Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Anthropology of an American Girl

by Hilary Thayer Hamann (Goodreads Author)

3.29 of 5 stars 3.29 · rating details · 2,310 ratings · 548 reviews

Self-published in 2003, Hilary Thayer Hamann’s Anthropology of an American Girl touched a nerve among readers, who identified with the sexual and intellectual awakening of its heroine, a young woman on the brink of adulthood. A moving depiction of the transformative power of first love, Hamann’s first novel follows Eveline Auerbach from her high school years in East Hampto...more

Hardcover, 624 pages

Published May 25th 2010 by Spiegel & Grau (first published May 15th 2004)

more details... edit details

Get a copy:

More…

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

Anthropology of an American Girl by Hilary Thayer Hamann

Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann

Books you want to read in 2011

3rd out of 104 books — 56 voters

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling

Over 500 pages!!!!

112th out of 328 books — 69 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 3,000)

filter | sort: default (?) | rating details

Apr 17, 2012 hannaH rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: own-it

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

19 likes · like · see review

Sep 22, 2010 Vika rated it 2 of 5 stars

I got this book for free through Goodreads First Reads giveaway.
Ok so this book is VERY confusing!! I have a feeling it's going to take me a long time to finish it! (I'm only on page 66/out of 606) and I just figured out who's mom died and who has/had cancer and who Jack is.. lol. For now I'm giving it 2 stars, because i'm not enjoying reading this. :( ...that much. But i will finish it, i promise! no matter how long it'll take me.
Ok.. now that i'm done with this book, I guess it would deserve...more

12 likes · like · see review

Jul 21, 2010 Cathrine marked it as gave-up-on

Shelves: fiction, unfinished, great-writing

Hamann's beautifully languid writing in this book was what lured me in, and in the end it was her writing that made me put it down two-thirds of the way through. The way she was able to turn every detached, physical description into some deep, philosophical notion was at first enjoyable and stimulating. But after 400 pages of it over and over, I feel like I'm stumbling around a smoke-filled room with my arms out trying to find something concrete to lean on.

I'm to the point where I just want to...more

2 likes · like · see review

Apr 13, 2010 Tracey rated it 5 of 5 stars

Full disclosure: I had the first edition of AAG on my bookshelf for almost 2 years but kept putting off reading it because of its size so when I won an advance copy of the new edition I was thrilled. I am so glad that I finally got around to reading this amazing story. I loved this novel and it will remain on my bookshelf forever as a favorite.

H.T. Hamann's writing is fluid and precise. On several occasions I marked quotes and passages because they are so insightful and written so beautifully....more

17 likes · like · see review

Aug 08, 2010 Teresa rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to Teresa by: Cynthia Tooley

I suppose this book isn't for everyone (I can see some getting impatient with it, though I never did) and it might not be perfect (though I think it comes close), but I loved it. The author has such beautiful and unique and insightful ways of describing emotions and feelings; I don't think I've ever marked so many passages in a book before. It's one of those books I never wanted to put down; I felt addicted to the characters and the world they were in while I was reading. It took me longer to re...more

6 likes · like · see review

Mar 06, 2010 Jessica rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads, read-2010

I received this book through the First Reads program. I was shocked to find that it's more than 600 pages; a book has to be amazing to keep me reading for that long! It took me about a week, but I finished it and really enjoyed it. I must say, the first 200 or so pages were a tad rough getting through, but after that, I was disappointed to have to put the book down and sleep.

This book is poetic, philosophical, and real. It depicts the reality of the transformation of life a girl goes through wh...more

5 likes · like · see review

Jul 27, 2011 Emily Kobler rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction

This was an amazing coming of age story and a fascinating look at the life of a disenfranchised young woman growing up in the years following the civil rights and women's liberation movements. The main character in the book, Evie, is independent, smart, creative and modern and this book follows her turbulent and often misguided quest for something like happiness. Set in the late '70s and early '80s, Evie grows up with an imperfect but loving mother, she and her friends feel entitled to their fre...more This was an amazing coming of age story and a fascinating look at the life of a disenfranchised young woman growing up in the years following the civil rights and women's liberation movements. The main character in the book, Evie, is independent, smart, creative and modern and this book follows her turbulent and often misguided quest for something like happiness. Set in the late '70s and early '80s, Evie grows up with an imperfect but loving mother, she and her friends feel entitled to their freedom and creativity.

The story - though it's from a single and not always sound point of view - subtly shows how women's lib complicated gender roles and the sociological changes that followed in the coming decades. There is an honesty in this book that in itself is liberating. Evie is opened up, strewn apart, and sewn back up (metaphorically) and we are not spared any of the gory details. The reader is certainly not manipulated into liking Evie, but I was wrapped up in all of the characters, and when Evie begins to live like a martyr, it truly showed how complicated and different men and women are, and the sacrifices and compromises we make.

One of the reviews compared it to a young woman's 'Catcher in the Rye'. While I scoffed at the cliche, after putting down the book I agreed completely. I've never read another book from a woman's point of view that so timelessly and eloquently describes growing up as a 'liberated' young woman. The loss of innocence and the realization of the power of a woman's sexuality are universal, and Evie's tendency to objectify herself first, so that she feels that she is giving of herself as a commodity and holding the power, she refuses to be a victim.

