Joan Didion is a well-covered subject, but Alissa Wilkinson’s second book, “We Tell Ourselves Stories: Joan Didion and the American Dream Machine,” approaches Didion’s work with a fresh perspective. Wilkinson tackles two topics she’s extremely familiar with: cultural evolution and the figures involved in it. 

Wilkinson said the book is unique from other Didion biographies because “I’m not interested in her public image as ‘Joan: the lady on the tote bag,’ so much as ‘Joan: the thinker,’ and how her eyes give us a good lens to look at a century of American history through what was happening.” 

“We Tell Ourselves Stories: Joan Didion and the American Dream Machine” is available for pre-order and will be available in March 2025. Read Wilkinson’s movie reviews at the New York Times.