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A review by missbryden
Pies & Prejudice by Heather Vogel Frederick
3.0
I like the visit to England and the exchange with English people.
I think Cassidy’s parts are the most relatable (despite her being the jock and not the book nerd girl) and absorbing of the girls’ stories.
On this 2020 random reread I noticed more that the others, both mothers and daughters, etc, seem too typical, which I had noticed in the last book of the series. As part of that I find them not really friendly to the odd duck characters, namely Rupert Loomis in this book (and Kevin Mullins still), as much as they disavow the queen bee/mean girl type characters, they’re not on the flip side all that nice to or supportive to difference (aside from Emma backing up the classmate who’s wearing a headscarf and being bullied by Annabelle). I see this with Megan, too, and the fashion mocking.
And those Queen Bees, because they’re bullies, apparently makes them deserving of whatever mocking, etc they in turn get. The parents don’t seem much better, which I guess on one hand is realistic - the children learn behavior from their parents - but like when Emma’s mother says of Rupert, that he hasn’t grown into himself yet, Emma’s narration translates that as being mom code for he’s just a dweeb or something. It also seems like a case of, considering the character’s own teenage son is the handsome jock but also history and good grades guy - they don’t understand teenage awkwardness. Emma’s still the book nerd but seems to have left her awkwardness behind in middle school, and she’s the first one with a boyfriend (which I suppose does smash a stereotype). Another thing, is the language - disclaimer, I didn’t go to school with other teenagers so I don’t really know what “normal” is, but the writing makes me think the author is perhaps going back to her own youth, more so than knowing contemporary teenage girls. I also find the parents too stereotyped: Mrs. Wong is the activist and vegan which translates to being a bad cook and drawing attention to herself in an embarrassing way (to the teenagers). While Mrs. Sinclair-Kincaid (sp? Cassidy’s mother) is a former model and apparently such a domestic goddess that she gets to have a tv show. Mr. Hawthorne as a writer is not being a great role model on making fun of your friends and acquaintances and putting it into print. Also, Becca is in the book club now (and has been, since near the beginning) and yet doesn’t get a share of the chapters to narrate and is still the flat former Queen Bee boy crazy, makeup and clothes obsessed cheerleader. And apparently every girl has to be matched up with a boy - cause how could you do an ode to Pride and Prejudice without that? (I say that with some sarcasm)
To be fair, though, I think I’m asking too much (and I do like reading this book) - I’m not the target audience, I’ve read all of Jane Austen (book nerd girl, like Emma in that point), I’ve lived in England before (for roughly the same amount of time as the Hawthornes), so things that seem obvious to me are not so to all. Plus I’d still love to go live in a historical little cottage, take walks by a canal path, and go to a Regency ball at a grand manor (though I’d prefer if it were Victorian).
my Pinterest board of references
I think Cassidy’s parts are the most relatable (despite her being the jock and not the book nerd girl) and absorbing of the girls’ stories.
On this 2020 random reread I noticed more that the others, both mothers and daughters, etc, seem too typical, which I had noticed in the last book of the series. As part of that I find them not really friendly to the odd duck characters, namely Rupert Loomis in this book (and Kevin Mullins still), as much as they disavow the queen bee/mean girl type characters, they’re not on the flip side all that nice to or supportive to difference (aside from Emma backing up the classmate who’s wearing a headscarf and being bullied by Annabelle). I see this with Megan, too, and the fashion mocking.
And those Queen Bees, because they’re bullies, apparently makes them deserving of whatever mocking, etc they in turn get. The parents don’t seem much better, which I guess on one hand is realistic - the children learn behavior from their parents - but like when Emma’s mother says of Rupert, that he hasn’t grown into himself yet, Emma’s narration translates that as being mom code for he’s just a dweeb or something. It also seems like a case of, considering the character’s own teenage son is the handsome jock but also history and good grades guy - they don’t understand teenage awkwardness. Emma’s still the book nerd but seems to have left her awkwardness behind in middle school, and she’s the first one with a boyfriend (which I suppose does smash a stereotype). Another thing, is the language - disclaimer, I didn’t go to school with other teenagers so I don’t really know what “normal” is, but the writing makes me think the author is perhaps going back to her own youth, more so than knowing contemporary teenage girls. I also find the parents too stereotyped: Mrs. Wong is the activist and vegan which translates to being a bad cook and drawing attention to herself in an embarrassing way (to the teenagers). While Mrs. Sinclair-Kincaid (sp? Cassidy’s mother) is a former model and apparently such a domestic goddess that she gets to have a tv show. Mr. Hawthorne as a writer is not being a great role model on making fun of your friends and acquaintances and putting it into print. Also, Becca is in the book club now (and has been, since near the beginning) and yet doesn’t get a share of the chapters to narrate and is still the flat former Queen Bee boy crazy, makeup and clothes obsessed cheerleader. And apparently every girl has to be matched up with a boy - cause how could you do an ode to Pride and Prejudice without that? (I say that with some sarcasm)
To be fair, though, I think I’m asking too much (and I do like reading this book) - I’m not the target audience, I’ve read all of Jane Austen (book nerd girl, like Emma in that point), I’ve lived in England before (for roughly the same amount of time as the Hawthornes), so things that seem obvious to me are not so to all. Plus I’d still love to go live in a historical little cottage, take walks by a canal path, and go to a Regency ball at a grand manor (though I’d prefer if it were Victorian).
my Pinterest board of references