The story can be a bit wordy, and just like the main character, I felt fickle while reading it, especially about Evie; but in the end it's her flaws, naivety and questionable decision-making that make her unforgettable. She is at once a fragile young woman, and a survivor with unimaginable strength. She compromises herself without forgetting who she truly is, and though her pain is palpable, she perfectly describes the detachment of depression - and how she built walls to protect her heart, a seed of hope and a sense of self that keeps her going.

It's a fairly long book, but her prose drew me in and I couldn't put it down. I found myself constantly comparing the plot and characters to my own experiences and those of loved ones. The writer has a beautiful vocabulary, and uses it without coming off as pretentious. Also, the wispy and detached young lady in the story, just as a best friend would do, at times infuriated me, but I never stopped wanting Evie to come out on top, to be with the one she loved, to triumph over her demons. She will always be beautifully flawed, but as a reader I would have been devastated had she succumbed in the end.

This book is probably a favorite of mine in part because I am an American girl, and what Hilary Thayer Hamann describes is also my anthropology. It reminded me of another favorite - She's Come Undone by Wally Lamb, though the two heroines couldn't have been more different, their inner torment broke my heart and their will to live and to fight and to love inspired me. I related to both stories half the time. The difference being that the other half of the time I felt shame reading She's Come Undone, and the other half of the time I read Evie's story, I felt indignant. And I liked it.

More importantly, this book made me feel connected to all women; both in my personal life and the ones I'll never meet, the ones who fought for my right to an opinion and a voice. It made me think about the changes, and repercussions, that women have experienced over the last 40 years. It was never preachy though, Evie was silenced by her pride, but the author let us in to the depths of her struggles. This book will stick with me forever. (less)

4 likes · like · see review

Dec 29, 2010 Rebecca rated it 1 of 5 stars

I think the people who are raving about this book are completely wrong. I find it sophomoric, badly edited, and trite. It's a lot of teenage angst without any of the universal themes to relate to. The object of the main character's affection is a controlling, sexist, angry man. The main character has no self-esteem and no pride in her abilities or interest in developing them. She appears written as a foil for the male characters around her. This book could have been one quarter of the length if...more

12 likes · like · see review

Feb 28, 2013 Elisa Johnston rated it 3 of 5 stars

Anthropology of an American Girl: A Novel.
Hilary Thayer Hamann. 2009. Spiegel & Grau: New York.

Right from the start, it must be said: This book is a brick. Not just a brick but pretty much brick in every sense of a way a book could be a brick. For starters, I am pretty sure these 600 pages could be used to hold open a door or be plastered into your wall to give it strength. My copy fell into the bathtub and still survived, instead just adding another inch of strength to its massive form.

Ye...more

like · see review

Jul 24, 2012 Sara rated it 2 of 5 stars

OK. I'm nothing if not 100% honest with my readers about everything I write about and my book reviews are no different. I did not finish this book. For me to say that is a huge deal because I finished two books I absolutely hated, including Wuthering Heights and The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. But the difference with those books were that I really felt like it'd come around and I'd eventually get it. I didn't, but throughout both books I really felt like it'd come around.

And I've really thought ab...more OK. I'm nothing if not 100% honest with my readers about everything I write about and my book reviews are no different. I did not finish this book. For me to say that is a huge deal because I finished two books I absolutely hated, including Wuthering Heights and The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. But the difference with those books were that I really felt like it'd come around and I'd eventually get it. I didn't, but throughout both books I really felt like it'd come around.

And I've really thought about what it was about this book that couldn't draw me in. And you know what it was? The overuse of adjectives. Basically the entire writing style. For this being a debut novel it's really heavy. I found myself having re-read passages because I might just be stupid, but I didn't get it. The entire story is meant to be written from the point of view of a woman who is recalling her first love and the ones that came after yet... reading this I'm thinking, "I know high school wasn't like this and I didn't speak like this at all." It never felt authentic and it never felt like something that would logically be happening. Here's an example:

"Jack's body had not yet moved. He was like a jetty rock, obstinate and motionless against the savage force of the sea. I wasn't sure what I was supposed to do or say so I waited, passing time by thinking of things I knew. I knew that he loved me desperately, never more so than at that moment. I knew that he was ready, aroused for once by the honorableness of his emotions, and yet the anger that moved him had no means of expression. How betrayed he must have felt by his belligerent pacifism, by the ambivalence he'd constantly displayed. He was thinking that the attack had not been arbitrary, that it had happened to me for a reason. He was thinking the reason was him."

