Joy Williams Critical Essay | Critical Essay by Gail Godwin

Critical Essay by Gail Godwin

The fated heroine of this bleak but beautifully-crafted first novel ["State of Grace"] may well be the final, perfected archetype of all the "sad ladies," that formidably fashionable sorority which has impinged on the past decade or so of American fiction. But I'll remember Kate Jackson; I'll reread her stubbornly depressing story, picking out those cleverly-hidden but ever-present clues of grace. Kate is no simple "slice-of-despair" character; her sad story becomes, through the author's skill and intention, transsubstantiated into significant myth. This book is neither a self-indulgent journal of despair, nor journalism of despair. It is premeditated, articulate, artistic—a novel. (p. 2)

Gail Godwin, "Her Heart Belongs to Daddy," in The New York Times Book Review, April 22, 1973, pp. 2-3.