Play It as It Lays
- Downloads：8343
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-03-29 14:17:43
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Joan Didion
- ISBN：0007414986
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Summary
Somewhere out beyond Hollywood， hollowed-out actress Maria Wyeth's life plays out in a numbing routine of perpetual freeway driving。 Anaesthetized to pain and pleasure， she is seemingly unaffected by her fraught personal history。 In her early thirties， divorced from her husband， dislocated from friends， and somehow detached from her past and future， Wyeth epitomises a generation made ill by too much freedom。 Set beyond good and evil -- literally in Los Angeles and the barren wastescapes of the Mojave desert， and figuratively in the landscapes of a broken spirit -- Play It As It Lays is an immaculately wrought vision of Californian culture on the cusp of the 1970s。 Three decades after its original publication， the novel remains an intense dissection of a very particular time and place。
Reviews
Michele
，
A hot， dry， terrible nothing
Dahlia
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Wasn’t too sure about it in the beginning， but I loved the book。 It’s upsetting， yet， in a weird way， calming。
Céline Nyssens
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The Bell Jar but for grownups。
sofia
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reading this book was like solving a puzzle when the reference picture was a puzzle itself！！！ half of the time i was very much confused and the other half i was like。。。 this is fucking genius you don't get a lot of context， you don't know what the hell is happening or who is it happening to and you just start solving the puzzle at the very last but that's what makes this book so interesting， because i felt like i was as lost and confused as maria seemed to bealso， the last chapter？ chef's kiss'' reading this book was like solving a puzzle when the reference picture was a puzzle itself！！！ half of the time i was very much confused and the other half i was like。。。 this is fucking genius you don't get a lot of context， you don't know what the hell is happening or who is it happening to and you just start solving the puzzle at the very last but that's what makes this book so interesting， because i felt like i was as lost and confused as maria seemed to bealso， the last chapter？ chef's kiss''i know what nothing means， and i keep on playing / why？ / why not？'' SO GOOD 。。。more
Cindy
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Existential dread at its most gutting。Joan Didion honestly should not be allowed to be this powerful in so few words， like goddamn。 Didion's prose is sparse， in a way that shows but doesn't tell。 Maria's path toward self-destruction isn't explicit， but it's so easy to imagine the emptiness and the void she finds herself entangled in。 There's a quiet terror in Didion's sentences:I know what "nothing" means， and keep on playing。I am what I am。 To look for reasons is beside the point。Sometime in th Existential dread at its most gutting。Joan Didion honestly should not be allowed to be this powerful in so few words， like goddamn。 Didion's prose is sparse， in a way that shows but doesn't tell。 Maria's path toward self-destruction isn't explicit， but it's so easy to imagine the emptiness and the void she finds herself entangled in。 There's a quiet terror in Didion's sentences:I know what "nothing" means， and keep on playing。I am what I am。 To look for reasons is beside the point。Sometime in the night she had moved into a realm of miseries peculiar to women， and she had nothing to say to Carter。Maria did not particularly believe in rewards， only in punishments， swift and personal。What I love about Didion's writing is that it simultaneously manages to capture the #mood of California in the 60s and hark to so many themes that feel so current and talked-about today， from depression to abortion （this was written well before Roe v。 Wade） to motherhood。 Maria almost feels like a proto-Fleabag to me with the way she's presented as this transgressive antiheroine with self-destructive tendencies。 In short， Play It As It Lays feels timely and ahead of its time， which is a rare quality to capture。 A Lana Del Rey song could never。 。。。more
Katie Dauka
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An enjoyable quick read to pull me out of a reading slump。 My intrigue for Maria increased as the novel progressed， and I found myself admiring her by the end。 Her understanding of "nothing" resonated deeply with me， and I felt a sense of camaraderie。 An enjoyable quick read to pull me out of a reading slump。 My intrigue for Maria increased as the novel progressed， and I found myself admiring her by the end。 Her understanding of "nothing" resonated deeply with me， and I felt a sense of camaraderie。 。。。more
Jordan H
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joan didion #1 a story about the slow deterioration of the lives of a privileged group of west coast film people， who look despair and utter despondency in the face and then must decide their next move。 this really is quite a depressing book but i'd be lying if i said it wasn't entertaining to follow the downward spiral through the lens of a protagonist like Maria。 at the time we meet her she is already so detached， so disillusioned with her profession， her shallow social life and failing marria joan didion #1 a story about the slow deterioration of the lives of a privileged group of west coast film people， who look despair and utter despondency in the face and then must decide their next move。 this really is quite a depressing book but i'd be lying if i said it wasn't entertaining to follow the downward spiral through the lens of a protagonist like Maria。 at the time we meet her she is already so detached， so disillusioned with her profession， her shallow social life and failing marriage that the supporting characters feel vague， shiftless， like names without faces or descriptions， that work only as insistent antagonists against whatever peace she attempts to seek。 what gets me most about her though is how she tries to combat her pessimism and caustic emotion with isolation when what she wants actually is meaningful connection， for meaning in life period and i 。。。 understand that。 i also have a therapy appt next week but it's fine 。。。more