Ok. Now, what did that even mean?? Because I'm not sure. Part of me is sad that I'll never know what happened between Jack and Evie but on the other hand, who cares? After getting half way through the book I can't even tell you what it was even really about, what the story was. There was nothing in any of the pages I read that made me want to turn another page and keep going. For me, reading is an escape and it should be fun. I don't like having to think a whole lot about what I'm reading to process it. I like being able to relate to a book within my own life or back story and even though I've been a teenage girl working through the weird phases and first loves and all of that... I could not relate. In the end, I feel like the author has tried too hard to write a book that would be a classic, or something that would end up on a must read list somewhere.(less)

2 likes · like · see review

Jun 19, 2012 Rachael Hewison rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: american-fiction

I’m somewhat baffled by the positive reviews this book has received. I really did not enjoy it in the slightest.
My main issue was that the entire book seemed to be about the love between Evie and Rourke except I didn’t really buy into their love. From my point of view they barely talked or touched and I just couldn’t understand how she could describe herself as his soulmate when they hadn’t exchanged a word.
I felt nothing towards any of the characters, particularly Evie, Rourke and Rob. I could...more

2 likes · like · see review

May 06, 2012 Sara rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: general-fiction, overrated

“I was an American girl; I possessed what our culture valued most — independence and blind courage.”

I had heard good reviews about this book, and there was no waiting list for the eBook version of it, so I downloaded away and started in. And then paused, confused. This didn’t seem at all to be a work of great literature, but rather a long-winded and rambling narrative of a rather self-absorbed teen. Well, I thought to myself, this is about an American girl, and not the Pleasant Company brand eit...more

1 like · like · see review

Mar 01, 2012 Florinda rated it 4 of 5 stars

Originally self-published several years ago, Hilary Thayer Hamann�s first (and this far, only) novel, Anthropology of an American Girl, caught my attention upon its 2010 hardcover publication.

Hamann'�s personal biography, according to her website, shares a number of details with that of her American Girl, Eveline (Evie) Auerbach. �...(B)orn and raised in New York. Her parents divorced when she was three and she was shuttled between their respective homes in the Hamptons and the Bronx. She attend...more Originally self-published several years ago, Hilary Thayer Hamann�s first (and this far, only) novel, Anthropology of an American Girl, caught my attention upon its 2010 hardcover publication.

Hamann'�s personal biography, according to her website, shares a number of details with that of her American Girl, Eveline (Evie) Auerbach. �...(B)orn and raised in New York. Her parents divorced when she was three and she was shuttled between their respective homes in the Hamptons and the Bronx. She attended Sag Harbor Elementary School, East Hampton High School, and New York University...She was actively involved in the community theater of the East End from age 9 until age 19, participating in the productions of at least 30 plays, including several at Guild Hall...

Hamann'�s bio doesn�t include whether her high-school boyfriend was a gifted musician with a drug problem, whether her first, and defining, love was a drama coach/professional boxer several years older than she was, or whether she was once engaged to a yuppie investment banker who treated her as a prize. While there are autobiographical elements, Anthropology IS a novel, so the reader hopes that a good chunk of the story really is fiction. Evie'�s story should be her own.

And while it is her own, at the same time, Evie'�s story isn�t particularly unique - and that'�s what makes it resonate. The struggle to define oneself as one emerges into adulthood is pretty universal, and can be especially challenging for young women who have defined themselves in relation to men first. Young love affairs, particularly those which are truncated for one reason or another, have a tendency to assume a consuming, almost tragic, importance in one�'s personal history. As she works toward becoming herself as a student, an artist, a friend, and an individual, Evie continues to see herself in terms of her relationship with Harrison Rourke.

A reader�'s response to the relationship between Evie and Rourke will probably affect her response to the novel as a whole...and I admit I had issues with it. Part of that comes from my own objections to significant age differences: this relationship starts when Rourke is in his mid-twenties and Evie is seventeen - and at those ages, the difference is significant. (The fact that Rourke was casually dating Evie�s best friend Kate at the time - also a high-school student - is pretty well glossed over, but I think that�s in keeping with the self-absorption of an adolescent first-person narrator.) The heightened intensity and romanticizing of the relationship is in character, but it bothered me in part because, as a result of it, I never felt I got a good sense of who Rourke was as a character. I didn'�t feel that Hamann made the relationship as profound to me as it clearly was to Evie; I just couldn'�t see it as much more than strong attraction. Evie seems to see herself as an object of attraction quite frequently, actually, and that got under my skin as well. While that may well be a legitimate part of her work to define herself, I'�ve rarely seen myself that way and just can�t relate to it, so please be aware that�s strictly a personal reaction.

Despite all that, I really did like Evie as a character overall, and I found some of the supporting characters quite appealing, particularly Evie'�s screwed-up high-school boyfriend Jack and Rourke�'s friend Rob Cirillo, the MBA with �family� ties in New Jersey. The story spans the time frame from 1978 to 1984, a period when I was roughly the same age as Evie, which gave my reading of it a specific context and made many of the references click; I thought Hamann'�s evocation of time and place was quite effective. The novel is rather sprawling and wanders a bit in the middle; I liked the first and last sections best, and frankly, the whole thing is probably longer than it needs to be. The writing in some places displays some first-novel self-consciousness, but it includes some insightful observations and authentic-sounding dialogue in others.

