May 20, 2008 10:41 AM
BOOK NEWS: The Beach House
Jane Green's novels are a bit of a hit or miss with me. I enjoyed Jemima J, Babyville and Bookends but disliked Straight Talking and Mr.Maybe. I do like the sound of her new one though.
Coming out in June, The Beach House centres on Nan, a sixty five year old with a reputation in Nantucket for being a bit crazy. She skinny dips in her neighbour's pools when they are away and takes their flowers. She lives alone in her beach house, but when she learns her money is dwindling she decides to take in lodgers for the summer. The house is filled with noise, laughter and tears, her son returns, then an unexpected visitor shows up, turning their lives upside down...
Related posts: Jane Green archives | Second Chance | Life Swap
Posted by Helen Redfern on May 20, 2008 in Book News, Jane Green | Permalink | Comments (3)
April 29, 2008 11:10 AM
HELEN'S HEROINES: Jemima Jones
Helen Redfern's weekly column on the fictional females she loves...
Jemima J is a controversial heroine. The book by Jane Green is either loved or hated here on Trashionista with the Yay or Nay Wednesday post (amongst others) showing some strong yays and some equally strong nays. Some find it inspiring, others dislike the disjointed style of writing, the flitting between first and third person, lack of endearing characters other than Jemima and the romantic interest being, shall we say, shallow.
I have stated on this site myself that Jemima J is one of my favourite chick lit books of all time. In my twenties I read it through often, inspired by her determination and complete change in her life. It has to be said though that on reading it through again today, with eyes that have been opened somewhat with experience I can understand the reasons behind the dislikes. I even agree with some of them. My opinion of Jemima the character though has not changed.
Jemima Jones is a large girl. Her first words on opening the book are ‘God, I wish I were thin’. She wishes this to occur instantaneously, perhaps with a mild case of gastroenteritis, not life threatening but enough to make the stones melt away quickly, as she still likes her food. Lots of it.
Even though Jemima herself defines herself by her size, I won’t. She is a journalist, she’s a fantastic writer but somehow can’t get past the Top Tips column for the Kilburn Herald. She has a great sense of humour, a pretty face and is a good friend. She is also lonely, has no confidence but I feel allows her size to get in the way of promotion. She feels hefty in her own head and therefore thinks everyone else is thinking it. Each time she goes to the editor to ask for a promotion to feature writer he says maybe but nothing ever happens. Yet when her more confident thin friend goes for it she is promoted, even though she can’t write for toffee. I don’t think that her size was the issue. It was Jemima's lack of confidence and self esteem (‘why would Geraldine want to befriend someone like me’) and as we read on this becomes more and more apparent. She turns to food for comfort whilst looking at thin models in magazines.
Her editor sends Jemima and Ben (her secret crush) on an internet course and soon Jemima is cruising the internet, immersing herself in it. So much so that she joins a chat room and starts to chat to a man from LA called Brad. He sends her a photograph and she is smitten. Thanks to Photoshop she sends one back of her looking seven stone less. Seeing that photo shows Jemima how beautiful she is underneath the layers of fat and she joins a gym, eats less, if anything at all, and begins a drastic makeover of herself.
On going to LA, she eventually finds out Brad is not all he seems and through looking at some pictures of overweight women who are proud of their body she realises a few things. She still has low self esteem even though she has lost weight. She should have been proud of how she looked before. Being thin has not made her happy. If anything she is less happy than when she was fat. She states, ‘I haven’t felt myself since I lost weight.’
It isn’t the weight loss that I found so inspiring about Jemima though that is in fact amazing (and in three months dangerous and surely not to be advised). The weight loss started a chain of events. Her determination and strong willpower is one of the reasons I am featuring her today. It gave her confidence, after all it takes guts to fly to L.A when you’re secure in a routine and panic about anything outside of it. Gradually though, she starts to learn about herself, piecing things together until she realises it wasn’t her body that needed to change, but the way she perceived herself.
Posted by Aigua Media on April 29, 2008 in Helen's Heroines, Jane Green | Permalink | Comments (7)
March 18, 2008 12:25 PM
Remember when we asked if chick lit was bad for your love life...?
Well, it's not just us! Look!
Mr. Right . . . is Stuck in Traffic is a one hour documentary that investigates the impact "chick flicks" and "chick lit" have on real-life love. Using humorous re-enactments, film clips, interviews, animation and social experiments we'll explore whether chick culture is harmless fun or a ruthless relationship saboteur.
Best-selling authors Marian Keyes (Anybody Out There?) and Jane Green (Second Chance), relationship expert Dr. Michelle (The Today Show & Tyra) and many others will share their thoughts on nasty cases of "inflated expectations" and possible cures for this pop culture pandemic.