Megan
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“fantastically strange book” it’s brilliant？ in a confusing way？ it is very old Hollywood and heartbreaking。
Julia
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Erg real， maar ook mysterieus
Christina McLain
，
I recently came across this novel after reading The Last Love Story， a biography of Joan Didion， the great social critic and chronicler of America from the Sixties to just before 911。 I can see why some readers might find the book polarizing as it's told by a narrator who is filled with nothing but anomie and spiritual lassitude。 Maria Wyeth， a former model and once promising actress， has become someone who cannot get over her crippling loss of agency。 She is married to a film producer but the m I recently came across this novel after reading The Last Love Story， a biography of Joan Didion， the great social critic and chronicler of America from the Sixties to just before 911。 I can see why some readers might find the book polarizing as it's told by a narrator who is filled with nothing but anomie and spiritual lassitude。 Maria Wyeth， a former model and once promising actress， has become someone who cannot get over her crippling loss of agency。 She is married to a film producer but the marriage is rocky because of her inertia and she lives in Hollywood in the late 60s， a place which frankly sounds like one of the inner circles of Dantean Hell。 Maria's young daughter has some kind of severe mental health issue and Maria spends her days alone， smoking， driving the freeways or indulging in self-destructive sexual behaviour。 The ending of the novel is somewhat shocking ; the story is not comfortable to read。 And most likely， it's not meant to be。 Didion is describing someone who is so lost and estranged from life she is a danger to herself and others。 The question is: did society make her this way or was she born like that？ Or both？ And should we care？ Didion specializes in terse evasive dialogue which reveals little but says everything about the emptiness of her characters。 In a world like this， the author seems to be saying， nothing materializes except death and destruction， because no-one connects or can connect。 It's a great story told in dry mastery but ultimately unsatisfying。 There is no real resolution， no compassion， nothing but emptiness。 And not for the faint of heart or spirit。 。。。more
Randy Lowe
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I went back and forth between a sense that this was too predictable or pat， or a lesser thing by being masked as fiction。。。 and accepting it for what it was and， ultimately， feeling a genuine connection to it。Her great genius is still in her short form essays， though the book becomes staccato with a mimicry of this machine-gun vignette style by the end and the observational snapshots pile up quite effectively by the last scene。 Purely cinemagraphic。 I'm talking myself into adding a 4th star。 I went back and forth between a sense that this was too predictable or pat， or a lesser thing by being masked as fiction。。。 and accepting it for what it was and， ultimately， feeling a genuine connection to it。Her great genius is still in her short form essays， though the book becomes staccato with a mimicry of this machine-gun vignette style by the end and the observational snapshots pile up quite effectively by the last scene。 Purely cinemagraphic。 I'm talking myself into adding a 4th star。 。。。more
John Gushue
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A short book， with dozens of short chapters， told at a galloping pace。 Set on the fringes of Hollywood glamour in the Steve McQueen era， it's filled with characters who are angry， hollow， broken， maybe a combination of the above。 A short book， with dozens of short chapters， told at a galloping pace。 Set on the fringes of Hollywood glamour in the Steve McQueen era， it's filled with characters who are angry， hollow， broken， maybe a combination of the above。 。。。more
Sid_rw
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Stylishly written but had little more for me than that。 Perhaps its insights were relevant for its time。
Donovan Burtan
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Little on the nose to read during the ultimate 'doing nothing' era。 Plumbing the depths of nothingness， Didion crafts something approaching beauty。 Little on the nose to read during the ultimate 'doing nothing' era。 Plumbing the depths of nothingness， Didion crafts something approaching beauty。 。。。more
Jamie Scott
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I don’t get it。 The New York Times said it was a “terrifying book” no， it’s not。 many people are awful to the main character of Maria - women and men both - which is pretty shit。 the word “faggot” is used too often for my liking also。 I don’t understand what this novel is standing for and what this novel is exploring。 a non-story if I ever read one！ save yourself some time。
Michael