Anthropology of an American Girl is an absorbing, affecting, imperfect, convention-tweaking coming-of-age novel, and despite its length, it'�s worth sticking with to the end - and it will stick with you after that, whether you love it or hate it. While in the midst of reading it, I had both reactions...more than once. But in the end, I think I'�m coming down on the �love� side.(less)

1 like · like · see review

Jan 24, 2012 Emma Bolden rated it 3 of 5 stars

I'm way behind on Goodreads, mostly because of this book. I couldn't decided what to say about it. I'm still not sure what to say about it. I wanted to love it. Like, beyond loving it. For the most part, I did. But for the other part ... Well, this book reminded me of what Janet Burroway says about proofs, about how you have to provide enough concrete, specific details to make things believable. I'm not sure Hamann did that. Everyone is completely fascinated by Eveline, obsessively so -- I mean,...more

5 likes · like · see review

Jan 05, 2012 Lisa rated it 2 of 5 stars

Let me start by saying that I'm glad I waited until I was finished with this novel to review it. It started slowly and continued painfully at a snail's pace throughout. Relatively speaking, there is very little dialogue in this book; it is more or less 400 pages of our protagonist's internal monologue. It's the typical story of a young woman who is adored by every man who enters her life. My issue with this is simply that I could not identify with these men at all. I felt like I was given no log...more Let me start by saying that I'm glad I waited until I was finished with this novel to review it. It started slowly and continued painfully at a snail's pace throughout. Relatively speaking, there is very little dialogue in this book; it is more or less 400 pages of our protagonist's internal monologue. It's the typical story of a young woman who is adored by every man who enters her life. My issue with this is simply that I could not identify with these men at all. I felt like I was given no logical reason why anyone would even want to have a conversation with Eveline, let alone pine for her. On the other hand, the same can be said about the desirability of her suitors: the author simply presents Eveline's attraction to each one as fact, but gives her readers no insight as to what truly draws her to them. I admit that, because this novel was so introspective, the reason for the lack of explanation could simply be that Evie herself did not know... But I was still left feeling no true affinity for any of the men, even Harrison or Jack. Evaline told the readers that she loved them, and I accepted that, but I couldn't begin to feel it myself.

I greatly enjoyed the story of this novel, and I'm ultimately happy I stuck with it. I found myself needing to know how it would end, even if I didn't really care what happened. Like others have said, though, this book is unnecessarily long and rife with similes. It seems that the author spent a significant amount more time with a thesaurus in front of her, trying to choose the most poetic and pretentious word, instead of simply telling a lovely story. This novel would benefit from whole chunks being pared down, as mundane details did less to create a vivid picture than to simply lose or confuse the reader.

For a book of this length (especially one with so little external dialogue), the reader should have a better understanding of the central characters. I leave this book still thinking about its story, but with no attachment to the characters I spent so much time with. The language was beautiful, but its beauty came at the expense of full character development. I know every detail of every room in each scene of this novel, but I have no idea why Eveline did the things she did.(less)

6 likes · like · see review

Apr 19, 2011 Reading Teen rated it 3 of 5 stars

Right from the start, it must be said: This book is a brick. Not just a brick but pretty much brick in every sense of a way a book could be a brick. For starters, I am pretty sure these 600 pages could be used to hold open a door or be plastered into your wall to give it strength. My copy fell into the bathtub and still survived, instead just adding another inch of strength to its massive form.

Yet, it's a brick between the covers too. It has moderate violence, heavy profanity, very heavy sexual...more Right from the start, it must be said: This book is a brick. Not just a brick but pretty much brick in every sense of a way a book could be a brick. For starters, I am pretty sure these 600 pages could be used to hold open a door or be plastered into your wall to give it strength. My copy fell into the bathtub and still survived, instead just adding another inch of strength to its massive form.

Yet, it's a brick between the covers too. It has moderate violence, heavy profanity, very heavy sexual content, and also includes drugs, underage drinking, smoking, and suicide.

But don’t throw out the Anthropology of an American Girl just yet. It was really good. In fact, maybe even a potential classic. There is no way I would categorize this book as young adult, not just because of its “heavy” content, but really just because I don’t think its intended audience is teenagers. This book explores the soul- your own soul. Which is really heavy.

I studied anthropology in college, which in essence, the study of what it means to be human. One of the main things cultural anthropologists do is hang out with a group of people to write these weird books called ethnologies about them. Anthropology tries to capture a particular group’s way of doing, thinking . . . everything. In essence, Anthropology of an American Girl is just that, it is a study of what it is like to be a girl in America. In fact, its even be more about a girl moving to adulthood, something similar to a coming of age story, but one we can relate to long after we have “come of age.”

The book begins with melancholy, sixteen-year-old, artistic Eveline in high school. She has a girly BF, a rebellious philosopher of a boyfriend, and not the best family situation. I actually almost quit reading this book multiple times at the beginning. It was tedious with no real plot yet, but I guess if you are going to write a 600 page book, you have the right to set the scene with the first 200 of them. I think the author still had a purpose in this. Mainly because it is showing Evie’s metamorphosis, but also so we could really get to know Evie. And probably as intended, reading it made me feel like I was her and I was in high school again.

But then the book gets good, as a plot unfolds around when she graduates high school, and the book sticks with Eveline until just past the end of her college. The rest of the book has to do with the desire for love and the heartache love and pain can bring. Its hard to say more than that without ruining it for you, which is why other reviews only go that far. But I will try to offer a little more, by saying there are at least three guys in love with Evie, her being in love with only the one, she was led off by another, with these two plotting to have her as their own. And its also about boxing, the New England beach, New York City, art, the upper class, music, partying, home, relationships, God, psychology and philosophy. Which is to say, a lot. The book moves back and forth throughout time, which made it much more like a mystery the reader had to figure out. Unlike other stories, this one is melancholy enough that I couldn’t actually guess the ending. In fact, if you asked me what I would want the ending to look like in the middle of the book, It would be different than what I was hoping the ending would be in the last few chapters. Which is to say, it is not dead.

