I picked this novel because I had read a book by this author in college about El Salvador. I knew that she was a great writer and could effectively describe events in a way that would make the emotions of the situation clear. I found this to be true is this book as well. Also, once I listened to the short demo. offered at audbile.com I wanted to listen to more. I found it very intriguing how Didion felt and dealt with all of the tragedy that went on around her. I was comforted too by the strength that she felt in spite of all that tragedy. I recommend this book as an interesting look into the human psyche.

After the initial line of the book, it goes nowhere. Nothing momentous or inciteful happens.

I had seen the mixed reviews of this book, but decided to give it a try. Sadly, it was not worth my time. The author does have some special moments in her book that you can really connect to, but they are very few and far between. In fact, the majority of the book is spent in excruciating details of her privileged life and vacations with her family. It's almost as if she goes out of her way to "brag" about her lifestyle and left me feeling alienated unless I was in the "in" crowd of NY and CA. For instance, she can't just say she walked her dog. She has to say she walked her "Bouvier", which I had to google to even figure out what breed she was referring to. The sad part is after all these ridiculous details, she never sums up her point or what she's learned- or if she does, it's lost in the repetition of all her memories. The good parts could have been summed up in about 15 minutes--so the rest of the time it is a waste. I did suffer thru the entire book just to be fair--and it never got better. Trust the people who give this book a bad rating--they're right!!

This was not what I was expecting when my ipod rotated to the "next book" on my list. Having just experienced a sudden and unexpected death in my family only the day before, it was a struggle for the first 90 minutes. I decided since the book was short to finish it up while doing my housework. I'm glad I stuck it out. I think the book was cathartic for the author and it allowed me to think about how my family was dealing with death having lost three members in the past three months. If you are prepared for this type of book, or you are needing to not feel "alone" in your grief, then this is a recommendable listen.

Elisabeth Kubler-Ross introduced us to loss of life in "On Death and Dying" years ago. Her insights have carried us a long way since that time. Now, Joan Didion tells us what it was like to experience the loss of her husband while her only child was lying in a coma. She has put her expert pen to helping us participate in her grief.

There are some books that I prefer in print because of the written word. I couldn't imagine listening to Swann's Way for example. This is the first time I have listened to Didion's work and I was not disappointed. Her insights are valuable, her prose crisp and cutting as in all of her essays. Her writting listens well in this format.