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This strikes me as one of the great English-language novels of the 20th century although it will definitely not be for all tastes。 If you're the kind of person who doesn't want to read about "unlikable" characters then this is not a book for you。 Didion's prose style is cold， hard and brilliant as she tells the story of an institutionalized movie actress thinking back on some of the key events of her life - her childhood in rural Nevada， an abortion， her failed marriage to a pretentious film dir This strikes me as one of the great English-language novels of the 20th century although it will definitely not be for all tastes。 If you're the kind of person who doesn't want to read about "unlikable" characters then this is not a book for you。 Didion's prose style is cold， hard and brilliant as she tells the story of an institutionalized movie actress thinking back on some of the key events of her life - her childhood in rural Nevada， an abortion， her failed marriage to a pretentious film director， etc。 This is a quick read， just 84 short chapters （most of which are between 1 and 3 pages long） that seem to reflect the fragmented psyche of the protagonist。 Would gladly read again。 。。。more
Jaiden
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（I read this last month， and loved it。）Joan Didion is one of the most atmospheric writers ever。 Even with how dismal this book feels， it is such a visceral feeling that you cannot help but relate to。 The rawness and bluntness with which she describes emotions makes you spiral into a feeling of existential despair， in a good way if that is even possible。 Going to college in Los Angeles and having spent many， many hours driving through the desert， the way in which Didion writes about the bleakness （I read this last month， and loved it。）Joan Didion is one of the most atmospheric writers ever。 Even with how dismal this book feels， it is such a visceral feeling that you cannot help but relate to。 The rawness and bluntness with which she describes emotions makes you spiral into a feeling of existential despair， in a good way if that is even possible。 Going to college in Los Angeles and having spent many， many hours driving through the desert， the way in which Didion writes about the bleakness of the desert is TOO REAL and with such care。 tI would recommend this to anyone who maybe smiles on the outside， but feels dead on the inside。 There aren’t many words to properly describe this funny little novel， so just read it for yourself and get lost in Maria’s story。 。。。more
Sinead Duignan
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I love anything with a flawed female character but this one was a bit odd。。。。 Still worth a read
Carina
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Absolutely loved！ If you like books about LA， mental health， the reality of working in Hollywood I would definitely suggest this。 So well written。
Carla Becerra Romero
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Solo me entretuvo al inicio y un poco al final， todo el medio del libro me pareció aburrido， afortunadamente se trata de un libro corto， de lo contrario， no lo habría terminado。
Nick Argentieri
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bleak all the way through; heavy dialogue， and just as much of the story takes place in what’s left unsaid; probably would’ve enjoyed it more when I was younger
Holly Castleton
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harsh， beautiful， sad。 joan can do fiction！
Arden
，
4。5 stars， I'd say， despite the poor condition of my download。 Maybe even 5 but I need to let the novel finish sinking in。Update 06/03/21: Who am I kidding？ This is a five star read。 Bumped up because the novel （and the excellence of Didion's prose） has overtaken my brain and faculties。 4。5 stars， I'd say， despite the poor condition of my download。 Maybe even 5 but I need to let the novel finish sinking in。Update 06/03/21: Who am I kidding？ This is a five star read。 Bumped up because the novel （and the excellence of Didion's prose） has overtaken my brain and faculties。 。。。more
Bella Sayegh
，
such a smart， restrained， and dangerous novel
Richard
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Last read as a teenager。 Reading now was completely floored by how powerful it is and how fully it paints the landscape。
Daniella
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Despite the ennui and the subject of nothingness， the book was heavy。
Sam
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This book hits like a semi truck。 An unrelenting and brutal description of a woman's life， as she floats through Hollywood， New York， and the Nevada desert during the late 1960's。 Didion writes fiction with a sparse realism that is addicting。This is my first Joan Didion book and I love her writing style already， very excited to read more of her work。 This book hits like a semi truck。 An unrelenting and brutal description of a woman's life， as she floats through Hollywood， New York， and the Nevada desert during the late 1960's。 Didion writes fiction with a sparse realism that is addicting。This is my first Joan Didion book and I love her writing style already， very excited to read more of her work。 。。。more
Rhoda
，
Obviously brilliant and incredibly written， as it’s Didion， but so depressing it’s hard to recommend。
Renee Buckus
，
Very good。 I loved following Maria's （Mar-eye-uh） story。 You feel everything she feels。 It comes across through the reading as well as it would in your own mind。 Very good。 I loved following Maria's （Mar-eye-uh） story。 You feel everything she feels。 It comes across through the reading as well as it would in your own mind。 。。。more
Kamaulies
，
Nie do końca jestem fanką takiej formy， ale trzeba przyznać， że Didion ma swój unikatowy styl。Proza bardzo oszczędna。Krótka książeczka pełna bólu i brutalnej rzeczywistości。
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Play It as It Lays
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Play It as It Lays&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Play It as It Lays&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0