Here is a little more description on the content of the book, which I mentioned earlier: Yes, there is a lot of bad stuff in this book. Thankfully, though, it is not glorified as I think I would be disgusted if it was. I think there could be a lot less profanity while still maintaining “the integrity” of the book’s meaning. Yet, for the most part, the drinking, drug-use, and smoking in the book was referred to matter-of-factly. Although the characters in the book used different types of drugs, the end of the book strongly focuses on the way drugs destroy.

Although the sex content is very heavy, sex is more purposeful than not purposeful in this book. By that I mean there are not really descriptive sex scenes written solely just to seduce the readers attention. It shows sex as a very desirable thing, yet also as a very negative thing, but it is always pre-marital sex. More realistically, this book does encompass consequences of teen sex, such as pregnancy. Even more importantly, it spends a large amount of time exploring the effect it can have on the soul- extreme internal brokenness. Rape, “mean sex” (we never really know what, but that is just fine with me), miscarriage, a homosexual friend, extreme partying, death, suicide, and fighting also come up in the book.

If I had a teenager would I let them read this book? Probably not. But if I did, I would read it at the same time with them and probably not until they were going to leave home. I would want to be available to talk with my teen, to help them be prepared for what life can be like from a positive environment. I’d read it with them if I thought they were going to stumble upon all the “life” this book covers, so they through wouldn’t have to figure out by themselves. Still, I will strongly caution parents to use great discretion letting an older teen read it, let alone younger teens. In reality, I would be surprised if this book would actually interest most teens, anyway.

Altogether I would rate this book a three out of six. I myself loved it, but I don’t think its for everyone. I liked it so much that I was totally depressed when I finished it because I felt so close to the characters. But maybe that was because the book took so long to read that these characters were my only friends *wink*. I even cried at different parts and had to process some of the ideas it brought up in my journal! Pathetic, I know. But, it has a lot of heavy content, it is very long and tedious, and I have no doubt some people would just hate it regardless. This book is more of an art, wording experiences and feelings we have lived, than it is just a good story. If one doesn’t appreciate this type of art in the first place, the this book will be lost to them. Yet for me, I will probably shelf this brick with the classics.

-Elisa (guest post for http://ReadingTeen.net/)(less)

2 likes · like · see review

Mar 14, 2011 Amber Koppenhofer rated it 3 of 5 stars

This novel contained a mediocre story that was written like poety. The language was beautiful and the only redeeming part of this work of fiction. It was really difficult to relate to the main character, who pretty much has no emotions. However, I found myself marking page after page with my post-it tabs because I loved the sayings so much. Amongst what I marked, my favorite quotes are:

"Perhaps it’s too easy and unofficial to go around stating what you are and expecting people to embrace strictl...more

1 like · like · see review

Nov 02, 2010 Rachel Carr rated it 4 of 5 stars

To read more reviews check out Reading Rendezvous at: www.missomnimedia.com/tag/reading-ren...

It took me some time to think about how to start this review not for the lack of content or enjoyment but because the topics discussed in this novel are extremely heavy and thought provoking. Anthropology of an American Girl by Hilary Thayer Hamann is strong and endearing. Yet these are only the first words that come to my mind. Do not be put off by the size or the amount of pages, as this novel spans a...more To read more reviews check out Reading Rendezvous at: www.missomnimedia.com/tag/reading-ren...

It took me some time to think about how to start this review not for the lack of content or enjoyment but because the topics discussed in this novel are extremely heavy and thought provoking. Anthropology of an American Girl by Hilary Thayer Hamann is strong and endearing. Yet these are only the first words that come to my mind. Do not be put off by the size or the amount of pages, as this novel spans a few years of Eveline Auerbach’s life. Dictated through Eveline’s expressive voice we are led believe that she is battling some form of anorexia amongst a myriad of other things that plague the lives of young adults. We follow Eveline through the ups and downs that adulthood brings, especially in Eveline’s case. From a tumultuous and volatile relationship with men. It becomes evident that Eveline is quite attached to the men in her life going from one man to another.

As we begin the novel she is attached to Jack who is truly infatuated and in love with Eveline, while showing disenchantment with authority depicted during this time. Describing their relationship she said: “For purposes unknown I had been entrusted with the care of his soul, and so it was the vile type of treason for me to have enriched his self-loathing”. Quickly she evolves and falls for Harrison Rourke, their relationship is more than tumultuous – it is destructive and self- abusive- at times even obsessive. Ending the manipulative relationship between Mark and her, not only is the relationship physically abusive but depressive. Eveline is quickly and inexplicably in love with almost every man in her life. Yet as women we might be able to identify with each of Eveline’s relationships. From the extremely volatile to obsessive to abusive we are quickly confronted with the possibility.

