Twenties Girl; Sophie Kinsella

Twenties Girl is my very first Sophie Kinsella book. I know, I know I must be the very last woman on earth who hasn't read the Shopaholic series. I've been living under a rock reading other stuff, I guess. I will be up front and say I received an ARC from Random House for the purpose of this review. Link to Ms. Kinsella's site in the title above. Honestly, I probably wouldn't have picked this up on my own- and I would've missed a fabulous, funny book.

Twenties Girl is the story of two young women, Lara and Sadie, who have opposite temperments using their individual strengths and weaknesses to help the other cope with and transcend the vagaries of life. That sounds very serious, but truly Ms. Kinsella has a deft touch for comic yet true to life situations that would curl your hair if it was you, but are somehow hilarious when it happens to someone else. In a way I think this is also Lara's coming of age tale. By helping Sadie Lara must let go of preconceived notions and castles in the air and learn to be assertive and cope with life as it is, not life as she wishes it would be. For Sadie's part, well- she needs to learn to put others' needs ahead of her own, to be more forgiving.

Lara Lington is a mid twenties age Londoner who gave up her job to open an executive search firm with her 'best friend' Natalie. Lara's problems result from impulsivity and a pronounced tendency to be chameleon-like in the face of even the barest criticism. Sadie is Lara's long ignored elderly aunt. Rather, Sadie's ghost is haunting Lara. In her own mind, at her death Sadie is twenty three. At the height of her beauty and happiness, feeling as though she's at the top of the world. Except she's actually one hundred five. And very dead. Sadie wants Lara to find her favorite necklace and she threatens to haunt Lara until and unless she finds the necklace and returns it to Sadie.

Lara and Sadie are hilarious and heartbreaking. I found Sadie the more compelling character despite the book's primary focus on Lara's arc. Sadie manages to prod, drag and hound Lara into clarity of purpose and determination via Sadie's compelling need for a missing art deco dragonfly necklace. Throw in a smarmy coffee chain magnate uncle and his family, parents who know something's wrong but who won't corner Lara into honesty and the reader has a mixture of plot and character that are sure to keep you laughing as you devour the story.

Laughter's a formidable weapon in Ms. Kinsella's arsenal as she leads readers into a superficially shallow, fun storyline that has at it heart, a compelling narrative about family, love, and self respect. Full of fun anecdotes about life in the roaring twenties I loved reading about, Twenties Girl makes for a laugh out loud, "oh no she didn't" kind of read sure to make you smile.

P.S. The funeral at the end was a unique and touching tribute to Sadie! Just the right send off, I think.




Image found on Random House Library.

American Creationism

In the beginning, God created the
Heavens and the Earth and populated
the Earth with broccoli, cauliflower and
spinach, green and yellow and
red vegetables of all kinds, so Man and
Woman would live long and healthy
lives.
Then using God's great gifts,
Satan created Ben and Jerry's
Ice Cream and Krispy Creme
Donuts. And Satan said, "You
want chocolate with that?"
And Man said, "Yes!" and
Woman said, "and as long as
you're at it, add some
sprinkles." And they gained
10 pounds. And Satan smiled.
And God created the
healthful yogurt that
Woman might keep the
figure that Man found so
fair. And Satan brought
forth white flour from the
wheat, and sugar from the
cane and combined them.
And Woman went from
size 6 to size 14.
So God said, "Try my fresh green
salad." And Satan presented
Thousand-Island Dressing,
buttery croutons and garlic toast
on the side.
And Man and Woman unfastened
their belts following the repast.
God then said, "I have sent you heart
healthy vegetables and olive oil in
which to cook them." And Satan
brought forth deep fried fish and
chicken-fried steak so big it needed its
own platter. And Man gained more
weight and his cholesterol went through
the roof. God then created a light, fluffy
white cake, named it "Angel Food
Cake," and said, "It is good." Satan then
created chocolate cake and named it
"Devil's Food."
God then brought forth
running shoes so that His
children might lose those extra
pounds. And Satan gave cable
TV with a remote control so
Man would not have to toil
changing the channels. And
Man and Woman laughed and
cried before the flickering blue
light and gained pounds.
Then God brought forth the potato,
naturally low in fat and brimming
with nutrition. And Satan peeled off
the healthful skin and sliced the
starchy center into chips and deep-
fried them. And Man gained pounds.
God then gave lean beef so that Man
might consume fewer calories and still
satisfy his appetite. And Satan created
McDonald's and its
99-cent double cheeseburger. Then said,
"You want fries with that?" And Man
replied, "Yes! And super size them!"
And Satan said, "It is good." And Man
went into cardiac arrest.
God sighed and created
quadruple bypass surgery.
Then Satan created HMOs.


