Book review: Fear Of Dying

WHEN Erica Jong’s no-holds-barred fiction on sex and relationships, Fear Of Flying, was published in the early ’70s, it became a rallying cry for Second Wave feminism, empowering women to be more open about their sexuality, as the 20-something married central character, Isadora Wing, and went in search of the perfect, no-strings sex.

Now, poet and author Jong is helping the generation that grew up with Isadora confront their own mortality in her new follow-up, Fear Of Dying.

Actress Vanessa Wonderman is in her ’60s — and is watching her once-powerful parents fade, while waiting to become a grandmother for the first time.

She’s finally found love with a husband 15 years older, but when he falls ill, she dallies with men she finds online, desperate to recapture her lost youth.

Based on Jong’s life, and featuring Isadora as Vanessa’s friend and conscience, Fear Of Dying tackles some of the Western world’s biggest issues: how do we cope with ageing, death, desire and addiction.

Fear Of Dying

Erica Jong

Canongate Books, €20.55