At times the literature can be reminiscent of the Twilight novels that dominate teenage literary culture. Evocative of the purely self-destructive manner in which Eveline speaks she says, “When people say time heals, they are wrong. Time simply extinguishes hope.” Eveline Auerbach and Bella Swan certainly have a lot in common ranging from their obsessive nature in men to their self-destructive attitudes. Yet Eveline is so much more than Bella she is prophetic, bratty, dismissive, wise, intelligent, self-deprecating, intelligent, and poetic. Her worldview is suggestive of many disgruntled and disenfranchised youth that was very vociferous during this time period. When considering the opportunity the novel presents it becomes evident that we are educated about so much more then the monotonous life of a young adult.

When considering this new book it was initially not hard for me to connect with yet the language is somewhat verbose and at times evasive. The reader does not fully see the whole picture until the end of the novel. Do not be put off by the evasive language and if you can power through because this novel is certainly worth your time and is profoundly different from anything else of this specific genre. As a reader it becomes possible for us to connect with the piece but also each character you yearn for them simply because you want to belong in their unique group and somehow be the support for Eveline. If I were to suggest that you read one grandiose novel this year I certainly and wholeheartedly support this novel. Specifically for the way it makes you grieve, grow, love, and flourish.

(less)

2 likes · like · see review

Oct 21, 2010 Claire rated it 4 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

like · see review

Jul 03, 2010 christa rated it 5 of 5 stars

I have just spent two-plus weeks marinating in a slow vacation-style paced read of "Anthropology of an American girl," by Hilary Thayer Hamann, and I think the readjustment period to normal life is going to be a bit shaky. So far it has been like yawning awake after an amazing dream. Looking around groggily and wondering, Huh. When did summer get here?

My God, this novel is intense and brilliant, so beautiful. Words I usually reserve for Haruki Murakami. This is the best thing I have read in year...more I have just spent two-plus weeks marinating in a slow vacation-style paced read of "Anthropology of an American girl," by Hilary Thayer Hamann, and I think the readjustment period to normal life is going to be a bit shaky. So far it has been like yawning awake after an amazing dream. Looking around groggily and wondering, Huh. When did summer get here?

My God, this novel is intense and brilliant, so beautiful. Words I usually reserve for Haruki Murakami. This is the best thing I have read in years, filled with the best sentences I've ever read.

It starts with lazy days in Southhampton, the proverbial calm before the storm. Eveline and her best friend Kate are in those in-between teen years where they have the resources to get stoned at the beach, but bike home in a girlish lanky-limbed way. Evie is an artist, open and curious, living with her free spirit, socially conscious mother in a shack by the railroad tracks. Kate is into theater, just discovering what it means to be pretty. Her mother, a wise French woman, first is dying, then will die leaving both girls without their main source of maternal comfort. Kate moves in with Evie, the beginning of the dissolution of the girls' relationship.

Evie's boyfriend Jack is a wanderer, a philosopher, a trouble-maker according to his father -- whom he has tried to kill. A nonconformist, a musician searching for authenticity. And they have this incredible relationship like they are linked by a virtual umbilical chord. When Evie makes anonymous tracks in the snow in a parking lot, Jack knows that she made them. While ripping apart his bedroom in a manic fit, he finds a card addressed to a woman named Eveline beneath the carpeting, left decades earlier. Like a postcard from the universe. They speak to each other in paragraphs about things like impulses, and whether acting on them is a feral character flaw. Between them, every gesture has deep meaning. Everything is real thinky.

And so, when something chemical happens between Evie and the substitute drama teacher Harrison Rourke -- on first impact -- Jack senses it before Evie can even define it. Kate flounces around with a very public crush on the teacher who is directing the school play, and for Evie things are in a slow burn beneath the surface. Though they have barely spoken, every time Evie runs into Roarke there is this physical reaction involving gazes and brushes and touching.

Time out: At a time when good old-fashioned longing has become the Play-Doh Fun Factory of Stephenie Meyer, Hamann handles it in such a deep and real way. These characters aren't wearing metaphorical chastity belts. They are plodding through a life beneath a heavy, heavy blanket of reality. Where wanting something, and needing something, are so beautiful just for the sake of ripping someone to life and making them feel something and everything.

Finally, in a dramatic moment that outdoes the greatest of bodice-rippers, they are able to be together. They spend the summer in Montauk, with the knowledge that there is an end-point. Evie will be going off to NYU at the end of the summer; the ever-mysterious Roarke has plans, too. But briefly they are naked and happy, drinking and in the sun. Friends and parties and free to finally knead at each other moan.

Then it ends. Evie in a dorm room, broken with loss. Roarke God-knows where. She is taken in by the posse he left behind: Rob, who is Roarke's lifelong wingman and fiercely loyal, unquestionably in love with Evie, charged with watching out for her; Mark, a big time gamer with unlimited cash, who nurses her back to health after she miscarries the summer love-child. Evie gets into a relationship with Mark, a sort of oppressive character who keeps her in cars and money, the freedom to make her art ... while understanding that he will never fully have her soul. He is fine with that, and considers possessing her to be a great big "fuck you" to his rival Roarke.

Of course there are hiccups. Occasional Roarke sightings that open old wounds, and insight into his demons. Turns out he's a boxer, and pretty good at it, too. Evie coasts along barely playing the role of a human being.

