Some of these essays are five stars, and some are not. As a whole, the collection is somewhere in the middle. Maybe I'm too far removed from the hippie, sixties counterculture, but I couldn't connect to those pieces at all. I think I would have loved it way more if I had read it when I was sixteen. I'm a little bit over the questioning, self-doubt stage of my life. But she has a great way of phrasing and describing things--using few words, but getting the point across instantly ("low-grade afternoon hangover"). And there are a few gems in this collection. I will definitely read more Didion.