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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
A while ago I read an article in a magazine in which the author wrote about befriending Dundy at AA meetings in LA and not realizing for the longest time that the sweet little old lady at the meetings was actually an author and the ex-wife of the critic Kenneth Tynan. Dang, I wish I recalled what magazine that was! Anyway, I wrote down the name of Dundy's debut novel The Dud Avacado in my to-read notebook & just the other week decided now was the time to read it.
It's a short book & a quick read. I enjoyed Dundy's descriptions of Paris in the late 50s. Very bongos and beatniks. I kept thinking of that Audrey Hepburn movie Funny Face, when Audrey goes to Paris for that modeling assignment & meets the wacky beatnik.
The book itself is like the main character Sally Jay - entertaining & funny & slightly all over the place. There is not much of a plot - the book follows the adventures of Sally Jay during her year in Paris after college. Men she dates, parties she attends, cafes she hangs out in, odd jobs she does, trips she takes.
I was surprised at how risque the book was, considering it was written & published in the late 50's. Sally Jay has an orgasm in a cafe in the first chapter of the book! In public. She sleeps around, does some nude modeling & nothing horrid befalls her. She is not punished for her sexuality. Because the character is written by a woman? I think so. I don't think a man could have written this character without punishing her in some sense.
Dundy became quite well known for a while after this book came out. In the afterward she talks about all the famous authors who told her wonderful compliments about the book. Hemingway, Gore Vidal, Irwin Shaw etc. Also that her husband Kenneth Tynan became upset that she wrote a best selling, well received novel. So much so that he actually threw a copy of her book out the window during a fight. Talk about no support at home! I now want to read Dundy's memoir - seems like she had a hell of a life. Also in the afterward, she writes about all the people who asked her how much Sally Jay was based on herself. The answer? "All the impulsive, outrageous things my heroine does, I did. All the sensible things she did, I made up." Sounds like her memoir is going to be pretty good.
It's a short book & a quick read. I enjoyed Dundy's descriptions of Paris in the late 50s. Very bongos and beatniks. I kept thinking of that Audrey Hepburn movie Funny Face, when Audrey goes to Paris for that modeling assignment & meets the wacky beatnik.
The book itself is like the main character Sally Jay - entertaining & funny & slightly all over the place. There is not much of a plot - the book follows the adventures of Sally Jay during her year in Paris after college. Men she dates, parties she attends, cafes she hangs out in, odd jobs she does, trips she takes.
I was surprised at how risque the book was, considering it was written & published in the late 50's. Sally Jay has an orgasm in a cafe in the first chapter of the book! In public. She sleeps around, does some nude modeling & nothing horrid befalls her. She is not punished for her sexuality. Because the character is written by a woman? I think so. I don't think a man could have written this character without punishing her in some sense.
Dundy became quite well known for a while after this book came out. In the afterward she talks about all the famous authors who told her wonderful compliments about the book. Hemingway, Gore Vidal, Irwin Shaw etc. Also that her husband Kenneth Tynan became upset that she wrote a best selling, well received novel. So much so that he actually threw a copy of her book out the window during a fight. Talk about no support at home! I now want to read Dundy's memoir - seems like she had a hell of a life. Also in the afterward, she writes about all the people who asked her how much Sally Jay was based on herself. The answer? "All the impulsive, outrageous things my heroine does, I did. All the sensible things she did, I made up." Sounds like her memoir is going to be pretty good.
The whole book felt silly and shallow in a way that was just extremely irritating and not the fun romp through Paris I was expecting.
True literary comfort! So charming and fun, with poignant moments mixed in. I loved the writing style and found this to be a relatable and timeless story!
I thought that this book was okay. I swung a few times from hating the narrator, to not minding her, to just thinking that she was the most privileged, naive thing ever. I did think that the last half of this book was markedly more enjoyable than the first, perhaps because the narrator began to grow up a little bit. Maybe that's the point.
The title of this book may be the most charming title, with the most charming explanation for it buried deep in Part III. I won't go back to reread this book ever, likely, but I'm glad I had a pass at it.
The title of this book may be the most charming title, with the most charming explanation for it buried deep in Part III. I won't go back to reread this book ever, likely, but I'm glad I had a pass at it.
