A review by lostbuthey
City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert

inspiring 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

4.5

 
City of Gils is a New York Time’s Bestseller about love, friendship, glamour, and sex.

1940: After dropping out of college, nineteen-year-old Vivian is sent to live with her aunt in New York City. During the day, she sews costumes for the musical performances in her aunts' theater called the Lily Playhouse. And at night she and her friend Celia chase trouble from one side of the city to the other. Until a small mistake leads to a scandal that flips her world upside down. 

This book was great. Technically, this could be my entire review, but let’s go a bit more into detail, shall we?

The characters were amazing; lovable, hateable, funny, talented, and sometimes stupid. And that’s what made it interesting. I found Vivian’s character development particularly interesting and relatable. She was young and thought she already knew everything. And when she got older, she realized how wrong she had been. I think this happens to a lot of us. 
The relationships between the different characters and the way they evolved were nicely done. In the end, I was surprised about which relationships lasted and which ones didn’t.
In addition to that, I enjoyed that certain characters were introduced late and certain left early. 
And the last few chapters made me sad. Not only because that part of the story was particularly emotional but also because it was beautifully written.

However, this book is written like one long letter. I personally think it would have been better if this weren’t the case since it is unlikely for someone that old to remember every detail of their life. Furthermore, the narrator [Vivian] kept repeating the name of the woman she was writing to. Now, don’t get me wrong: in some cases, this is fitting, but sometimes it was a bit too much and thus felt repetitive. 

I recommend you read this book if you are intrigued by the glamour of New York City and/or if you are a young woman trying to find your place in this world. But: Be cautious. You might just get lost in this book. 

 
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