There are four things about this novel that I am overlooking in favor of the incredible experience of reading it: 1. It is 600 pages long, which is too long for this story. Can I think of anything I would cut? Nope. Would I want anyone to monkey with the way it has been written? Nuh-uh. (It was originally self-published by Hamann, then picked up by a major publishing company that had their way with it already). 2. At times, the nonlinear parts get boggy. 3. It made me think a lot about the difference between "overwrought" and true genuine emotion bared freely. I'm not convinced that someone else, maybe even me in another time or place, would read it and snort like a skeptic. 4. Deep into the book I read something that indicated this story is semi-autobiographical, which taints it a bit. Thinking that this really happened makes me lean more toward "overwrought" than "genuine emotion bared freely," which is counter-intuitive, I know.

Regardless, I stand by my belief that this is a stunning book filled with so much smart, so much great phrasing, intense imagery, and a beautiful story. Go. Read now. (less)

7 likes · like · see review

Jun 16, 2010 Kathy rated it 4 of 5 stars

How much of a first novel is autobiographical? In Anthropology of an American Girl, I wondered how much of the protagonist’s being came directly from the author’s own experiences. I know that at some point in the book, Eveline muses that people tell her she looks like one of the models from the Robert Palmer video. A quick flip to the back inside cover and – there it is!

The story takes place during Eveline’s last year of high school (1980) and the following four years attending college. Eveline...more

2 likes · like · see review

Mar 09, 2010 Erica-Lynn rated it 5 of 5 stars

If Henry James and Margaret Attwood could have a literary child, it might be Hilary Thayer Hamann. Evoking James’ Portrait of a Lady or Daisy Miller, and Atwood’s Surfacing, Hamann’s debut novel Anthropology of an American Girl poetically, and brutally, follows the seemingly ordinary but at once riveting life of narrator and protagonist Evaline with obsessive detail and powerful insight. It is a modern coming-of-age epic which brings to light this complex and artistic young woman, and it is very...more

3 likes · like · see review

May 05, 2012 Bonnie rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: popular-fiction, worst-of-the-worst

This book sprung up on my Amazon recommendations based on several books I read and loved, so I figured I would give it a whirl. I am so glad I opted to get this from the library rather than paying. I can't think of a single good thing to say about the book. The prose is clunky, the main character is like a every protaganist in every 1970's afterschool special rolled into a single girl. For the record, I grew up in the same era, and spent my young adulthood in NYC with a moneyed, artistic and adv...more

1 like · like · see review

Sep 03, 2010 Heather Moss rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: novels

This was the best, most quotable novel I've read in a really long time. I have pages and pages of quotes I've written down! I never wanted it to end, but was satisfied when it did. If you are like me -- a person who enjoys reading about high school and college women, does not care one bit about plot, enjoys minutiae, loves first person narratives, wants protagonists to be challenging, and is crazy about the English language -- I think you will enjoy this book. If you're into plot and get annoyed...more

3 likes · like · see review

Feb 17, 2010 Morgan F marked it as to-read

Shelves: 2000s, first-reads, goodreads-author, own, tbr-reduction-challenge

Just got this in the mail from a firstreads win. Looking forward to it.

1 like · like · see review

May 09, 2012 Inbal rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book was a major disappointment! I picked it up at a book store cause I liked the title and the reviews on the cover and was really looking forward to reading what I thought would be a cheese free coming of age story. Six pages into it and I realised this is not what I bargained for but decided to go ahead and keep reading in the hopes it would get better.

Good news is it does get better. Bad news is it only gets better around the 300 page mark for about 150-200 pages before regressing back...more This book was a major disappointment! I picked it up at a book store cause I liked the title and the reviews on the cover and was really looking forward to reading what I thought would be a cheese free coming of age story. Six pages into it and I realised this is not what I bargained for but decided to go ahead and keep reading in the hopes it would get better.

Good news is it does get better. Bad news is it only gets better around the 300 page mark for about 150-200 pages before regressing back into everything I thought was wrong with it to begin with (which was bearable at page 100 or even 200 but by page 520 I was pretty much ready for it to be over).

Like many other reviewers here I too found the book’s protagonist utterly unrelatable and despite going on endlessly about her feelings of love for the men in her life read more like a Bret Easton Ellis character that’s only going through the motions but is really devoid of all human feelings.

The main problem of the book however was the writer’s incessant need of endlessly describing every useless little thought, gesture and feeling had by her characters, all whilst opting for fancy synonyms when really a simple description could’ve achieved so much more – it’s like, we get it Hilary, you’re a smart girl and you have depth but guess what 16 year old high school girls don’t say or think things like ‘her shoulders floated waifishly within the vigorous circle of my arms’.

** Warning some spoilers included in the following paragraphs **

Despite these endless descriptions of simple human gestures such as breathing, smiling and sitting the writer decided that for some reason (artistic integrity perhaps?) us readers should not be given any insight or made to understand Eveline and Rourke’s love for each other. Even Eveliene herself confesses to not knowing (what I would consider rather crucial) details such as the circumstances in which the father of the love of her life died in, and this little side hobby of his (Rourke’s) involving boxing for a living (and this is the same girl we’re meant to believe ended up on the Dean’s List with a 4.0 grade average). In the absence of any descriptions of conversations or meaningful emotional interactions between the two the only valid reason I found for their heart wrenching love for each other is that they’re both really hot and good in bed.

