so-soSorry to be a #camplitsy23 grump but this was not for me. I probably should have bailed, but read on for camp & because I was curious about the romance. I've never been an SNL fan, so maybe the allure of that was lost on me, & the character of Noah felt totally empty & vacuous; a straight woman's wish fulfillment of a smoking hot male celeb with admirable, correct politics who's adept at therapy speak 😴 I couldn't take the character seriously.
batsy I found Sittenfeld's chatty, verbose style grating; I sense that she's going for something Austen-y, but in this novel with the first-person POV it just felt like I had travelled back in time to 2010 reading an overly-long personal essay on Jezebel. I liked elements of Sally's character, & there were little details about her that were endearing & relatable (pooping anxiety when at a lover's house) but it wasn't enough to carry the book for me. 2y
squirrelbrain Looking forward to your responses to our questions…(I think! 🤣) 😘 2y
batsy @squirrelbrain 😂 🙊 2y
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plemmdog I‘ve yet to read Sittenfeld. Any recommendations? 2y
Cuilin When I read the blurb I felt it wasn‘t for me, so I feel relieved now. Thanks for posting 😆 2y
batsy @plemmdog I might not be the right person to answer this 😅 But I read Prep when it came out (mid-2000s I think?) and really enjoyed it then! 2y
batsy @Cuilin My pleasure, thanks for reading since I enjoyed venting maybe a little too much 😂 2y
jlhammar Well, this fellow grump loves this review! 😂 I wouldn't have bothered with this one if not for #CampLitsy23. I had a feeling it wouldn't be for me. It would have been nice to be pleasantly surprised, but it's also gratifying to know yourself as a reader. I think I'm done with Sittenfeld. 2y
batsy @jlhammar Thank you 😁 I nominated this because I found the premise really intriguing, & was interested to see how it would be handled in fiction (hot guy, ordinary girl trope). But Noah is such a bore that any romance or chemistry that it was meant to evoke was a damp squib 😆 I agree though, think I'm done with Sittenfeld. 2y
SamAnne Hah! I love your review. I went in with very low expectations and enjoyed it way more than I expected. I enjoyed the audio as I was running around finishing chores and errands for a big trip. But agree. I am an SNL fan, depending on the season hah! 2y
batsy @SamAnne Thank you! Yeah, I think expectations will alter the experience; mine were perhaps too high. Also, though I'm not a huge SNL fan the bits where she talked about how things worked behind the scenes were perhaps my fave bits. I was nerding out on the details of her working schedule 😆 2y
batsy @SamAnne *work schedule 2y
merelybookish Haha. Grump.away! I also rated it so-so but probably a pan would be more accurate! This book just felt unnecessary. Better romances, books about SNL, and romantic comedy movies all exist! And Noah as wish-fulfillment...SO true! 2y
batsy @merelybookish Ha yes, I was close to giving it a pan! Saved a little by the fact that I didn't mind Sally in small doses. #GrumpsUnite 2y
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