Slouching Towards Bethlehem
Slouching Towards Bethlehem by Joan Didionby Joan Didion
The most recommended of 10 essay collections
Praised for vivid, well-written portraits of the 1960s California counterculture that look past sanitized accounts. One critic finds her viewpoint contemptuous.
Praised for vivid, well-written portraits of the 1960s California counterculture that look past sanitized accounts. One critic finds her viewpoint contemptuous.
9 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 8
- criticize it
- 1
- approval share
- 89%
Recommended in 3 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 8 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 8 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 3 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Counters clichéd retellings of the era
“a similarly anecdotal (and substantially better-written) piece about the drug scene in SF's Summer of Love”
Comment from 19 Apr 2026 in “Notes from the SF Peptide Scene” “The mask-less account was refreshing, the only counter-weight to flower-power I knew about”
Comment from 22 Jan 2026 in “Slouching Towards Bethlehem – Joan Didion (1967)” “Great reading to see beyond the clichéd, sanitized retellings of that era”
Comment from 22 Jan 2026 in “Slouching Towards Bethlehem – Joan Didion (1967)” Gorgeous, captivating writing
“She captures the dark death of the California hippy era in a captivating and beautiful way.”
Comment from 22 Jan 2026 in “Slouching Towards Bethlehem – Joan Didion (1967)” “it's excellent: gorgeous writing, and definitely a touchstone of the time”
Comment from 21 Jan 2026 in “Slouching Towards Bethlehem – Joan Didion (1967)” Memorable passages and a touchstone
“it's excellent: gorgeous writing, and definitely a touchstone of the time”
Comment from 21 Jan 2026 in “Slouching Towards Bethlehem – Joan Didion (1967)” “Among many memorable passages, I think I find this the most memorable”
Comment from 22 Jan 2026 in “Slouching Towards Bethlehem – Joan Didion (1967)”
Other essay collections people recommend
The four most recommended other essay collections, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Slouching Towards Bethlehemby Joan DidionThis page | 8 | 1 | 89% | 3 | — | — |
| Why I Writeby George Orwell | 6 | 0 | 100% | 3 | — | — |
| Letters to a Young Poetby Rainer Maria Rilke | 5 | 0 | 100% | 5 | — | — |
| Paul Graham essays | 5 | 7 | 42% | 3 | — | — |
| Metamagical Themasby Douglas Hofstadter | 4 | 0 | 100% | 4 | — | — |
What people said
8 of the 9 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“a similarly anecdotal (and substantially better-written) piece about the drug scene in SF's Summer of Love”
“The mask-less account was refreshing, the only counter-weight to flower-power I knew about”
“Great reading to see beyond the clichéd, sanitized retellings of that era”
“Among many memorable passages, I think I find this the most memorable”
“Beyond those two I can't universally recommend.”
“She captures the dark death of the California hippy era in a captivating and beautiful way.”
“Her viewpoint is contempt, and its tiring (slouching).”
“it's excellent: gorgeous writing, and definitely a touchstone of the time”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.