The timeline of the story was difficult if not impossible to follow and for the most part read like a jumbled, uncut stream of consciousness in which the writer just jumps from one strain of thought to another.

All the male characters in this book read like bad cardboard film clichés: the honest Irish boxer; the New York wise guy with a heart of gold and razor sharp smarts; the sleazy privileged Harvard boy; and my personal favourite, the talented tortured musician with long messy blond hair, piercing blue eyes, a heroin addiction and suicidal tendencies (seriously am I the only one that thinks this reads suspiciously like Kurt Cobain?).

I really wanted to like this book and for certain parts I did and found myself moved by the characters’ lives and trials. You can tell the writer poured her heart and soul into this manuscript but what a shame she couldn’t collate her emotions into a coherent plotline. Bottom line is this book could’ve really benefited from a strong editor - minus 200 pages of dribble and this could’ve been a solid three star read.
(less)

like · see review

Sep 14, 2010 Andiepants rated it 3 of 5 stars

Its seems nigh on impossible, but all 600 odd pages of this book are full of heartbreaking, brilliantly rendered prose. I'm often compelled to write down particularly compelling bits of language from books I read, but I was overwhelmed with trying in this book - too many skillfully crafted and deeply moving images, metaphors and thoughts.

Hamann has thoroughly captured the inner depths of a young woman who, like most of us, views herself as tragically unique in her depression and discomfort. This...more

like · see review

Dec 11, 2011 Sarah rated it 2 of 5 stars

Really a 2.5, but I'm not feeling charitable enough to round up. I think that the NPR review, which compared this book to Twilight and the main character to Bella, got it right. It set itself up in the beginning as an intellectual/philosophical exploration into the mind of "an american girl" and I kept waiting for the payoff. Other than the extreme narcissism of the main character, there was nothing remotely anthropological, intellectually stimulating or even interesting here.

If I were to make...more

1 like · like · see review

Jun 14, 2010 Mary rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: contemporary-literature, time-suck

Whew! I'm glad that's over.

Anthropology of an American Girl is...long. Often boring. Overwrought. Underedited. Peppered with unrealistic and unlikeable people, as well as people one would have liked to get to know better if our narrator, the passive and weak Eveline, could have stopped obssessing about herself for more than 30 seconds. Disappointingly cliched. And, occassionally, rather beautiful. But I won't read it again and there are very, very few people I would recommend it to without a twi...more

22 likes · like · see review

Jul 08, 2011 Kathy Hiester rated it 5 of 5 stars

Anthropology of an American Girl by Hillary Thayer Hamann is a brilliantly written novel accounting for several years in the life of a young woman named Eveline. Set in the early 1980s (which could be considered my formative years) it scrutinizes the subjects of prosperity, influence, sex, and drugs. Eveline surrounds herself with a vibrant cast of characters, who are mostly men, and infrequently loses her individuality in the process. In the end she seems to find herself and happiness.

I had a r...more

like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 99 100 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
Re-release	1	24	Jun 03, 2009 09:42pm

combine
Other Editions (10)

More editions...

Genres

Young Adult

12 users

Literary Fiction

11 users

Novels

11 users

Contemporary

10 users

Romance

10 users

Womens Fiction > Chick Lit

10 users

Young Adult > Coming Of Age

8 users

Book Club

6 users

Adult Fiction

6 users

Historical Fiction

6 users

See top shelves...

Readers also enjoyed similar books

Books by Hilary Thayer Hamann

L'auteur: L'editions Benard - workbooks for artists and writers

Categorieson the Beauty of Physics: Essential Physics Concepts and Their Companions in Art & Literature

More…

Share This Book

Facebook Twitter Your website

Trivia About Anthropology of a...

No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »

Quotes from Anthropology of an Ame...

“Boys will be boys, that's what people say. No one ever mentions how girls have to be something other than themselves altogether. We are to stifle the same feelings that boys are encouraged to display. We are to use gossip as a means of policing ourselves -- this way those who do succumb to sex but are not damaged by it are damaged instead by peer malice. Girls demand a covenant because if one gives in, others will be expected to do the same. We are to remain united in cruelty, ignorance, and aversion. Or we are to starve the flesh from our bones, penalizing the body for its nature, castigating ourselves for advances we are powerless to prevent. We are to make false promises then resist the attentions solicited. Basically we are to become expert liars. (p. 65)” — 148 people liked it

“It's better to keep grief inside. Grief inside works like bees or ants, building curious and perfect structures, complicating you. Grief outside means you want something from someone, and chances are good you won't get it.” — 64 people liked it

More quotes…

title link	preview: Anthropology of an American Girl
avg rating	preview: Anthropology of an American Girl Goodreads rating: 3.29 (2310 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6393809-anthropology-of-an-american-girl?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348641946l/6393809.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6393809-anthropology-of-an-american-girl?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Anthropology of an American Girl by Hilary Thayer Hamann[/url]

Anthropology of an American Girl

Friend Reviews

Community Reviews

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website