperback in front of me for annotation.

Brutally honest memoir about Didion's experience dealing with the sudden death of her husband, John Gregory Duane, as well as the myriad health issues her daughter was dealing with. The narrator was wonderful. I felt listening to her speaking that it was she who had experienced what Joan had gone through.

Powerful but hard to relate to