Scan barcode
A review by nancyadelman
Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler
1.0
I was somehow under the impression that this was a memoir, a nonfiction account of being a waitress in NYC. This book was not what I was expecting, and not in a good way. Firstly, it's a work of fiction about being a waitress in NYC. And it's written mostly in first-person POV, with some jaunts into 2nd person.
The character development is nil. It took nearly 100 pages for me to learn the main character's last name, and even then, all I really know about her is that she's from the midwest, was a coffee barista and a Lit major now working in a restaurant that I'm not sure was ever given a name. Outside of the restaurant, the characters do not exist. There is no outside life. Other characters come and go and there is little to zero detail to be able to tell one character from the next.
Really, most of the first 100 pages anyway, is about wines, grapes, and oysters. As I'm not into wines or oysters, I didn't have much of a point of reference. This book is good if you're into fine foods and wine; if you have just a passing interest in it, you probably will like this book about as much as I did, which is to say NOT.
The character development is nil. It took nearly 100 pages for me to learn the main character's last name, and even then, all I really know about her is that she's from the midwest, was a coffee barista and a Lit major now working in a restaurant that I'm not sure was ever given a name. Outside of the restaurant, the characters do not exist. There is no outside life. Other characters come and go and there is little to zero detail to be able to tell one character from the next.
Really, most of the first 100 pages anyway, is about wines, grapes, and oysters. As I'm not into wines or oysters, I didn't have much of a point of reference. This book is good if you're into fine foods and wine; if you have just a passing interest in it, you probably will like this book about as much as I did, which is to say NOT.