When I posted this mini portrait by my mother on facebook a friend said, “Is that Joan Didion?”
Don’t think Didion was the inspiration but this is how readers often feel when reading Didion. She writes in minor keys. She writes about death and pathological grief and she is concise. She finds the right key each and every time. “
“The Year of Magical Thinking.” is considered a classic book about mourning. It’s sits on so many bookshelves and taken down and read often because people need help with their grief. Didion gives us this gift.
She advises we stay on familiar terms with our former selves. Ideal council as our memory is precious and life changes so fast it can feel jarring. Thankfully we have truth tellers like Joan Didion.