utter randomonium

In Her Shoes by Jennifer Weiner: This is my second Weiner book (the first being the popular Good In Bed), and I must say her writing is some of the most indulgent I’ve ever come across. The author insertion is so obvious – all the characters are Weiner (or her opposite, or a person she wishes she knew) in a different costume. The thing that separates her books from your average teen-penned romance is that her themes are so universal that author insertion becomes reader insertion. You see her characters and think, “That’s me. That’s my life.” Therein lies her appeal.

As with most chick lit, the plot was fluff and totally predictable from the start, but that did not make it any less enjoyable. Rose is the older, successful, overweight sister. Maggie is the younger, trouble-making, gorgeous sister. Throw in an intersecting story about an elderly woman named Ella who lives in Florida with her entertaining neighbors at the Golden Acres senior citizen community and you have a fun little romp of a story.

My only real complaint about this book was the all too convenient flashbacks. Too often someone would make some comment which would be followed by an explanation of some childhood event or something they “always” did, which for whatever reason had never been mentioned before. One glaring example of this was Sydelle’s strict adherence to the Jewish faith, which was never brought up until it became an issue. Such “oh by the way” moments made it feel like the character development was done on the fly.

All the same, this was a fun, quick read. Weiner’s always good for one-liners and amusing exchanges, and a happy ending is guaranteed. I don’t imagine most men would enjoy this book (though I think it could teach them a lot about the female psyche), but I would definitely recommend it to any woman looking for little bit of literary candy.

Also posted on BookCrossing.