Literary icon and Sacramento native Joan Didion honored for her career
SACRAMENTO — Literary icon and McClatchy High School alumni Joan Didion was honored in her hometown of Sacramento.
Hundreds of people gathered at The Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine in New York City to honor Didion who died in Dec. 2021.
"Joan crafted her own unique sensibility of distance and biting clarity. She was a gentle person and quiet spoken and fierce in her honesty," said Former California Gov. Jerry Brown.
Didion was born and raised in Sacramento in a home on 22nd & T Street. She went to McClatchy High School and attended Sacramento City College before graduating from Berkley and moving to New York City.
Former Supreme Court Justice and McClatchy alumni Anthony Kennedy reflected on his friendship with Didion.
"Joan spent most of her time after school editing her articles for the high school newspaper and her essays for class."
Her work was so influential that the Sacramento Historical Society commissioned a life-size statue of Didion to sit in the Sacramento room of the main library.