Like the author Joan Didion, my husband died suddenly almost 3 years ago. I thought it would be helpful for me to get another widow's perspective. While I never did things hoping that my husband would "magically" come back, I could relate very deeply to the majority of what Ms. Didion was describing. Most of the time while reading the book, I found myself nodding and acknowledging that I felt the exact same way as Ms. Didion: "Yes, that happened to me!" "Yes, that's what I did!" "Yes, that's exactly what I was thinking!" "Yes, that's exactly how I felt!" I was so moved by "The Year of Magical Thinking" that I am going to a one-woman play adaptation of it in the near future. Highly recommended to anyone who is dealing with the unexpected loss of a beloved spouse.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
This may be the best book written to date solely dedicated to the attempt to describe the loss of a spouse or other person with whom you experience true intimacy. Joan has expressed in words many of the experiences I have had since my Help Meet died 21 months ago. I would’ve written a book with many of Joan’s experiences if I weren’t destroyed by Grief in my “first Year of Magical Thinking”. Don’t be mislead by the book’s title: Joan has a wicked and satirical sense of humor. You may read other reviews less positive than mine and that is OK. One reviewer was unhappy with Joan because her life has been one of privilege. Joan will express some experiences in the light of the life she has lived. Try to understand her feelings: indescribable pain with love and joy. A recommended read for any thinking human being.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
I bought this book for a college seminar, but I now realize how helpful the book can be to people who have lost loved ones. Joan Didion has a magnificent gift of revisiting her thoughts and feelings during what possibly could be the most difficult time in her life. This book is not only for college students, it is for everyone who needs some peace in their minds after a the loss of a loved one, whether it be a spouse, child, or friend. She has incredible insight, as an author, and uses that to tell people not only how she felt at the time of her mourning, but how she became more at peace with the tragedies themselves. Being a student with a major of social work and minor of psychology, the practical application of reading her book can give the sense of -- we are not alone, even during times of sorrow and mourning. Her book is magnificent!Read full review
After reading an interview on O magazine about Joan Didion..I was captivated by the author. I was searching for this book and found it here on ebay. I brought the book and started reading it right away. Joan Didion expressed her grief after the death of her beloved husband and daughter. I can't imagine this grief but I fealt it after reading this book..This book is wonderful anyone who is an avid reader of Joan Didion writing should read this. It might very well change the way you look at life today. It opens your heart to life,death, and childhood memories we lost but are buried within us. Life changes fast. Life changes in the instant. You sit down to dinner and life as you know it ends. Read the book and you will find feelings within you, you never thought you had...
From the moment I read the first sentence I knew this author knew what was in my mind and was saying for me the words I had not been able to verbalize. I absorbed what the author was saying on each page and I read about the first half of the book that evening. It seemed that there was a message/revelation in each page. I began marking each of those pages that talked to me and writing my thoughts on each marker. The author had lost her daughter just as I had. She had been there, just as I recently have been there. I would recommend this book because it can be so personally insightful. I certainly did. The book is written with simple, clear language. It is not overly dramatic or sensational. It seems as though your mind plays tricks on you and at times you question your grip on reality. At least I know now that at least one other mother besides me, has felt and thought as I do.Read full review
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