Youth book review: Short pieces reflect long shadow of '60s

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April 30, 2009

Review of The White Album by Joan Didion

By Mari Miyachi

Learning about the Sixties in history, I've come to realize how inaccurate my preconceptions about this time period were. The causes and results of this explosion of counterculture once eluded me. Indeed, any knowledge I did have about this revolutionary decade was biased to say the least, purely a product of retrospection. Now that I discover more about the Sixties, it is increasingly apparent that this era is the foundation of modern popular culture, and numerous references to the decade that I once overlooked are now lucid.

No survey of the 1960s and its aftermath is complete without reading at least some of the works of Joan Didion, a premier social commentator and journalist of the time. The White Album by Didion is one such iconic work. A collection of autobiographical short stories spanning the late '60s and '70s, The White Album is a striking portrait of an unstable and fearful state, California, and a nation still adjusting to massive social change.

Didion's storylines and tone are particularly powerful; much of her expository writing is undoubtedly rooted in her background as a journalist.

One of my favorite essays in the book, "Many Mansions," is an example of Didion's talent for taking a newsworthy story - in this case, the unoccupied Governor's house built by Ronald Reagan - and demonstrating its reflection of society. Didion writes, "I have seldom seen a house so evocative of the unspeakable." Ironically, Didion's own writing is often a similar profound, sincere evocation. The White Album captures a moment in time, and the pervasive feelings of doubt that were slowly creeping on Americans. It is a perceptive account of 20th century culture, and a piece of autobiographical literature in its finest form.

I would give The White Album a 9 out of 10. I value contemporary authors who honestly and poignantly reflect on their time. I would recommend this book for high school readers and older, who can fully appreciate the mature content. For adults who lived through this period, I'm sure this compilation is an evocative portrayal of the '60s, and for the younger generation, it is an enlightening focus on a fascinating era.

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Mari Miyachi is an Andover resident and student at Phillips Academy who writes book reviews for young adults.