It's apparently currently in post-production. I'll keep a look out for it and let you know if I ever get to see it (and of course, feel free to tell us all about it if you see it first).
[via Canada.com]
Posted by Keris on March 18, 2008 in Jane Green, Marian Keyes, Movie News | Permalink | Comments (1)
July 24, 2007 1:47 PM
BOOK REVIEW: Second Chance by Jane Green
It's funny, I mentioned in the introduction to our interview with Jane Green that she's one of the most divisive chick lit authors: you either love her or hate her. Um, except that I didn't love her or hate her. I hated Straight Talking and loved Bookends and wasn't that fussed on Babyville. So I guess that would put me in the "meh" category. But still I thought I had a strong sense of what Jane Green's novels were like and I felt (without having read most of them...) that I didn't like them (which, yes, I now appreciate was stupid, but these things happen). So I approached Second Chance with trepidation...
When Tom is killed in a terrorist attack, his old school friends (who, over the years, haven't kept in touch with each other, but did all keep in touch with Tom) meet for his memorial service and find themselves, for various reasons, enjoying being back in each other's lives again. Holly is stuck in a loveless marriage, but finds herself becoming attracted to Tom's brother, Will. Paul and Anna have been trying to have a baby, but with cycle after cycle of IVF failing, are beginning to become disheartened. Alcoholic actress Saffron is having an affair with a married Hollywood superstar. Olivia is trying to get back on her feet after the end of the relationship she assumed was forever. Plus, of course, they've all got their grief and shock at losing Tom to deal with.
You probably won't be surprised to hear that I was surprised at how much I enjoyed Second Chance. Funnily enough, since Jane Green was one of the original chick litters, it's much more "women's fiction" than chick lit (is this inevitable as chick lit authors get older, married and have children? Probably). The characters are fairly stereotypical, but they're also believable and warm, particularly Holly whose story is more central than the others - I really liked her.
One complaint would be that all (or at least most) of the characters call each other "my darling". Doesn't matter if they're British, American or Swedish, it's all "my darling" all the time. (Plus there was the small matter of Holly - who lives in the UK - going off to Barnes & Noble, which we don't have in the UK...)
But that's just nitpicking, really. I found that the more I read Second Chance, the more I wanted to spend time with these character, the more I wanted everything to work out for them, and the more I realised how wrong I'd been about Jane Green.
Remember those adverts - "You know more Crowded House songs than you think you do"? You might find you like Jane Green more than you thought you would. Give her a second chance. (God, I didn't even plan that - I'm brilliant!)
Rating: 4/5
Like this? Try 21 Dream Street by Lisa Jewell
Posted by Keris on July 24, 2007 in British Authors, Jane Green, Rating: 4/5, Recent Release | Permalink | Comments (4)
July 11, 2007 11:25 AM
AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Jane Green
Jane Green is arguably the most controversial and divisive of chick lit authors (closely followed by Adele Parks) - you either love her or you hate her. If you love her, you'll be happy because she's answered our author interview questions. If you hate her, look away now!
Please describe your latest book in 15 words or fewer:
Chick lit turns 40 – midlife crises, infertility, addiction, divorce: warm witty take on friendships.
Where do you like to write your books (in bed, a coffee shop, an office)?
Bed sounds wonderful – the one time I tried to write in bed was when I was put on bed rest, pregnant with the twins, but sadly the medication I was on to stop early contractions made me jumpy as hell, and I couldn't concentrate on anything. I write all my books at the local library – I love having a routine, having somewhere to go every day, and it makes me feel very much part of the world which I think is vital for a chick lit writer – the whole appeal of chick lit is in its realism and observation.
Your favourite chick-lit book?
I'm not entirely sure if it's chick lit, (although I'm never entirely sure what is chick lit these days) but I adored Good Grief by Lolly Winston. Anything by Marian Keyes is a win with me, and particularly Rachel's Holiday, and (forgive me, Jonathan), The Book of Joe by Jonathan Tropper.
Your favourite female heroine (if different from above!), and why?
I can barely remember what day it is today, let alone the names of heroines from favourite books, and I feel like I ought to say someone like Elizabeth Bennet from Pride and Prejudice, but that feels horribly pretentious. I'm afraid, as a frantic mother of four who left her memory retention capabilities somewhere on a birthing table a few years ago, I'm going to have to pass on that question.
What tips would you give to any of our readers who want to become writers?
