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A review by ptitirodactyle
Pineapple Street by Jenny Jackson
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.0
I can understand why some people might like this book. Sadly it wasn’t the case for me. I found the characters very one-dimensional. I didn’t really feel like they were real nor did I care enough about them to be invested in the story. Their arcs felt superficial.
Maybe I’m too cynical but I didn’t feel compelled by the rich people become woke narrative. Being a white saviour to feel better about yourself without actually confronting your biases and privilege doesn’t make one a good person.
The book tried to tackle racism and classism as well but it all felt disingenuous. The lower class characters were actually middle class and quite privileged themselves.
I liked the first half of the book especially Georgiana’s hypocrisy calling herself a well-traveled woman while not knowing that the UAE is a country. The second half is where I lost interest.
As it was the author’s debut I would still be interested in reading her future works to see her evolution.
If you want to read a good complexly nuanced book about rich people in New York I would easily recommend Trust by Hernan Diaz.
Maybe I’m too cynical but I didn’t feel compelled by the rich people become woke narrative. Being a white saviour to feel better about yourself without actually confronting your biases and privilege doesn’t make one a good person.
The book tried to tackle racism and classism as well but it all felt disingenuous. The lower class characters were actually middle class and quite privileged themselves.
I liked the first half of the book especially Georgiana’s hypocrisy calling herself a well-traveled woman while not knowing that the UAE is a country. The second half is where I lost interest.
As it was the author’s debut I would still be interested in reading her future works to see her evolution.
If you want to read a good complexly nuanced book about rich people in New York I would easily recommend Trust by Hernan Diaz.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Drug use, Fatphobia, and Infidelity