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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
Remarkably candid for a 1950s novel. There are some funny scenes as this early-twenties American girl, who's been given a two-year stipend from her uncle, sleeps her way across France, meeting corrupt and vapid people as she slowly changes from girl to young woman.
3.5 stars
A funny, fizzy, charming story of a young American adventuring her way through Paris, with many the romantic and comedic mishap along the way.
A funny, fizzy, charming story of a young American adventuring her way through Paris, with many the romantic and comedic mishap along the way.
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I have to admit that I initially put this on my to-read list because it had "avocado" in the title. I don't think I even really knew what it was about when I bought it but avocados are one of my favourite foods. Really sensible reasons to buy a book.
"The Dud Avocado" is a witty and light-hearted read. It's fanatically visual, and I really don't understand why there hasn't been a film made of it. It's like an Audrey Hepburn film, but instead of being an outsider witnessing the life of the perhaps whimsical character (like Holly Golightly), in this novel you get an in-depth narrative of her life.
Sally is a flighty 21 year old who travels to Paris to try and make it as an actress. She's kind of a stereotypical character who naïvely travels abroad to experience the culture, to try and make it there. Sally is very...she's an interesting character. She's likeable for her naïvety, but you do often wander why she is thinking certain things. She has a string of men that she adores and who adore her throughout the novel; some of them treat her badly, as would be expected from this kind of novel, but she also does her fair share of mistreatment of these men.
I wouldn't say that Sally is entirely likeable. She can be frustrating, but it's very interesting to read from the point of view of a character like her. She's certainly not an original character, but you don't often get to read a first person narrative from the point of view of someone like her. In fact, no one in this book is that likeable, besides perhaps one or two background characters. But somehow it works.
Dundy's writing is very easy to read and enjoyable. She's very descriptive, but not in overwhelming ways; there aren't paragraphs and paragraphs of descriptions about characters or places, but simply sentences here and there which develop them.
"The Dud Avocado" is a witty and light-hearted read. It's fanatically visual, and I really don't understand why there hasn't been a film made of it. It's like an Audrey Hepburn film, but instead of being an outsider witnessing the life of the perhaps whimsical character (like Holly Golightly), in this novel you get an in-depth narrative of her life.
Sally is a flighty 21 year old who travels to Paris to try and make it as an actress. She's kind of a stereotypical character who naïvely travels abroad to experience the culture, to try and make it there. Sally is very...she's an interesting character. She's likeable for her naïvety, but you do often wander why she is thinking certain things. She has a string of men that she adores and who adore her throughout the novel; some of them treat her badly, as would be expected from this kind of novel, but she also does her fair share of mistreatment of these men.
I wouldn't say that Sally is entirely likeable. She can be frustrating, but it's very interesting to read from the point of view of a character like her. She's certainly not an original character, but you don't often get to read a first person narrative from the point of view of someone like her. In fact, no one in this book is that likeable, besides perhaps one or two background characters. But somehow it works.
Dundy's writing is very easy to read and enjoyable. She's very descriptive, but not in overwhelming ways; there aren't paragraphs and paragraphs of descriptions about characters or places, but simply sentences here and there which develop them.
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was an adorably sweet, if not meandering novel. Also home to one of my favourite quotes of all time (which, even in the book, had no real context): “Served me right of course for even thinking these baby gangsters might be queer.”
It had such heart and such real characters, that I didn't mind it had next to no clear or consistent plot. (Obviously, such a novel has to be considered in its time: it certainly is self-indulgent, and I doubt, if it had been published today, would be so well-received). Despite this, Dundy's style is consistent throughout, and displays a clever wit and elegant way with words. And, truly, she is just displaying what it was (and perhaps still is, to some extent) like to be young, naïve and desiring to experience life.
As such, here are some favourite quotes from the book (which, context or not, are equally hilarious and fantastic):
“...most of them were so violently individualistic as to be practically interchangeable” pg.33
“I mean how can Life be so contrary to - never mind Art - just to general information and what’s called Common Knowledge?”p.55
“And I remember a little later wondering why things always turn out to be diametrically opposed to what you expect them to be. It’s no good even trying to predict what this opposite of that, if you see what I mean. If you think this is geometrically impossible all i can say is that you don’t know my life.” pg.57
“‘This isn’t just idle curiosity. It’s difficult to explain, but I just somehow feel that I never really have lived; that I never really will live - exist or whatever - in theses that other people do. It drives me crazy.
