Play It as It Lays is a 1970 novel by American writer Joan Didion. Time magazine included the novel in its list of the "100 Best English-Language Novels from 1923 to 2005". The novel has been credited for helping define modern American Fiction and has been described as an "instant classic". It is known for depicting the nihilism and the illusory glamor of life in Hollywood, as well as capturing the landscape and culture of 1960s Los Angeles. The novel begins with an internal monologue by the 31-year-old Maria Wyeth (pronounced Mar-eye-ah), followed by short reminiscences of her friend Helene, and ex-husband, film producer Carter Lang. The further narration is conducted from a third-person perspective in eighty-four chapters of terse, controlled and highly visual prose typical of Didion.The book bears some resemblance to Didion's life, as Didion also had a daughter with a psychological disorder and drove the same car as the protagonist of the book (a yellow Corvette Stingray).Like the protagonist, Didion lived in New York before moving to California.However, Didion asserted that the book was not autobiographical by Joan Didion.