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
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
I adored this book. So fresh and flighty and funny. Anything about ex-pats in Paris is extremely my shit so this felt very specifically for me. I love how this opens with that absurd scene in the cafe with Sally Jay in an evening dress in the middle of the day with her pink hair.
Taken at face value - as a travelogue and coming of age story - this book may be a complete miss for someone. As a matter of fact, a few of the less-than-favorable reviews have put it in the same ranks as privilege tourism novels like "Eat, Pray, Love." (Really? Well, alright then.)
Like I said, at face value, they may be right: in some ways, Sally Jay Gorce is wish fulfillment at its finest - a fortunate American girl who gets to live a life of debauchery in Paris, compliments of her generous uncle, provided as a life lesson. (You know, the sort of "You think running away from your problems and adulthood is the ticket? Well, here IS a ticket, to Paris, and here's money, do what you like and see how you grow tired of it!" lesson. We've all had that, right?)
The thing is, while the premise is based on something that's intangible to most of us out there, it's the narration that turns the entire little spoiled princess experience on its head. Sally Jay is, first of all, a not entirely reliable narrator, and that already makes following her adventure all the more interesting. She's smart, funny, and full of those poetic wry observations that anyone in their early 20s is prone to. Except, she really is clever, and through all her quips and musings comes across the sense that she really doesn't get it at all, and her story is comprised of youthful contradictions and inconsistencies. She's not unlikable because, to me, she's realistic - she is self-involved, rebellious, daring, and often inconsiderate, which sounds just about right for a young woman coming of age in the late 50s, when a lot of rigid morality and sense of decorum was tossed aside by youngsters like itchy winter clothes.
In the end, she comes full circle, figures some things out, and (would you believe it?) gets bored of the freewheeling life she'd led in Paris. But even the lessons she takes away from her extended school of life study abroad aren't simplistic. She is still a little careless, but the carelessness now doesn't follow a formula of what she THOUGHT she should be doing as a young woman - eating everything, drinking til dawn, making love to complete strangers. It has now taken shape as a curiosity about the possibilities her adult life has to offer, and it involves taking new chances.
To me, this was a fantastic, well written read that felt entirely realistic. (Realistic in characters' behavior, not in the actual scenario.) I also enjoyed Dundy's voice that she's crafted for Sally Jay, prosaic and full of puns.
Like I said, at face value, they may be right: in some ways, Sally Jay Gorce is wish fulfillment at its finest - a fortunate American girl who gets to live a life of debauchery in Paris, compliments of her generous uncle, provided as a life lesson. (You know, the sort of "You think running away from your problems and adulthood is the ticket? Well, here IS a ticket, to Paris, and here's money, do what you like and see how you grow tired of it!" lesson. We've all had that, right?)
The thing is, while the premise is based on something that's intangible to most of us out there, it's the narration that turns the entire little spoiled princess experience on its head. Sally Jay is, first of all, a not entirely reliable narrator, and that already makes following her adventure all the more interesting. She's smart, funny, and full of those poetic wry observations that anyone in their early 20s is prone to. Except, she really is clever, and through all her quips and musings comes across the sense that she really doesn't get it at all, and her story is comprised of youthful contradictions and inconsistencies. She's not unlikable because, to me, she's realistic - she is self-involved, rebellious, daring, and often inconsiderate, which sounds just about right for a young woman coming of age in the late 50s, when a lot of rigid morality and sense of decorum was tossed aside by youngsters like itchy winter clothes.
In the end, she comes full circle, figures some things out, and (would you believe it?) gets bored of the freewheeling life she'd led in Paris. But even the lessons she takes away from her extended school of life study abroad aren't simplistic. She is still a little careless, but the carelessness now doesn't follow a formula of what she THOUGHT she should be doing as a young woman - eating everything, drinking til dawn, making love to complete strangers. It has now taken shape as a curiosity about the possibilities her adult life has to offer, and it involves taking new chances.
To me, this was a fantastic, well written read that felt entirely realistic. (Realistic in characters' behavior, not in the actual scenario.) I also enjoyed Dundy's voice that she's crafted for Sally Jay, prosaic and full of puns.
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
I just could not like Sally Jay and most of the other characters, so struggled with this book. Although the end was better and finished nicely.