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3.52 AVERAGE
3.52 AVERAGE
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It was recommended to me to read the audio for this one. I think I agree. The first two thirds I was kind of not engaged, thinking the story was pretty mundane. The last third was more interesting- the clash of family drama, question of wealth and morality. A book to tell you, family is family.
Overall I thought it was okay. I feel like it was just starting to get going at the ending. It spent a lot of time building up backgrounds for characters, but not a lot on the conflict and really delving as deep as it seemed to want to. I did appreciate the issues brought up: generational wealth, race, families. But I'm not sure it reached the peak of bringing anything new to the dialogue or in a different way.
Overall I thought it was okay. I feel like it was just starting to get going at the ending. It spent a lot of time building up backgrounds for characters, but not a lot on the conflict and really delving as deep as it seemed to want to. I did appreciate the issues brought up: generational wealth, race, families. But I'm not sure it reached the peak of bringing anything new to the dialogue or in a different way.
A gushy-family-drama-easy-listen/read sort of novel, but couldn’t really grasp the author’s purpose, a true occasion, or any sort of depth/meaning. Would suggest to others as a shallow beach read where the resolution (?) is simply characters suddenly “changing” and wanting to be “good” people (!!). Certainly nothing to write home about, but a nice break from some heavier novels.
I really liked the concept of this book, but unfortunately the execution was a little too preachy. more show, less tell next time please
There was no real story arc but I enjoyed taking my time with this one, immersing myself into the lives of members of a very wealthy, eccentric family.
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
In a feature titled “What Book Should You Read Next?” the New York Times recommended Pineapple Street if you’d “like a fizzy novel of manners,” just the ticket when I was recovering from Covid. I liked getting a behind-the-scenes peek at the way an upper-one-percent family in Brooklyn Heights lives as much as I also enjoyed feeling judgy about the excesses they take for granted. Two beats after accusing her mother of being “a giant elitist snob,” young Georgiana rushes off, explaining, “Oh no! I left my Cartier bracelet in Lena’s BMW and she’s leaving soon for her grandmother’s house in Southampton!”
What entitled me to such judgment? My sympathy for the middle-class young woman who marries into the family. Sasha could be me! Completely out of my depth when it came to creating a tablescape for a dinner party and putting together appropriate outfits for different social occasions. (At her in-laws’ housewarming party Sasha is mistaken for a maid because she inadvertently dressed like one.) How my heart goes out to her when no matter how hard she tries, her two sisters-in-law Darley and Georgiana persist in calling her a gold digger behind her back. Except against all odds the two sisters gradually end up winning my sympathy too, and Jenny Jackson manages to bring her fizzy novel to a most satisfying conclusion.
What entitled me to such judgment? My sympathy for the middle-class young woman who marries into the family. Sasha could be me! Completely out of my depth when it came to creating a tablescape for a dinner party and putting together appropriate outfits for different social occasions. (At her in-laws’ housewarming party Sasha is mistaken for a maid because she inadvertently dressed like one.) How my heart goes out to her when no matter how hard she tries, her two sisters-in-law Darley and Georgiana persist in calling her a gold digger behind her back. Except against all odds the two sisters gradually end up winning my sympathy too, and Jenny Jackson manages to bring her fizzy novel to a most satisfying conclusion.
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes