dream on

Just finished reading The Man of My Dreams by Curtis Sittenfield who wrote Prep and I'm just not sure how I felt about it. I really wanted to like but I just felt like it was lacking some crucial element. The novel follows protagonist Hannah as she spends about a decade and half trying to "find the answers to love's most bewildering questions," as the inside jacket so delicately put it. It was really interesting seeing how Hannah's relationships with her abusive father, perfect sister and flighty cousin, among others, created the foundation of her experiences with others. I found Hannah's interactions with her not quite unrequited crush to be the most poignant scenes mostly because most of us know what it's like to have that awkward "more than friends because we like each other but things are just weird" kinda deal going on.

That being said, though, I just really don't like Sittenfield's style and that totally influenced how I felt about the whole book. I know that's a personal problem but I just really feel like her writing is just so clinical and lacking in personality. I can't ever feel close to her characters because they just seem so bland; sometimes I feel like her secondary characters have more depth than the main ones. She does have another book out so I'll give her one more try before I totally scratch her off my list. It was a nice and quick read, though, perfect to take to the pool or beach because it doesn't require too much focus.

Any suggestions on what to read next? I'm open to anything!

over and over again

IF ONE CANNOT ENJOY READING A BOOK OVER AND OVER AGAIN, THERE IS NO USE IN READING IT AT ALL

                                      - OSCAR WILDE

what have you guys read lately?

what a doll

Confession: I am a huge book worm. I was one of those kids who thought library time was the best part of the week and would stagger down the hallways with a stack of books as tall as I was. Even in college, where asking students to read for fun is the same as asking us to give up Thirsty Thursdays, I was one of the few people I knew who actually made time for fun reading...and by "made time," I really mean that I put off my actual work. Summer obviously frees up so much more time and lets me explore so many new books. I actually just finished reading Valley of the Dolls the other day and I completely loved it! Without giving away too much, the story follows three friends from their early twenties to their mid-to-late thirties as they learn to navigate life in New York City, fall in love, become Broadway stars, get married and deal with their own personal demons. The "dolls" in the title actually refers to sleeping pills that all of the characters end up using or misusing at some point throughout the novel. The characters were all super easy to relate to which I was really surprised about considering the story is set in the late 1940s! Seriously, I never really thought of drug abuse, abortion or lesbian love affairs as something that happened back in those days so it was a really interesting read. It was also kind of thick but I got so involved with Anne, Neely and Jennifer that it was almost impossible to to put down.

What books are you guys reading this summer? I'd love to get suggestions for new things to read!