Sparkling ... Those in the market for a detached and measured work of journalism might not fully appreciate this delightful and uncategorizable book, though it does contain a great deal of careful reporting. It is both enormously informative and openly prurient, deliciously greedy for the details of Babitz’s and Didion’s private lives. At times, it is even gossipy ... One of my favorite books of the year, and Babitz, an avid champion of gossip, would no doubt have approved of its tenor.
Anolik’s zealous bias...gibes magically with the outsize, lesser-known Babitz, but doesn’t always translate as well to the staid, lionized Didion ... Acres of familiar ground are the one shortcoming of Didion & Babitz. While the new book does offer plenty of original insight into Babitz’s career and relationship with Didion, it’s heavily skewed toward the name after the ampersand.