Firstly, write what you know, especially in chick lit. I always think that part of the defining factor of chick lit is that it is very real, and it has an emotional honesty that resonates with the reader, and it's so much easier to convey those emotions when you know what you are talking about. Secondly, finish what you're writing. I think the biggest difference between me and the hundreds of aspiring writers I meet, is that, even when it feels impossible, I fight that good old writers block and finish the book. Thirdly, get an agent and don't pay any money to independent editors or self-publishers.
What are you reading at the moment?
The Whole World Over by Julia Glass – just started it and loving it.
What are you working on now? (If you can give us a hint!)
Am currently working on finding the time to start writing the new
novel, although in truth am hoping to be writing next week. This time
I'm attempting a bit of a mystery – I'm tempted by the idea of a more
evolved storyline, and I think it will again be set in my fictitious
suburban town of Highfield, Connecticut.
What question have you never been asked in an interview, but think you should have been? (Tell us the question and answer it too, if you like!)
I can't think of what I should have been asked, but my all-time
favourite question came at a book reading when someone put her hand up
and asked, 'who are you wearing?' As something of a clothes/accessories
junkie, I always read that page in the New York Times where they stop
someone on the street and talk about their clothes, and imagine what I
would say, so it was hysterically funny to be asked, in all
seriousness, 'who' I was wearing. I did quite well that night too – I
had a mix of Anthropologie, JCrew and Jimmy Choo. (Today sadly, it's
Gap, Costco Capri pants – glamorous? Moi? Paint-spattered blue crocs
and my never-removed Claddagh ring given to me on my birthday by my
love).
Thanks, Jane. Jane's new novel, Second Chance, is out now and will be reviewed here soon.
Posted by Keris on July 11, 2007 in British Authors, Interviews, Jane Green | Permalink | Comments (1)
February 27, 2007 9:30 AM
Jennifer Weiner and Jane Green on Martha Stewart
You can watch Jennifer Weiner and Jane Green's Martha Stewart interview here. But because we're a full service blog, I transcribed the bit about the chick lit label.
Jane: It was more problematic for me in the beginning. What is a bigger problem for me is the misconception about chick lit. I think when people hear chick lit they think it's a fluffy novel about a single girl in her 20s looking for Mr Right with designer handbags ...
Jennifer: Not that there's anything wrong with that! I do think it's sad to say that there are still some very silly people who like to judge books by their covers and they see a little pink and they see a sassy handbag and they think stupid, brainless, candyfloss, who cares? There's more going on that that--
Martha: Who cares? Only millions and millions and millions of readers ...
You're not wrong, Martha!
Related post: Marian Keyes on The Weekender
Posted by Keris on February 27, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, British Authors, Jane Green, Television | Permalink | Comments (0)
January 4, 2007 12:39 PM
THURSDAY THREE: "Torn between two lovers ...
... feelin' like a fool, lovin' both of you is breakin' all the rules." Sorry, got a bit carried away with an oldie there. Chick lit is often criticised for being all about the heroine finding a man. And that's rubbish. Sometimes she finds two men and then has to choose between them!
My first pick of course has to be Bridget Jones’s Diary.* Daniel or Mark, Mark or Daniel? Who will she choose? (Indeed, who did she choose?) To begin with Bridget was attracted to her sexy but naughty boss over the much more reliable (yet equally sexy) Mark Darcy. She picked Mark, but then Daniel came back on the scene ...
* I was surprised to see we’ve only reviewed the film, not the book - but you’ve all read it anyway, haven’t you?
Janet Evanovich’s One for the Money is the first in the Stephanie Plum series (which has now reached Twelve Sharp). Along with introducing us to Stephanie, her wardrobe of spandex shorts, her pet hamster Rex and her highly dysfunctional family, we also meet Ranger, a fellow bounty hunter, and Joe Morelli, Stephanie’s first love. And, yes, eleven books and countless adventures and near-death experiences later, Stephanie is still trying to choose between them.
What will the third book be? Carry on over the cut to find out.
Jane Green’s Mr Maybe features Libby who is desperate to find a suitable man. She's not fussy, just as long as he's drop dead gorgeous, filthy rich, owns a large house and drives a flashy car. But then she meets Nick. He’s gorgeous enough - and he makes her laugh - but he's dirt poor. Just as she's beginning to despair, Ed walks in and it seems to Libby that her prayers have been answered. He ticks every box on her list ... and so what if he has a moustache - she can cope with that can't she? The story centres around Libby's relationships with the two men, and her struggle to decide on what actually matters in making a successful relationship.
Posted by Keris on January 4, 2007 in American Authors, Book related, British Authors, Debut Novels, Jane Green, Modern Fiction, Series, Tuesday Three | Permalink | Comments (3)