Found in my inbox this week. Don't know original source.

Beyond Heaving Bosoms; Wendell & Tan

Beyond Heaving Bosoms: The Smart Bitches Guide to Romance Novels by Sarah Wendell and Candy Tan was published by Fireside Books in April 2009. Link to their blog & bbook page in the title above. It’s a little tough to categorize, since I think it’s a hybrid between humor and literary criticism. I found my copy in the lit crit section of my local B&N. The authors run a romance book blog, eponymously named Smart Bitches Trashy Books. I’ve been a loyal lurker on the site for several years now & I was thrilled beyond belief to find this in a brick and mortar bookstore.

The ‘pink aisle’ of your local bookstore, aka the romance section, is, if you believe readers’ gossip, the dregs of literature. There are so many snide, attitude laden smears repeated about romance I couldn’t list them all: they’re all the same, they’re porn for women, since they all end happily they have nothing valid to say, they encourage unhealthy relationship stereotypes, romance is so bad it makes science fiction and fantasy look good, and on and on and on. Loyal readers are known to make or buy book covers to hide their books in so that they won’t get hassled for their choice of reading material.

Yet, these same supposedly mouth breathing soap opera watching uneducated unemployed unfulfilled housewives buy billions of dollars worth of romances every year. We joke that we bankroll the publishing industry year after year after year, and will continue to do so even in the Depression 2.0. We are some of the most loyal, most prolific book buyers out there. If asked many devoted readers say they will cut back on every other budget item- except books. Many of us are also dedicated library patrons.

What does Beyond Heaving Bosoms have to say about romance? A lot, truth be told. Much of it quite blue and quite funny. This isn’t intended to be an academic treatise defending romance, but it is an in depth look at could be called an insider’s body of knowledge. Things that long term readers are familiar with, but which usually confuse and annoy newbies. For example: hero and heroine character types, common plot tropes, romance novel code words (for example, did you know that the word mistress when used in an Harlequin has it’s own definition?), rape, sexual agency, those horrible clinch covers, and finally, theories on the directions in which romance will be moving in the future. The online ‘you must be nice no matter what” aka “if you don’t have anything nice to say..” culture is discussed. Oh- there are also games such as romance mad libs, funniest book related game EVER.

Beyond Heaving Bosoms is a must read for long time romance readers, even if you only want to be able to defend your choice of reading material. For those readers who have wondered why romances have been likened to “book crack” this a great way to familiarize yourself with the neighborhood. Welcome. Come on in. The water’s fine.

Cover image found on Barnes & Noble.

Good Omens; Pratchett & Gaiman

I'm finally reading!! YAY~ This book is hilarious and yet manages to sneak in a serious thought or two. Good Omens reminded me of Piers Anthony's work, in the sense that there are lots of puns & cultural references. Similarities end there though. FYI, I've not read Terry Pratchett's books so I missed any and all references they may have made to his work. I think I need to borrow a few of his books from the library, though. I love satire. Plus my lovely Sister reccommended him to me ages ago. For some reason I can't get the link field in the title to work so here is a link to Terry Pratchett's page about Good Omens.

Good Omens is satire disguised as a comedy of errors. What happens if the antichrist is born, but is then 'misplaced' into a normal family? What happens when two angels, one fallen and one of the heavenly host, become friends after millennia on earth? Is it possible to be so far on opposite ends of the spectrum to be able to turn around and find your opponent metaphorically and ideologically standing beside you? Ultimately- can the Armageddon be stopped once it has begun?

Much much lighter in tone and content than it sounds, I promise you. A couple of budding romances thrown in for good measure. An excellent beach read. Highly recommended.

They Call Me Naughty Lola; ed. David Rose

They Call Me Naughty Lola, edited by David Rose and published by Scribner in 2006, is a collection of some of the most creative, painful and funny personal ads placed in the London Review of Books. I saw it on a table of new books at the library and couldn't resist. Occasionally I read the personals in our local paper for exactly the same reason- laughs. Yes, I'm mean enough to laugh at other people's desperation. Rarely have I ever seen ads quite as funny as these, though. Then again- I love the Brits' dry, ironic sense of humor. Best read in bed curled up beside your special someone so s/he too can laugh at humanity's gift for creativity even in the face of bleak despair and overwhelming loneliness. Whatever the well of inspiration, this is certainly worthy of a spot on your bedside table.