“It’s always tempting to lose yourself with someone who’s maybe lost themselves.” – Angela Chase, My So-Called Life.
You have to like a book that quotes My So-Called Life, and if you don’t know what that is – go find the DVDs.
The thing is I am a character reader, I find it hard to like a book if I don’t like the main character. And Isabel is completely unlikable. You don’t even have enough empathy to give her a pass, but she is completely and utterly unlikable. A trait she is completely aware of and cultivates. She has gone from bullied to bully, and prides herself on being the Queen of Mean. The way I see it, school os like one of those documentaries on the Discovery Channel. It’s maul or be mauled.
At times I had to put this book down because Isabel is just horrible.
So why keep reading?
Because it is Sarra Manning, because I loved Guitar Girl (and Molly has a cameo), because despite not liking Isabel, I found myself rooting for her and wondering when she was going to figure it out, because whatever happened it had to be horrible (and this may be where the ending may have let me down, not sure yet.)
And despite her nastiness, Isabel can be really funny. I mean, God, would it have killed Henry James to use a comma, or like, a period occasionally? Who hasn’t thought that upon trying to read Henry James.
And then there is Smith and maybe making love was the same as being in love. It isn’t. And that will be just one of the many lessons Isabel learns, because it turns out she doesn’t really like being the Queen of Mean, and Smith gives her a chance to learn that.
So I have treated myself after reading Nikolai’s Fortune (which had some of the most fertile women in literature – they were always getting pregnant) and now I have to read for a review. But first I might try to watch a few episodes of Heroes – is it worth watching?
I promise a non chick lit post next time – really.
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