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The Year of Magical Thinking

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The Year of Magical Thinking

By: Joan Didion
Narrated by: Vanessa Redgrave
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About this listen

When celebrated writer Joan Didion’s life was altered forever, she wrote a new chapter. In this adaptation of her iconic memoir, Didion transforms the story of the shattering loss of her husband and their daughter into a one-woman play performed by Tony Award winner Vanessa Redgrave, who originated the role on Broadway in 2007. Written with Didion’s trademark style of cool observation, The Year of Magical Thinking weaves back and forth in time, taking listeners on a poignant journey through heartbreak, grief, and resilience. It’s an unforgettable theatrical experience that resonates with anyone who has ever loved.

©2005 Joan Didion (P)2020 AO Media LLC Art & Literature Authors Entertainment & Celebrities Women Heartfelt Inspiring Emotionally Gripping Thought-Provoking Feel-Good

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All stars
Most relevant  
Heartbreakingly relatable. Brilliant author, beautifully read. Recommend particularly to anyone who’s lost somebody close to them.

Beautiful story

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Totally gripping. Wonderful. Your heart will go out to Joan Didion. It is so hard to really understand someone else’s grief but this is as near as you will get.

Wow

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Beautifully read by Vanessa Redgrave. I felt that the narrator lent a pathos to the short memoir which is neither sentimental nor self- pitying. It is an evocative account of tragic events and yet as Didion says, they come to us all in the end.

Very poignant reading.

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This brief mediation on loss and love is incredibly powerful and packs a massive emotional punch underscored by Vanessa Regrave's cooly detached delivery.

Grief as Art

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Judging by some lower rated reviews, it looks like part of readers awaited a more soothing, indeed a magical story, and these expectations have ruined perception of this book. This book covers what the title promises - the author reflects on her thoughts or actions which she believes will reverse of her family's death, such as not throwing away her dead husband's shoes because otherwise he won't have anything to wear when he comes back or calling an acquintance in other time zone where time is set back and wondering, if she flies to this part of USA, will her husband be still alive there. Because... He isn't dead there by their time. Those are clear examples of the magical thinking, so in this sense this book is not misleading.
I personally rated this audiobook 4 stars for perfomance and 3 for story. For performance - even though the narrator really set the tone and delivered the emotial part of this story beautifully, some parts didn't sound clear and were hard to understand from audio perspective.
For story - subjectively speaking, I couldn't connect with it. I felt as if stranger started to talk about their hardships of life while I'm being late and not interested at all. I'm not entirely sure what made it feel so detached or what could have been done for story to connect with reader/listener more. This feels even more odd as my dad died last year and wounds, suffering from loss are still present. Thinking about my personal loss was one of rare moments what made me connect with the story, but, to be honest, in the end, it means I felt connection with my personal story, my grief instead of author's. For some reason, shorter or non-literar world people's stories about loss have felt more real than this, and knowing author had more space to express themselves than an internet comment or blog post, article in some publication, it makes me feel that reading/listening to this book doesn't have a very well take on the subject.
Some parts were thought provoking - at least for me. The author stressed several times that she's in control, that she's got this. Such stance made me look that magical thinking is not only result of desparation or helplessness, but of compelling desire to always be in charge, to be the person who orchestrates events around them at times - even when objectively it's not in their power. Or person... who always needs to say the last word in an argument...
I also felt author's confusion, whether saying "everything will be okay" to her daughter, where there's big chance nothing is going to be okay, counts as a lie. This also makes me question if this manifestation of magical thinking in light form, because the end, "it will be okay" is a person's wish, preferred scenario not a certainity or a fact.
Last thing - this story really shows that when being in front of pain, helplessness, it's very human to turn back to magical thinking, and that it's the "last card" people can use to cope with hurt or fear if this is something they haven't practiced as much. This story shows that accepting things for what they are is the only was of moving forward, even though acceptance doesn't show up overnight.
I would say that writing this review has made me appreciate this book more, but I still wouldn't dare to call this as an iconic or authentic reflection of what it means to lose dear people. Perhaps the self-awareness that all actions done were product of magical thinking was the most redeeming aspect of this book. And, well... also this quote,
"Mourning has its place
but also its limits."

Hard to connect, but good for self-reflection

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It was such an unexpected insight into a mind of a grieving person, with all its ‘illogical logic’, remorse, regret and fear from accepting loss. Short yet so powerful, it will stay with me for a very long time.

Very moving

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Joan Didion can candidly write about the most heartbreaking things one must endure during our lifetime.. I really missed her voice though..

Awesome

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I could listen to this over and over again, the words resonate deeply within, Joan Didion writing is poetic my stunning, round snd round she take the reader. Venessa Redgrave makes it for me, a voice so expressive I could listen to her forever. Highly recommended, a very powerful account of loss and memory.

Moving & Poignant

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I’ve read this beautiful book a couple of years ago and have been deeply moved by the preformance of V.R.

Beautiful

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Vanessa Redgrave gives an amazing performance here of Joan Didion‘s unimaginable heartbreak when she lost both her husband and daughter within a short space of time. Highly recommended.

Poignant and heartbreaking

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