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32nd out of 35 books
—
32 voters
And the Heart Says Whatever
by
Emily Gould (Goodreads Author)
A collection of linked essays about working and being young, then not as young, in New York.
Paperback, 211 pages
Published
May 4th 2010
by Free Press
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my latest entry over at CCLaP!
***
Emily Gould was, at least for me, the most fascinating and brilliant Gawker writer at exactly the time that I was unhealthily obsessed with that blog, which was the same time that I was a corporate publishing drone, which was the same time that I was in my early twenties, in the tightest grips of trying to figure out who the fuck I was and what the fuck I was doing with my post-collegiate, grownup life. Obviously I'm not the only gal for whom that's true, and Emi...more
***
Emily Gould was, at least for me, the most fascinating and brilliant Gawker writer at exactly the time that I was unhealthily obsessed with that blog, which was the same time that I was a corporate publishing drone, which was the same time that I was in my early twenties, in the tightest grips of trying to figure out who the fuck I was and what the fuck I was doing with my post-collegiate, grownup life. Obviously I'm not the only gal for whom that's true, and Emi...more
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Emily Gould is a hipster. Let me get that out of the way. The word never comes up, but it's clear from the first couple of pages. But there's a worse sin in this book, one that always, without fail, will cause me to put down a memoir. One of the blurbs on the back describes it as "heightened self-awareness", but I prefer to call it extreme narcissism. Even when she's being self-deprecating, it feels forced, like she doesn't believe it. It is possible talk about yourself and your life in a likabl...more
Emily Gould is no Churchill, but memoir can also be about small events of the unaccomplished well-told (David Sedaris), the journey of the Self through hardships and transformation, or a personal perspective refracting larger times, places or themes. Strangely, this book isn’t any of these things—about as eventful as a sophomore’s diary as she slacks through sex, pot, puppies, apartments and waitressing in NYC in the 2000s. Gould was a snarky editor at Gawker and landed a piece in the NYTimes Ma...more
Aahhhhh. What heart? This could’ve been what some had hoped it would be – the female voice of a generation, with a little guidance. What it is is sad, and maybe that IS an accurate representation of Emily Gould’s generation. The book would have had more power had it been written back to front. The last line: “ …love and sadness, twined together so tightly they are in-distinguishable.” (p.208) —is the theme that runs through the book and, in fact, defines confusion - as love & sadness are on...more
If you're like me (a late-comer to Gawker reading), you might have first heard of Emily Gould when she graced the cover of the New York Times Magazine in a partial state of undress, accompanied by an article that buzzed around for days. It seemed everyone loved to hate her -- her self-indulgence, her fame-for-no-reason, her over-confessional style...I hadn't read the article, but I quickly nodded my head and came to hate her. Two years later, I went back, read the article, and somewhat guiltily...more
I remember reading a quote once by Katherine Paterson, stating that children's books are either mirrors (showing the reader something about him or her self) or windows (showing the reader something about The Other)... and that, essentially, children love both kinds of stories. I think the same thing is true about books for grown-ups, and I started out reading And the Heart Says Whatever (such a great title) assuming it would be a window book for me. Emily Gould and I apparently have nothing in c...more
For some reason I've long felt a kinship with Emily Gould. Maybe it's because I love that she has big tattoos on her arms and yet still manages to look a bit like she belongs in a church choir. Maybe it's because I enjoyed reading her stuff on Gawker. Maybe it's because I read some of the comments made about her essay for the New York Times Magazine, and I felt protective of her as a result. Who knows why?
This nebulous sense of camaraderie led me to buy a copy of her book, making it the latest a...more
This nebulous sense of camaraderie led me to buy a copy of her book, making it the latest a...more
At some point we all sat around and wondered what the hell personal blogging would mean, ultimately, for the good old-fashioned world of the printed word. The kind that comes on paper, bound, with a flattering author portrait and blurbs from friends.
As an anecdote to that, I present Emily Gould's book of personal essays "And the Heart Says Whatever." The former go-go Gawker girl's collection includes vignettes of being a sexually aware high school student wrist-deep in the trousers of an underc...more
As an anecdote to that, I present Emily Gould's book of personal essays "And the Heart Says Whatever." The former go-go Gawker girl's collection includes vignettes of being a sexually aware high school student wrist-deep in the trousers of an underc...more
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I wanted to like this. I sort of know her world, I'm just about her age, I like the title.
I could certainly identify with Gould as narrator, but that didn't make the book interesting. First of all, from the outset, the book seeks to become obsolete within the next few minutes. Gould blathers on about the Gawker, taking for granted that I know about and am interested in this entity, without even really explaining what it is or why it's important enough that she got a book deal out of it. Certainl...more
I could certainly identify with Gould as narrator, but that didn't make the book interesting. First of all, from the outset, the book seeks to become obsolete within the next few minutes. Gould blathers on about the Gawker, taking for granted that I know about and am interested in this entity, without even really explaining what it is or why it's important enough that she got a book deal out of it. Certainl...more
I'm kind of between 2.5 and 3 stars on this.
On the one hand, I thought the author had a strong sense of voice and the essays were tightly crafted. And I can relate, painfully, to two of her major themes: having left a too-comfortable-but-not-really-healthy relationship, and to trying to figure myself out as an English major-y, media-and-publishing person, in my early 20s.
And, I flew through this book in record time.
