"Some writers define a generation. Some a genre. Joan Didion did both. Didion rose to prominence with her nonfiction collection, Slouching towards Bethlehem, and she quickly became the writer who captured the zeitgeist of the washed-out, acid hangover ofthe 60s. But as a bicoastal writer of fiction and nonfiction whose writing ranged from personal essays and raw, intimate memoirs to reportage on international affairs and social justice, Didion is...

Two excerpts from never-before-seen notebooks offer insights into the author's literary mind and process and includes notes on her Sacramento upbringing, her life in the Gulf states, her views on prominent locals and her experiences during a formative "Rolling Stone" assignment.