The Year of Magical Thinking
by Joan Didion
Pages: 227
5 out of 5 stars
Following the sudden death of her husband, writer Joan Didion wasn't exactly sure how to grieve. Her daughter was also seriously ill and this kept her busy caring for her. Several times that first year, she thought she was losing her mind. Thankfully, she was brave and after that year, sat down and wrote about it. She shares her thoughts, her memories and how disjointed reality seemed. How the smallest thing would bring back memories of her husband and she'd be weeping in public. For anyone who has lost a spouse, a parent or perhaps a child I think this book could be helpful in knowing you are not alone. The out of time and place feelings you are having doesn't mean you are going crazy. Your world really has turned upside down. I wish I had read this book before my father-in-law passed away. I recognized some of the behaviors Didion described in how my mother-in-law acted the first couple of years after Dad died. I'd like to think I would have been better able to reach her and offer support if I had read this first.
