Book 302: Slouching Towards Bethlehem
This book is kind of a classic in the California genre (and in the countercultural genre, or at least so the back cover informs me), so I kind of assume that most people have read it. Foolish me. A surprising number of people, including people who should know better, haven’t even heard of it.
If you want to know about the California of the 1960s, you need to read this book. It’s in three sections. In the first, we have profiles of various people/events from this period in California, told in the crisp, clear style which is Didion’s trademark. I especially like “Some Dreamers of the Golden Dream,” and am honestly not as much into the stream of consciousness essay that is “Slouching Towards Bethlehem.” The second section is a selection of more personal essays about Didion and her own life, while the third section profiles very places around the United States.
I love her essay on Hawaii, a state which many Californians idealize and idolize. Her exploration into the history and life of the islands is really fascinating, as is her take on Hawaii’s attempt to sell itself. (An attempt which appears to have succeeded, judging from the state’s hefty tourism revenues.) Her discussion of Sacramento and the Valley is also very interesting, as is the final essay, “Goodbye to All That,” in which she explains why she left New York.
Didion has a very clear, sharp writing style which I really enjoy. It obviously owes a lot of her journalistic roots, but there’s something about it I can’t quite put my finger on, some ineffable something that makes this book a classic, instead of just a collection of essays.
Demographics:
Slouching Towards Bethlehem, by Joan Didion. Published 1968, 238 pages. Essays.
Tags: book project