The New Yorker: Lauren Michelle Jackson Reviews "Gathering Blossoms Under Fire: The Journals Of Alice Wlkaer, 1965-2000"

Writing in The New Yorker, Lauren Michelle Jackson reviews Gathering Blossoms Under Fire: The Journals of Alice Walker, 1965–2000, edited by Julie Boyd. Jackson follows Walker's paths through lovers and land purchases, through finances and friendships, through doubt and discovery: 

It’s possible to divine a connection between a habit of acquisition that seems compulsive, if only for the apparent discomfort she feels about it, and the intense, erratic bouts of depression that choke her ability to write. Walker never knows what triggers them—menstrual hormones, she surmises, or “deep loneliness.” She puts her faith in the usual measures: a healthier diet, less weed, and lots and lots of meditation. By the time the writing returns, the episodes are in the rearview mirror.

Full article here.