telynor's Full Review: Jennifer Weiner - Good In Bed
After hearing about this one, and seeing it being sent out as a 'hold request' on an almost continual basis where I work, I was bound to check it out sooner or later.
Welcome to the world of Cannie (short for Candace) Shapiro, resident of Philadelphia, and writer at the Inquirer. Her life seems to be in order, she has a career, a manical terrier called Nifkin, and she's broken up with her long time boyfriend, Bruce.
Actually, she told him that she needed a break.
Everything is going along great, until -- of course, there is always an 'until.' Bruce, an aspiring writer himself, turns up in a column in a national magazine called Moxie, entitled, Good In Bed, and poor Cannie's life is turned upside down and sideways.
This is where the novel opens. The article doesn't mention her by name, only as the inital C, and in the words he's written, she feels a deep, bitter betrayal. For Cannie is like most of us women out there in a youth-obsessed, appearance obsessed culture. Her self-worth is shattered with the depiction of her love life for the public to laugh over, and she's heading into the crazy world that some of live in when our boyfriends don't call back, where your appearance determines who you are, and sometimes how the world looks at you.
Because Bruce mentions the deadly phrase, To love a woman of size is an act of courage.
Ladies, and I know some of you will be with me on this, will spot this Bruce as a rotter of the worst sort. He weasels his way through life, and I got the distinct hint that he felt that Cannie ought to be happy with the fact that he notices her at all. I know I lived with that sort of attitude for years.
But when a chance reunion with her ex, and a most unexpected interview with a Hollywood star (the irrepressable Maxi) shoots Cannie into unknown territory, suddenly Bruce becomes very small potatoes indeed. There's Cannie's family for instance, her boss, her friends, and the marvelous Dr. K, all of whom make her life worth the journey to discover.
Told in a first person narrative, at first glance this novel might appear to be nothing more than a glossy read at the beach, or fluff. It's not. It digs down into the psyche of a woman who is both a victim and a winner, and has the power to stir up some pretty strong emotion in the reader. There's something personal in this one, the way that people speak and act, the small bits of everyday life that get tossed in, Bruce's column, the other women (and a few men) that Cannie encounters, and the style.
A slight spoiler here, the last section of the novel is a heartbreaker and drove me to tears. So keep the tissues handy.
For more information about the author, Jennifer Weiner, go to www.jenniferweiner.com, and keep an eye out for her next novel, In Her Shoes.
The Barnes & Noble Review From first-time novelist Jennifer Weiner comes a sharp-witted tale of one woman's struggle to come to terms with her larger-...More at Barnes & Noble.com
Muze: Copyright 1995 - 2008 Muze Inc. For personal non-commercial use only. All rights reserved.
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2008 Shopping.com, Inc.