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iamhausfrau's review
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
confused_cat's review
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I read the entire book within 3 hours! This is like my first time finishing a novel in one sitting.
I just love the author's writing style (even though I have no idea half of the Jewish terms she uses).
What a fun read.
My only complain is the ending is not satisfying enough.
I just love the author's writing style (even though I have no idea half of the Jewish terms she uses).
What a fun read.
My only complain is the ending is not satisfying enough.
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual content
katykelly's review
4.0
A story about starting over and adolescence, wrapped inside a topical look at a political scandal and how it is affected by gender
Elsewhere, A.J. Fikry - books I've loved by Zevin. This sounded so very different yet just as intriguing.
Aviva Grossman, as a young intern, had an affair with a married congressman. Found it, it was Aviva who bore the brunt of the media attacks. Changing her name and moving away, she has a thriving business and a teenage daughter. Who is about to find out about her mother's past.
A dual story about mother and daughter, about the past and present, 'Jane' shows us her perspective of what happened and just how inaccurate media portrayals can be. Ruby, her daughter, is a bright adolescent who must decide for herself what to believe and how she feels about her family history.
It's well composed and moves nicely between time periods, the idea of blaming women for such affairs a current one, especially as it is also compared in the book to the Bill Clinton/Monica Lewinsky example.
This will be excellent for discussion with teenagers in classes or book groups, and is certainly suitable for adults as well.
I enjoyed the idea of reinvention, and of Aviva/Jane moving on with her life. There are some mysteries to Ruby's story and the story wraps them up nicely just at the close.
With some sexual content, this is best suited to KS3 and above, ideally ages 14 and over.
With thanks to Netgalley for the advance e-copy.
Elsewhere, A.J. Fikry - books I've loved by Zevin. This sounded so very different yet just as intriguing.
Aviva Grossman, as a young intern, had an affair with a married congressman. Found it, it was Aviva who bore the brunt of the media attacks. Changing her name and moving away, she has a thriving business and a teenage daughter. Who is about to find out about her mother's past.
A dual story about mother and daughter, about the past and present, 'Jane' shows us her perspective of what happened and just how inaccurate media portrayals can be. Ruby, her daughter, is a bright adolescent who must decide for herself what to believe and how she feels about her family history.
It's well composed and moves nicely between time periods, the idea of blaming women for such affairs a current one, especially as it is also compared in the book to the Bill Clinton/Monica Lewinsky example.
This will be excellent for discussion with teenagers in classes or book groups, and is certainly suitable for adults as well.
I enjoyed the idea of reinvention, and of Aviva/Jane moving on with her life. There are some mysteries to Ruby's story and the story wraps them up nicely just at the close.
With some sexual content, this is best suited to KS3 and above, ideally ages 14 and over.
With thanks to Netgalley for the advance e-copy.
lbarsk's review
4.0
My friend was kind enough to get me an ARC of this novel, and I thank her for passing it along! Young Jane Young was a fun read that also managed to be tender and sharp -- I've never read anything else by Zevin and this was definitely a great entry point to her work.
In a way this book feels like a spiritual cousin of A Visit from the Goon Squad and Where'd You Go, Bernadette? because of the multiple character voices and the innovative formatting/framing of certain chapters. I especially thought of Bernadette because of the book's thread of mother-daughter relations, though of course this book and that one approach the subject differently and Bernadette is more about satirizing aspects of modern society, etc. Look, any book with Generational Tales Of Interesting Women is bound to be a hit in my eyes!!! And Zevin knocked it out of the park in that respect.
I also liked that the story kept gaining layers as it went on -- like, based on the blurb and the first chapter, you think that the novel is going to play out in x-y-z type of way. But then it doesn't! It twists and turns based on different characters' perspectives, and the biggest twist of all was a really clever one.
So, all in all, I was a big fan. A quick, engrossing read written cleverly with some good depth!
In a way this book feels like a spiritual cousin of A Visit from the Goon Squad and Where'd You Go, Bernadette? because of the multiple character voices and the innovative formatting/framing of certain chapters. I especially thought of Bernadette because of the book's thread of mother-daughter relations, though of course this book and that one approach the subject differently and Bernadette is more about satirizing aspects of modern society, etc. Look, any book with Generational Tales Of Interesting Women is bound to be a hit in my eyes!!! And Zevin knocked it out of the park in that respect.
I also liked that the story kept gaining layers as it went on -- like, based on the blurb and the first chapter, you think that the novel is going to play out in x-y-z type of way. But then it doesn't! It twists and turns based on different characters' perspectives, and the biggest twist of all was a really clever one.
So, all in all, I was a big fan. A quick, engrossing read written cleverly with some good depth!
inthebooknook's review
4.0
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the free copy. All opinions are my own.
I picked up Young Jane Young during a bit of a reading slump and read it in one sitting. I couldn’t put it down. I thought this would be a light, contemporary book, the kind that doesn’t normally appeal to me, but it was so much more. It’s the story of an affair between a married congressman and one of his interns, and the fallout from that affair. I loved the characters and how the book was written from several perspectives. Worth the read!
I picked up Young Jane Young during a bit of a reading slump and read it in one sitting. I couldn’t put it down. I thought this would be a light, contemporary book, the kind that doesn’t normally appeal to me, but it was so much more. It’s the story of an affair between a married congressman and one of his interns, and the fallout from that affair. I loved the characters and how the book was written from several perspectives. Worth the read!
superpraskova's review
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
emilyh33's review
funny
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
kelsiegentry11's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
_elizabeth11_'s review
5.0
Spectacular! I loved all the characters, their growth, their honesty, the story line. Another great novel by Gabrielle Zevin!