false 227443 67 In the course of the year recorded in <i>Bridget Jones's Diary</i>, Bridget confides her hopes, her dreams, and her monstrously fluctuating poundage, not to mention her consumption of 5277 cigarettes and "Fat units 3457 (approx.) (hideous in every way)." In 365 days, she gains 74 pounds. On the other hand, she loses 72! There is also the unspoken New Year's resolution--the quest for the right man. Alas, here Bridget goes severely off course when she has an affair with her charming cad of a boss. But who would be without their e-mail flirtation focused on a short black skirt? The boss even contends that it is so short as to be nonexistent. <p> At the beginning of Helen Fielding's exceptionally funny second novel, the thirtyish publishing puffette is suffering from postholiday stress syndrome but determined to find Inner Peace and poise. Bridget <I>will</I>, for instance, "get up straight away when wake up in mornings." Now if only she can survive the party her mother has tricked her into--a suburban fest full of "Smug Marrieds" professing concern for her and her fellow "Singletons"--she'll have made a good start. As far as she's concerned, "We wouldn't rush up to <i>them</i> and roar, 'How's your marriage going? Still having sex?'" <p> This is only the first of many disgraces Bridget will suffer in her year of performance anxiety (at work and at play, though less often in bed) and living through other people's "emotional fuckwittage." Her twin-set-wearing suburban mother, for instance, suddenly becomes a chat-show hostess and unrepentant adulteress, while our heroine herself spends half the time overdosing on Chardonnay and feeling like "a tragic freak." <i>Bridget Jones's Diary</i> began as a column in the London <i>Independent</i> and struck a chord with readers of all sexes and sizes. In strokes simultaneously broad and subtle, Helen Fielding reveals the lighter side of despair, self-doubt, and obsession, and also satirizes everything from self-help books (they don't sound half as sensible to Bridget when she's sober) to feng shui, <i>Cosmopolitan</i>-style. She is the Nancy Mitford of the 1990s, and it's impossible not to root for her endearing heroine. On the other hand, one can only hope that Bridget will continue to screw up and tell us all about it for years and books to come. <i>--Kerry Fried</i> 3185154 book 1996 Bridget Jones's Diary total:63188|5:14506|4:20946|3:18878|2:6202|1:2657| 63188 228006 74015 2049 4 20 false false Sun Apr 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue Oct 23 20:43:44 -0700 2007 Wed Oct 24 09:23:15 -0700 2007 ...more...]]> 1 3 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2001 Mon Jul 16 12:31:04 -0700 2007 Fri May 02 16:10:23 -0700 2008 more...]]> 1 4 false false Sat Oct 20 11:04:09 -0700 2007 Sat Oct 20 11:04:09 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 4 false false Sat Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2001 Thu Nov 20 15:18:43 -0800 2008 Thu Nov 20 15:25:02 -0800 2008 1 more...]]> 5 3 false false Sat Nov 22 09:50:30 -0800 2008 Sat Nov 22 09:51:58 -0800 2008 4 2 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Wed Jan 23 20:59:32 -0800 2008 Wed Jan 23 21:10:47 -0800 2008 more...]]> 5 3 false false Fri Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2001 Mon Mar 26 19:34:54 -0700 2007 Mon Mar 26 19:35:18 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 6 false false Sat May 02 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue May 05 08:53:18 -0700 2009 Tue May 05 09:00:10 -0700 2009 2 Gravity's Rainbow + the Wisconsin Dells = EPIC FAIL. (Although, to be fair, Wisconsin Dells – Gravity's Rainbow = regular fail.)

I just re-read...more...]]> 2 1 false false Sat Mar 28 09:08:25 -0700 2009 Tue Mar 24 19:07:19 -0700 2009 Sat Mar 28 09:08:25 -0700 2009 more...]]> 2 2 false true Sun Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue Jun 17 10:58:11 -0700 2008 Wed Jun 25 08:39:35 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 1 false false Fri Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2004 Tue Jul 31 22:33:01 -0700 2007 Thu Aug 30 00:15:38 -0700 2007 Excerpts from my readers response notebook...

(early on in my reading)

I think Bridget Jones has too many vices in life. She copes with not having love by drinking and eatings. I think there are many women like her trying to be strong...trying not to give into the temptations, ...more...]]> 2 2 false false Tue Dec 02 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Tue Jan 29 12:33:43 -0800 2008 Tue Jan 29 12:40:33 -0800 2008
To say the least, Fielding sells her soul to the idle masses to sell novels. I believe the only way BJD will be remembered in the literary canon is if the critics of the future look back at what a horrid generation w...more...]]> 5 1 false false Sun Jan 18 15:06:33 -0800 2009 Mon Jan 19 11:13:52 -0800 2009 UPDATE: indeed, still worth it after all these years. :) apparently, it doesn't matter which mr. darcy we're talking about, as they are all fabulous. fo...more...]]> 2 2 false false Thu May 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed Jun 11 05:18:51 -0700 2008 Wed Jun 11 05:18:51 -0700 2008
While I loved the movie, this book was just a bit blah. Bridget irritated me with her whining and her desperation for a man. I hope that I won't be anything li...more...]]> 5 1 false false Mon Jul 07 07:38:25 -0700 2008 Mon Jul 14 09:02:55 -0700 2008 more...]]> 2 1 false false Thu Aug 13 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Aug 14 11:38:59 -0700 2009 Fri Aug 14 11:56:31 -0700 2009 1 Bridget Jones's Diary is like a single potato chip: tempting and kind of amusing but not satisfying, fluffy rather than substantial--and quickly forgotten.]]> 3 0 false false Fri Feb 20 11:37:53 -0800 2009 Fri Feb 20 11:38:49 -0800 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Feb 17 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Feb 18 12:55:48 -0800 2009 Wed Feb 18 13:17:52 -0800 2009 Harry Potter books figured that American children were too feebleminded to work out that "jumper" actually means "sweater" and so they changed the British English to American English.

Likewise,...more...]]> 4 2 false false Fri Feb 06 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 05 07:14:30 -0800 2009 Fri Feb 06 06:31:50 -0800 2009
"How many calories are you supposed to eat if you're on a diet?" he said.

"A...more...]]> 5 0 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1995 Wed Dec 24 00:44:03 -0800 2008 Wed Dec 24 16:26:45 -0800 2008 more...]]>