The Orbit Between Joan Didion’s Cool Detachment and Eve Babitz’s Raw Sensuality

Lili Anolik, author of the new book “Didion & Babitz,” talks to me about the complex and largely unexplored relationship between literary icons Joan Didion and Eve Babitz in 1960s Los Angeles.

Anolik explains how these contrasting personalities — Didion’s calculated reserve and Babitz’s uninhibited sensuality — shaped our understanding of them and the era. Their story illuminates broader themes about women’s voices in American letters, the nature of literary persona, and the price of artistic ambition.