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fihli 's review for:
The Bookish Life of Nina Hill
by Abbi Waxman
2 stars
The Bookish Life of Nina Hill is your typical contemporary fiction. It is about a socially awkward, bookish woman who is forced out of her comfort zone because of some unlikely event and who also falls for a guy she previously disliked (but who, as she finds out, has more in common with her than she previously thought).
So it really doesn't win any awards for originality. I don't read that much contemporary fiction, but this has basically the same plot as any of the other contemporary fiction I've read lately, like this or this or this.
The writing is decentbut not note-worthy in any way, I laughed out loud a couple of times. The plot was pretty lackluster, and the story just stops abruptly, like in the other examples I listed.
It isn't as problematic as two of the other three books I've linked, and the main character is certainly not nearly as unlikable and I probably would have rated this higher, but I'm seriously over this same old plot.
My main issue with TBLoNH though is how unrelatable Nina is. I don't know what other reviewers have been smoking, but Nina is the most unrelatable character I've read in a long time. She is pretty (so much so, that at least three different characters comment on how good-looking she is on three different occasions) who dates a model-handsome guy (who also has at least three of four people notice how good he looks) and who doesn't stop pursuing her, despite her rejecting him and not showing any interest in him multiple time (but not in a creepy way, because he is also understanding and caring and gives Nina the space that she needs).
Nina is introverted and shy and socially awkward and ineptthough certainly not as much as Eleanor Olpihant, for example who obsessively plans out her entire life and who is completely inflexible. She is also has some pretty serious anxiety. But! But despite all that she has a huge friend circle and is immediately liked by everyone and likes everyone. For example, she is close with almost her family almost immediately.
The author tries to make her more relatable - like making her imagine her dialogue with her cat, making Nina make occasionally inappropriate (read: rude and sometimes very mean) comments or paying the necessary tribute to Harry Potter but she fails miserably.
Also, the main character, a straight, white woman, seems to view her nephew, a gay man, more like an accessory than a person, so that's, uh, cool, I guess. Because white women treating gay men like objects isn't problematic and stuff. Especially since Peter is one giant walking chliché.
Tl;dr: Honestly, I would only recommend this to someone who hasn't read much and not much contemporary fiction in their lives. For everyone else: skip this one, you won't miss out by not reading it.
The Bookish Life of Nina Hill is your typical contemporary fiction. It is about a socially awkward, bookish woman who is forced out of her comfort zone because of some unlikely event and who also falls for a guy she previously disliked (but who, as she finds out, has more in common with her than she previously thought).
So it really doesn't win any awards for originality. I don't read that much contemporary fiction, but this has basically the same plot as any of the other contemporary fiction I've read lately, like this or this or this.
The writing is decent
It isn't as problematic as two of the other three books I've linked, and the main character is certainly not nearly as unlikable and I probably would have rated this higher, but I'm seriously over this same old plot.
My main issue with TBLoNH though is how unrelatable Nina is. I don't know what other reviewers have been smoking, but Nina is the most unrelatable character I've read in a long time. She is pretty (so much so, that at least three different characters comment on how good-looking she is on three different occasions) who dates a model-handsome guy (who also has at least three of four people notice how good he looks) and who doesn't stop pursuing her, despite her rejecting him and not showing any interest in him multiple time (but not in a creepy way, because he is also understanding and caring and gives Nina the space that she needs).
Nina is introverted and shy and socially awkward and inept
The author tries to make her more relatable - like making her imagine her dialogue with her cat, making Nina make occasionally inappropriate (read: rude and sometimes very mean) comments or paying the necessary tribute to Harry Potter
Spoiler
as did the other books I linked, because god-forbid a contemporary book doesn't mention Harry Potter. I already ranted enough about this in my review of Leah on the Offbeat and The Unhoenymooners though, so I won't say more hereAlso, the main character, a straight, white woman, seems to view her nephew, a gay man, more like an accessory than a person, so that's, uh, cool, I guess. Because white women treating gay men like objects isn't problematic and stuff. Especially since Peter is one giant walking chliché.
Tl;dr: Honestly, I would only recommend this to someone who hasn't read much and not much contemporary fiction in their lives. For everyone else: skip this one, you won't miss out by not reading it.