I was terribly aware of it all those nights waiting for you in the Ritz bar looking around at what seemed to be real grown-ups lives. I just find everybody else’s life surrounded by plate-glass. I mean I’d like to break through it just once and actually touch one.” pg.61
“With anybody else I know, it would have all ended in a lot of civilised laughter and exchanges of everlasting friendships. But not with me. I may be carping but I don’t seem to be let off anything; if a bad time is to be had, i have it.”pg.62-63
“To my chagrin, I found all my clothes stubbornly resisting the desired neutrality, splitting themselves resolutely up into three categories: Tyrolean Peasant, Bar Girl, and Dreaded Librarian. It looked hopeless.” pg.65
“I had alway assumed that a certain sense of identity would be strong enough within me to communicate itself to others. I now saw this assumption was fake.” pg.69
“By the time he waltzed into a heady tirade on the saintliness of allowing bygones to be bygones and finished up with a passionate proposal of eternal devotion (along strictly platonic lines, I was pretty well softened up” (pg.74)
“You could see that his two weeks in Europe spent talking mostly to his silent, adoring wife has crystallised a lot of ideas that he was just bursting to try out on a larger group. Presidential candidates, Senatorial investigations, juvenile delinquency - he held firm views on all of them, views which needless to say he was entirely willing to share with one and all, and if the thought ever struck him that there might possibly be people at the table who were uninformed or even just plain uninterested in these peculiarly American problems, it never slowed the steady flow nor quelled the mighty roar.” pg.86
“He flashed me a brilliant traitors smile; a gash of teeth and two wiggles of his eyebrows. I had to laugh. It was the first time that evening that I hadn’t felt like killing myself.” pg.87
“What kept me frown there in a despair composed equally of impotent rage and a strange reluctance to shatter some exquisite but invisible structure, neither the shape nor purpose of which was apparent to me? In a word, what the hell was going on?” pg.90
“So Hell was other people, was it?” pg.92
“At first I had him [Larry] sliced like a pie into thirds: one-third High Living (Soldier of fortune, gambler, womaniser); one-third Low-living (preoccupation with the ‘real’ world, anti-phoney, anti-tourist, anti-lounge lizard,
pro-student, pro-worker, on elaborate terms of equality with waiters, etc.); and one-third Serious Artist (all the qualities of a good director plus a positive genius for making people do what he wanted them to.)” pg.133
“Now that I’ve been around (hey, hey) I am no longer astonished at the lubricity of these old biddies, but at the time I just couldn’t get over it.” pg.144
“Served me right of course for even thinking these baby gangsters might be queer.” pg.151
“What a world, I thought. Nothing but sex as far as the eye can see.” pg.201
It had such heart and such real characters, that I didn't mind it had next to no clear or consistent plot. (Obviously, such a novel has to be considered in its time: it certainly is self-indulgent, and I doubt, if it had been published today, would be so well-received). Despite this, Dundy's style is consistent throughout, and displays a clever wit and elegant way with words. And, truly, she is just displaying what it was (and perhaps still is, to some extent) like to be young, naïve and desiring to experience life.
As such, here are some favourite quotes from the book (which, context or not, are equally hilarious and fantastic):
“...most of them were so violently individualistic as to be practically interchangeable” pg.33
“I mean how can Life be so contrary to - never mind Art - just to general information and what’s called Common Knowledge?”p.55
“And I remember a little later wondering why things always turn out to be diametrically opposed to what you expect them to be. It’s no good even trying to predict what this opposite of that, if you see what I mean. If you think this is geometrically impossible all i can say is that you don’t know my life.” pg.57
“‘This isn’t just idle curiosity. It’s difficult to explain, but I just somehow feel that I never really have lived; that I never really will live - exist or whatever - in theses that other people do. It drives me crazy.
I was terribly aware of it all those nights waiting for you in the Ritz bar looking around at what seemed to be real grown-ups lives. I just find everybody else’s life surrounded by plate-glass. I mean I’d like to break through it just once and actually touch one.” pg.61
“With anybody else I know, it would have all ended in a lot of civilised laughter and exchanges of everlasting friendships. But not with me. I may be carping but I don’t seem to be let off anything; if a bad time is to be had, i have it.”pg.62-63
“To my chagrin, I found all my clothes stubbornly resisting the desired neutrality, splitting themselves resolutely up into three categories: Tyrolean Peasant, Bar Girl, and Dreaded Librarian. It looked hopeless.” pg.65
“I had alway assumed that a certain sense of identity would be strong enough within me to communicate itself to others. I now saw this assumption was fake.” pg.69
“By the time he waltzed into a heady tirade on the saintliness of allowing bygones to be bygones and finished up with a passionate proposal of eternal devotion (along strictly platonic lines, I was pretty well softened up” (pg.74)
“You could see that his two weeks in Europe spent talking mostly to his silent, adoring wife has crystallised a lot of ideas that he was just bursting to try out on a larger group. Presidential candidates, Senatorial investigations, juvenile delinquency - he held firm views on all of them, views which needless to say he was entirely willing to share with one and all, and if the thought ever struck him that there might possibly be people at the table who were uninformed or even just plain uninterested in these peculiarly American problems, it never slowed the steady flow nor quelled the mighty roar.” pg.86
“He flashed me a brilliant traitors smile; a gash of teeth and two wiggles of his eyebrows. I had to laugh. It was the first time that evening that I hadn’t felt like killing myself.” pg.87
“What kept me frown there in a despair composed equally of impotent rage and a strange reluctance to shatter some exquisite but invisible structure, neither the shape nor purpose of which was apparent to me? In a word, what the hell was going on?” pg.90
“So Hell was other people, was it?” pg.92
“At first I had him [Larry] sliced like a pie into thirds: one-third High Living (Soldier of fortune, gambler, womaniser); one-third Low-living (preoccupation with the ‘real’ world, anti-phoney, anti-tourist, anti-lounge lizard,
pro-student, pro-worker, on elaborate terms of equality with waiters, etc.); and one-third Serious Artist (all the qualities of a good director plus a positive genius for making people do what he wanted them to.)” pg.133
“Now that I’ve been around (hey, hey) I am no longer astonished at the lubricity of these old biddies, but at the time I just couldn’t get over it.” pg.144
“Served me right of course for even thinking these baby gangsters might be queer.” pg.151
“What a world, I thought. Nothing but sex as far as the eye can see.” pg.201
this book is silly, sure, but i really liked how the narrator doesnt give herself away; in her thinking she surprised me all the way. the ending is shit and the dialogue great!
A delightfully funny little book originally published in 1958 about a young woman running away to Paris in the 50s to live the sort of life she thinks a young woman running away to Paris should live. The ending is a little silly, but the writing is witty and fun and absolutely laugh-out-loud-worthy.
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I loved it, start to finish. Sally Jay gorce is an immediately enchanting lead and her attitude to life is one I want to channel in its glamorous ridiculousness. The fact that Dundy makes this objectively hopeless and flighty heroine so relatable and charming is testament to her skill, and the dialogue throughout the book serves to illustrate how witty and sardonic a writer she is.
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated