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3.42 AVERAGE
3.42 AVERAGE
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
A nice & neat ending to the book, however, the story did not captivate me as I had hoped.
I really can't figure out if Straub is satirizing insufferable hipsters suffering from mid-life crises or if the reader is actually supposed to sympathize.
Back in the early 1990s, Elizabeth, her husband Andrew, and her best friend Zoe were in a college band with Lydia, who became famous and died young. They've been living off the royalties from the hit song they all wrote together, plus Andrew's WASP family money and Zoe's disco star parents' cash. Now Elizabeth is a real estate agent who choses clients to join her book club and Zoe owns a restaurant with her chef wife (the one character I actually liked). Each couple has a child -- Elizabeth and Andrew a milquetoast 17-year-old son; Zoe and Jane a directionless, wild-child 18-year-old daughter.
Set in the summer of 2014, this plot bounces back and forth from two marriages in possible peril, two horny teens, a neuvo hippie commune down the street, and a bio-pic of the former bandmate which requires permission from the 3 surviving members. This includes granting rights to a supposedly amazing song, so life-altering that women get the lyrics tattoed on their bodies, but all we're actually shown of the song is the chorus, "I will be calm, calm, calm." (The song title "Mistress of Myself" and that chorus are "inspired by" (read: lifted straight out of) Jane Austen.)
So, seriously...is this for real? I rated it based on the earnestness I perceived, but if this is supposed to be a satire along the lines of [b:Where'd You Go, Bernadette|13526165|Where'd You Go, Bernadette|Maria Semple|https://d2arxad8u2l0g7.cloudfront.net/books/1338822317s/13526165.jpg|17626728], I'd have to bump it up another star.
Back in the early 1990s, Elizabeth, her husband Andrew, and her best friend Zoe were in a college band with Lydia, who became famous and died young. They've been living off the royalties from the hit song they all wrote together, plus Andrew's WASP family money and Zoe's disco star parents' cash. Now Elizabeth is a real estate agent who choses clients to join her book club and Zoe owns a restaurant with her chef wife (the one character I actually liked). Each couple has a child -- Elizabeth and Andrew a milquetoast 17-year-old son; Zoe and Jane a directionless, wild-child 18-year-old daughter.
Set in the summer of 2014, this plot bounces back and forth from two marriages in possible peril, two horny teens, a neuvo hippie commune down the street, and a bio-pic of the former bandmate which requires permission from the 3 surviving members. This includes granting rights to a supposedly amazing song, so life-altering that women get the lyrics tattoed on their bodies, but all we're actually shown of the song is the chorus, "I will be calm, calm, calm." (The song title "Mistress of Myself" and that chorus are "inspired by" (read: lifted straight out of) Jane Austen.)
So, seriously...is this for real? I rated it based on the earnestness I perceived, but if this is supposed to be a satire along the lines of [b:Where'd You Go, Bernadette|13526165|Where'd You Go, Bernadette|Maria Semple|https://d2arxad8u2l0g7.cloudfront.net/books/1338822317s/13526165.jpg|17626728], I'd have to bump it up another star.
I used to really love stories set in New York, about families, where the characters are mostly unlikeable and some funny things happen etc etc. I don’t love them anymore unless the writing is remarkable or the things that happen are memorable (preferably both). This was very middle of the road, enjoyable but not special. Might be my version of a beach read.
The book equivalent of talking to relatives you don’t know well, and vaguely remembering their stories.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
this was a fun, cute read that made me miss living in nyc just a bit!
Straub’s stories are not action-packed, but compelling all the same because she draws you into the plot with real, developed characters simply trying to live their lives.
Filled the void of an easy rom-com since there wasn’t too much drama happening. It remind me of the Netflix show, Friends From College minus the funny bits.