The Smart One

I think there need to be categories of chick lit, because just plopping this book into that category without any qualifiers isn’t quite fair. Granted it has cupcakes on the cover, but it’s not actually a very “fluffy” book as far as content goes. Maybe I should invent something called the Sophie Kinsella Scale and rate all chick lit books on this. A book that scores a 10 on the SKS would meet the following standards:

- Useless but entertaining content focused primarily on dating and romance, with shopping and fashion as supporting roles
- Main character is a single female between the ages of 21 and 35
- Super girly book jacket, often involving cartoon pictures of women wearing cute outfits and very high heels, cupcakes, and/or whimsical little swirls and stars
- Takes less than 2 days to read
- Induces small amounts of shame when caught reading at the office and coworker asks, “What are you reading?”
- Completely predictable ending

The Shopaholic series would rank a 10 on the SK Scale. Here is a description of The Smart One from the back of the book:

Bev Bloomrosen thinks her sisters see her as a loser. Not that she minds being the Smart One, but she can't imagine she'll ever live up to her family's expectations ... especially since she left behind her artistic ambitions-along with her humor-impaired ex-husband-to pursue a career as a "mere" schoolteacher.

But her sisters have their own image problems. Clare, the Pretty One, married well and seems to have the perfect suburban life, yet worries that the paper thin fabric of her beautiful designer world is ripping apart. And Joey, the Wild One who had 15 minutes of fame as a one-hit-wonder rock star, struggles with sobriety and keeping the secret of her weirdest ambition yet.

They love each other but mix like oil, water, and hundred-proof gin . . . a combination that threatens to combust over family tensions, suspected infidelities, a devastating accident, a stunning confession, and the sudden reappearance of their handsome, now all-grown-up former neighbor, Kenny Waxman, who's back in town making his mark as a TV comedy writer.

It seems they'll never understand where their differences begin and their own destructive tendencies end. Then it happens: the sisters discover a decades-old body stuffed inside an industrial drum and begin a bold, heartbreaking, and sometimes hilarious journey that will either bring them together . . . or tear them apart for good.

I would put The Smart One somewhere in the 4-6 range on the SKS. It took me only 3 days to read, and the cover is close to being super girly, but the focus is not entirely on dating and romance and the main character borders on too old for a chick lit book. The ending was also not entirely predictable and actually, the writing was pretty good. I’d recommend it for a lighter read.

Miranda's Big Mistake

Total chick lit. Decent, but don't rush out and buy it. Basically, Miranda has all sorts of romantic mishaps and per usual, takes just about the whole book to realize what has been glaringly obvious to the reader from about page 50 - she's in love with the OTHER guy! Shocking, I know. Still, I enjoyed it. It takes place in London, has entertaining supporting characters with their own story lines, and the author has a decent sense of humor.

The Last Anniversary

Finally! A chick lit author that I’d never heard of. I thought I’d heard of (and read) all the guilty pleasure authors there were to read. But now I know this is not true and it has restored my faith. I found this book on the free shelf at work and could tell from the cover design that it was perfect for the long weekend. We headed to Orcas Island on Friday afternoon and enjoyed the warm (!) and sunny (!) weather for three solid days. I’m finally not nauseous, and given that I'm standing on the precipice of being hugely pregnant, I’m in the perfect state to pick up reading again for a short while (although it does take me an extra 10 minutes and 4 pillows to get comfortable first).

In a slight departure from the usual chick lit plot line, this book takes place in Australia instead of London or New York. Luckily they still say funny things there like “light globes” instead of light bulbs and “hoovering” instead of vacuuming.

The Last Anniversary stars Sophie, a 39 year old single woman who kind of randomly inherits a house on the teeny-tiny, Scribbly Gum Island. The island is famous for The Munro Baby Mystery, in which a small baby was mysteriously abandoned by her parents, found, and then raised by two young sisters who also live on the island. The “baby” is now a grandmother and still lives on the island along with an assortment of random and entertaining relatives. Sophie moves to the island and hijinks ensue. Eventually, secrets are revealed and the “mystery” is solved. It’s witty, has a good story with entertaining characters and a touch of romance. Perfect long weekend reading in the sunshine.

Upside Down Inside Out

I've read most of Monica McInerney's other books (Faraday Girls, Family Baggage and The Alphabet Sisters). Her books are always an easy and enjoyable read, but usually with some legitimate content. Her books typically walk just one foot shy of crossing the line into chick lit. This book however, boldly crossed the line and could not be described as anything other than straight up chick lit. Quick description from the back of the book:

Ever been tempted to pretend you were someone exotic, someone adventurous … someone different?

Set in Ireland, England and Australia, this is the funny and heartwarming story of two people whose lives are about to turn upside down and inside out.

Eva is off to Australia on a break from her job in a Dublin delicatessen, hoping to forget a fizzled romance and find inspiration for a new career. Joseph is taking a holiday from his stressful London job. Each is on a search for some answers about life. Then something quite unexpected happens. They meet each other.

Upside Down Inside Out is a novel about love, adventure, honesty and discovering that the person you’ve always wanted to be might just be the person you already are.

It was my least favorite of her books so far, but at the same time, it was perfect for my vacation. I read it while lounging in hammocks and laying by the pool, between my lunch pina colada and my dinner banango daiquiri. Basically, it was just what the doctor ordered – light, easy and entertaining. That said, if you’re looking at reading one of her books, I would definitely recommend Family Baggage or The Alphabet Sisters first.

Love the One You're With

I'm back from my ocean adventures! Did you miss me? I might put a picture or two up of our weekend boat trip, but I must first wait for Jeff to upload and resize the photos. In the meantime, here is a review.

It's been a while since I read a guilty pleasure book, so Love the One You're With by Emily Giffin was a bit overdue. While I gobbled this book up in one day, that's not to say that I loved it. I've read all of Giffin's other books (Something Borrowed, Something Blue, and Baby Proof) so I was looking forward to this book.

What I liked:

Her writing is so easy to zoom through. I like the first person style of writing and the way she sucks you into the drama the main character, Ellen is experiencing. You actually get nervous about whether she's going to get out of her sticky situation or not. I guess the word I'm looking for is engaging. The writing style definitely engages the reader. She also does a good job of not villainizing any particular character. Just when you think someone is becoming hatable, she reels it in and makes them more likable, more real. Sometimes chick lit resorts to very simplified "good" and "bad" characters and Giffin doesn't take this easy way out.

What I didn't like:

The plot is about a woman tempted to cheat on her husband. I've mentioned it before and I'll say it again - this always makes me very uncomfortable. I basically squirmed through the entire book silently yelling, "Don't do it Ellen!!!" It also made it hard to really like the main character. Particularly because at the end (warning - spoiler) it seems like she totally would have slept with the other guy if her sister hadn't yelled at her and told her not to. I'm not saying that she doesn't make a compelling case for cheating, you can definitely see why given the circumstances in the book that she's tempted, but eeeararugh (this is the sound effect of me squirming). You'd think that my visceral reaction to the subject of cheating would imply that someone at some point has cheated on me, but actually that's not the case. Maybe it comes back to my Mom. I remember watching the morning news with my Dad once when the Clinton/Lewinsky scandal was all over the place. My Dad listened to the news update about how Hilary was going to stand by her man and my Dad shook his head and kind of laughed under his breath and said, "If I ever cheated on your Mom, she'd cut my nuts off. I can't believe he's getting away with this!!" This was said not with a tone of awe or jealousy, but total confusion. Thanks Mom, for underscoring at an early age that cheating is wrong and bad and bad and wrong. Now I can't even read a girly chick lit book without feeling uncomfortable!

After finishing this book, I started East of Eden by John Steinbeck. I'm only about half way through, so look for a review later this week.

In defense of chick-lit

I swung by Half Price Books on Roosevelt last night. Visiting Half Price Books when I normally shop at Barnes and Noble is a bit like stepping into TJ Max after spending your life shopping at Nordstroms. No pretty displays, no "recommended reads" or "new in fiction" section. While the place is no B&N, I have to admit that I felt rather cost-savvy as I walked out of there with 3 books for under $16 (total, not per book).

The first book I bought is just what I need after reading The Alchemist - classic chick lit. It's called Stuck in Downward Dog and it's by Chantel Simmons. In my last post, I said I was hoping for a book about a 30-something woman living in England and working in PR. I couldn't quite hit that nail on the head. Instead this book stars Mara who is 28, living in Toronto and working as a receptionist at a plastic surgery clinic. I started it last night and should be finished soon. Check back for a "review" later this week.

I also picked up a Jane Green book - Bookends. I've already read 4 of her other books (Jemmima J, Babyville, Mr. Maybe, The Other Woman) and while they cannot be called high brow literature, I love them all the same. I think this one will be perfect reading for my upcoming LA trip.

My addiction to chick lit can be kind of embarrassing, but at the same time I feel the need to defend it. Life isn't always as romantic and happily-ever-after as I'd like, so sometimes it's fun to read about lives that *are*. Because chick-lit is a reading staple for me, it always feels a bit like coming home when I pick up a book by someone like Jane Green, Marian Keyes, Elizabeth Young, or Sophie Kinsella. I find the familiar plot-lines and characters in these books very comforting. Particularly if they are wittily written, which many are. Jane Green's books always contain just the right amount of British slang - bum instead of butt, wobbly bits instead of cellulite, chap, bloke, and I really love it when people say bloody or bugger off. Interestingly, I just googled Jane Green looking for her book list and it turns out she has her own blog! In case you're interested, here it is: http://www.janegreen.com/

I also picked up The Inheritance of Loss, which sounded very familiar, but I'm sure I haven't read it. It's a bit more serious, so I think I'll start that that up after my trip, when I'm feeling like I need a break from chick-lit.