Book Review- Cecilia Rabess' Everything's Fine

Thank you to Simon and Schuster for sending me a physical arc of Cecilia Rabbis’ debut novel, Everything’s Fine.

Jess is a recent graduate working as an analyst at Goldman Sachs. Although brilliant, Jess is a new employee and the only black woman in her department. She is struggling to be taken seriously. She reconnects with Josh, a college acquaintance and semi-nemesis, who is also working on her floor. Josh is brash, conservative, and argumentative, also white. Although the two seem to have little in common, their debates shift in tone to an unlikely attraction. They discover that the other person is more nuanced and caring than the labels that they had assigned to them. However, this is 2016 and a historic election is about to impact their fragile relationship.

Everything’s Fine is a whirlwind of a book. I don’t think I’ve ever encountered a female character working as an analyst and inhabiting this world. Rabess comes from his background and undoubtedly this influenced her writing and choosing this particular setting, but as a reader, I was fascinated. It’s not my world and I won’t pretend to understand all of the technical aspects, but Rabess’ writing is accessible and I understood enough of Jess’ career to not only follow the story, but to be intrigued. As a woman, I connected with Jess’s struggles in a male dominated profession. As a white woman, I listened to her struggles as a black woman in her work, but also dating Josh and life in general. The story was very eye-opening.

One aspect of Jess that will likely resonate with many readers is that she is young and struggling to define herself. This is her first major job and first adult relationship. She’s at that point in life, where she is transitioning from college to being an adult on her own, yet she does not have everything figured out. She struggles with people labeling her, even when she does not quite know where her life is headed. It is a time of figuring things out and lots of uncertainty. I’m in my mid-forties now, but Rabess took me right back to my twenties and all of the emotions associated with that time in my life.

I rooted for Jess and Josh. Their relationship is passionate and complicated, but also between two people who are essentially good, even if they have fundamental differences. There are also some steamy sex scenes!

At the heart of Everything’s Fine is the message that labels are destructive and that people can, and often do, change throughout their lives. Individuals are so much more complicated and diverse than society allows us to believe. I loved this book and can’t wait to read Rabess’ next novel. She’s a fabulous storyteller!

Book Review- Frieda Hughes' George: A Magpie Memoir

Thank you to Simon and Schuster for sending me a physical arc of Frieda Hughes’ George: A Magpie Memoir.

When poet and artist Frieda Hughes found an injured magpie chick in her garden, she had no idea that he would change her life. She took him into her home and named him George, documenting his antics and recovery in her journal. She was quickly captivated by this little bird, who was full of curiosity, intelligence, and mischief.

I enjoy nature writing and anything with animals, but I was quite unprepared for the amount of delight that I would feel from George. Hughes’ writing is beautiful and compelling, as are her illustrations that are sprinkled through the book.

Inevitably, George and Hughes’ must part ways, as George is a wild animal who must be set free. This was incredibly emotionally, as Hughes’ has a dueling conflict of wanting him to stay, but knowing that he must go. She developed a deep bond with George. Her time with George also coincided with the decline of her marriage, adding to the tension.

The way Hughes interacts with George, and subsequently other animals in her care, including birds of prey, causes her to lose some friendships. Admittedly, I was quite surprised with how she casually lets the animals roam around her kitchen, especially since birds do not have the function of bladder control. It got messy! In a sense, she became the stereotype of the “crazy cat lady,” but with birds and many friends did not understand. On the flip side, as fellow animal lover, I can completely understand her devotion to those in her care and I can understand her ways of interacting with them.

George: A Magpie Memoir is lovely and a book that is sure to delight many animal lovers, especially those fond of birds. I highly recommend it! Also, in case you are wondering, Hughes’s is the daughter of Ted Hughes and Sylvia Plath, but she makes it clear that she doesn't want her lineage to dominate the conversation. She is a very accomplished writer and artist in her own right.

Book Review- Mona Awad's All's Well

Thank you to Simon and Schuster for providing me with a copy of Mona Awad’s novel, All’s Well, in exchange for an honest review.

Miranda Fitch’s life has been on a downward spiral ever since her promising thespian career was cut short by trauma suffered from a fall off of a stage during a performance. She suffers from chronic pain that no mainstream doctor or alternative form of therapy can cure. Miranda is addicted to pain pills and it doesn’t help that she drinks to excess. Her husband has left her and her job as a drama teacher at a small college is in jeopardy.

Against the wishes of her students, including Briana, a queen bee type who is always given the lead roles due to her rich parent’s donations, Miranda goes forward with mounting a spring production of Shakespeare’s All’s Well That Ends Well, rather than MacBeth. All’s Well That Ends Well was the play that ended Miranda’s career, and despite the continued escalation of her misfortunes, Miranda is hell-bent on making it work.

Just when it seems that all is lost and Miranda might have to cave to the wishes of her students, she meets three unusual men in a bar. After a night of heavy drinking, where she isn’t sure what exactly transpired, Miranda is seemingly cured of her ailments. Her boss announces that anonymous benefactors have donated a large sum of money to the theatre department, contingent on Miranda continuing with her production. And in a final bizarre twist, Miranda’s pain seems to have mysteriously transferred to Briana, who is now in such bad shape that the lead role must be recast. Miranda is elated, but in the back of her mind she fears that she might be mixed up in something quite sinister.

I love the theatre and even graduated from a performing arts high school. For these reasons, the premise of Awad’s novel carried a high appeal for me. One of the strongest elements is Miranda’s character voice. She’s punchy and sarcastic with off-beat observations both about herself and the world around her. I laughed out loud many times. The humor is excellent.

It has been a long time since I have read All’s Well That Ends Well and I felt like my lack of memory of the Shakespeare play might have led to me missing out on some of the jokes or other nods. I’m not sure if I actually missed anything, but I wish I had the play fresher in my mind.

Miranda is a highly unreliable narrator, which makes for a fascinating read. I was never sure if she was actually experiencing the events, if it was a dream, or if she was imagining them due to her injuries and/or drugged state. I suspect she had head trauma, in addition to her addition and other pain.

The flip side of this, is it meant that we spent the entire book living her nightmare, and personally, I found it occasionally difficult to keep engaged. I wasn’t very interested in her continued dive into an increasingly odd situation. The story turns eccentric fast. Towards the end, her journey turns into a hellish performance art piece, which made me tune out. I was trying to figure out why I felt this way and I think it’s kind of like when someone tells you about a dream they had and the way the actual dream is nowhere near as intriguing as the reasons behind the dream in the first place. I found the reason for Miranda’s mental decline far more interesting, than witnessing the decline play out.

This said, I would definitely recommend All’s Well. Awad created a unique premise with strong characters. Miranda’s dry humor is really fabulous. All’s Well is a wild ride for theatre and Shakespeare lovers.