New books about literary icons Joan Didion and Joan Lindsay shed light on their personal struggles and creative journeys, offering fresh perspectives on their enduring legacies.
Joan Didion, the legendary journalist and author, is set to release her diary entries compiled posthumously in the upcoming book Notes To John, which will be available April 22. These entries, unearthed by her literary trustees following her death in 2021, reveal Didion's reflections after sessions with her psychiatrist, chronicling her experiences with anxiety, depression, alcoholism, and motherhood. According to The New York Times, these journal entries were written for her late husband, John Gregory Dunne, beginning around Didion's 65th birthday, amid what she described as 'a rough few years' for their family.
While the diary entries were left without clear instructions for publication, they present what seems like a complete narrative of Didion's personal struggles. The entries will be released unchanged aside from basic corrections and added footnotes, with Knopf's editor Jordan Pavlin asserting, 'Didion’s art has always derived part of its electricity from what she reveals and what she withholds.' This collection promises to deepen readers' comprehension of the writer’s internal world.
On another front, Brenda Niall's biography of Joan Lindsay, titled Joan Lindsay: The Hidden Life of the Woman Who Wrote Picnic at Hanging Rock, revisits the life of the author behind one of Australia's most beloved novels, published when she was 71 years old. Although many recognize Lindsay primarily for Picnic at Hanging Rock, Niall’s biography reveals the author’s prematurely stifled creativity. Lindsay's earlier career as a painter was abandoned early on, and much of her writing life unfolded overshadowed by the success of the prominent men around her.
Describing Lindsay’s life, Niall notes, 'She entertained for Sir Daryl, supported his career, and was known as much for her flower arrangements as for her ideas.' The biography investigates Lindsay's struggle for recognition against the backdrop of her marriage to painter Daryl Lindsay, who served as director of the National Gallery of Victoria. Despite her marriage, her creative spirit long lay dormant due to societal constraints and personal circumstances.
Revealing the emotional intricacies behind Lindsay’s famous novel, Niall postulates how personal yearnings reflected themes within the story, questioning whether the character Miranda symbolized Lindsay’s own lost desires. Despite the relative obscurity of Lindsay's life prior to Picnic at Hanging Rock, Niall emphasizes the novel as being pivotal for Lindsay's later identity as an artist, which was perhaps catalyzed by Daryl Lindsay’s dismissive comments on her talent.
The emotional weight of the biography also highlights the supportive friendships Lindsay formed later, as she engaged with every aspect when Picnic at Hanging Rock was adapted for film. These contributions led to her eventual acknowledgment as a formidable writer rather than merely the spouse of her husband.
Each of these new works adds layers to the public's perception of Didion and Lindsay, illuminating their personal lives and the social structures they navigated as women creators. While Didion’s work invites readers to peer deeply at her innermost thoughts, Niall's biography of Lindsay confronts the legacies of women constrained by the forte of their relationships.
Readers interested in women's literature and diverse narratives are now presented with two significant additions to the literary market.