But all the while I was eating it up, I was thinking, "So...is there going to...more
On the one hand, I thought the author had a strong sense of voice and the essays were tightly crafted. And I can relate, painfully, to two of her major themes: having left a too-comfortable-but-not-really-healthy relationship, and to trying to figure myself out as an English major-y, media-and-publishing person, in my early 20s.
And, I flew through this book in record time.
But all the while I was eating it up, I was thinking, "So...is there going to...more
She's for sure not a bad writer, she's just self centered as all hell. Of course, she's 27ish and wrote a memoir (not even a collection of essays) about how over the course of about ten years she's been in about the same place. Not much changes for her emotional state, we see, just the scenery. What is unique is that I find that this is a very different perspective for a female to have than most non-fiction/biography writers. You see more males with this type of world view. I see why it is compa...more
I can't decide on a two or three stars for this.
It's a memoir of the author's post 20 years living in New York.
I read all narratives about 20-somethings with some trepidation since that is where I am in life right now.
If the characters are more successful or better looking or have richer parents than I do - I have a hard time sympathizing with their problems, and my self esteem plummets a little.
Two obvious themes in the single 20-something life are career and relationships. I enjoyed the secti...more
It's a memoir of the author's post 20 years living in New York.
I read all narratives about 20-somethings with some trepidation since that is where I am in life right now.
If the characters are more successful or better looking or have richer parents than I do - I have a hard time sympathizing with their problems, and my self esteem plummets a little.
Two obvious themes in the single 20-something life are career and relationships. I enjoyed the secti...more
I liked it! Sure, I'm a helpless fan of the 20something personal literary memoir, but Gould was incredibly honest and perceptive in an interesting and quick to read way.
I read it to better understand how it is to be a woman and still feel the way I feel about something and she showed me an accurate slice of coming of age in the same New York I did and I'm glad to feel like a peer observer. Kudos.
I read it to better understand how it is to be a woman and still feel the way I feel about something and she showed me an accurate slice of coming of age in the same New York I did and I'm glad to feel like a peer observer. Kudos.
I have a weird aversion to/insistence to continue following Emily Gould as a writer. I think a lot of it stems from being slightly jealous of her. She lives a certain sort of lifestyle and writes for high-profile publications. In another life, I wish I could have had that. Or be a person who would be comfortable with doing what you need to do to have that.
But when I read what she has to say about that, I can't find much to enjoy. I can't understand where she's coming from at all, not when she w...more
But when I read what she has to say about that, I can't find much to enjoy. I can't understand where she's coming from at all, not when she w...more
I'm in my early twenties, a big reader and a closet writer who dreams of an awesome writing job. I once had big dreams about New York and this memoir sounded right up my alley. Hell, Gould sounded like my lost sister. While I had many "right there with you" moments, there was still this slight irritation, which I rarely feel toward the author unless I know he's a total ass.
I kind of felt like Gould was trying way too hard to fit a very specific wannabe Sex and the City cliche, which is fun, but...more
I kind of felt like Gould was trying way too hard to fit a very specific wannabe Sex and the City cliche, which is fun, but...more
"I poured myself a glass of the champagne I'd brought and took it over to the window where I stood, not even feeling awkward standing by myself. I could stand by myself at a party. I could decide who I wanted to talk to and when. I had made it this far; it felt like I'd scaled something. In a way, I had, and in a way I was at the bottom. But I would climb, and fall, and climb." (108)
"The song was beautiful and now no one will hear it again. The past is not a place that you can visit. The present...more
"The song was beautiful and now no one will hear it again. The past is not a place that you can visit. The present...more
This book disturbed me in how much it felt like my old former life in NYC. From the raiding of meeting food leftovers to the reflections on Nan Goldin, dude, this was me. Except with not as cool/freaky of a job at Gawker. Or all that drug usage. And I lived in Brooklyn from the get go. And I always just had one boyfriend and no hookups with coworkers. Anyway. I could relate to a lot.
I met Emily at her reading in Iowa City before I read the book, and grew to like her very much when some of us loc...more
I met Emily at her reading in Iowa City before I read the book, and grew to like her very much when some of us loc...more
What a colossal disappointment. I read about this book...somewhere, I can't remember where...and thought it's description promised a fulfilling look a life I daydream about - a young, literary-inclined woman in her 20s trying to make it in the big city. Blogging and boozing and break-ups and breakdowns. Scummy jobs, better jobs, dabbling with various members of the opposite sex, eye-rolling at parents who don't get it. And yes, all of those things were in Ms. Gould's book. But she didn't tell us...more
I really enjoyed this book, and thought that it deserved the comparison to The Bell Jar that Curtis Sittenfeld made in her blurb. Part of the pleasure that I took in these insightful, simultaneously melancholy and darkly funny essays about working in publishing in New York, was the fact that I briefly worked in publishing in New York, and thought that Gould nailed the uncomfortable condition of amorphous, target-less ambition that so many young people (especially young women) in the field seemed...more
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I heard about this book when Emily Gould was featured in a podcast with Curtis Fox on the Poetry Foundation website. I finally picked it up.
Gould isn’t afraid to admit how caustic she has been. I recognized horrible things I have thought and even acted on, which made it a hard, but important, read.
“I’d tried so hard to be good. I’d seen that being good was ineffective, at best.”
And the Heart Says Whatever doesn’t pretend to be a feel good romp about growth. It explores what it’s like to be a dr...more
Gould isn’t afraid to admit how caustic she has been. I recognized horrible things I have thought and even acted on, which made it a hard, but important, read.
“I’d tried so hard to be good. I’d seen that being good was ineffective, at best.”
And the Heart Says Whatever doesn’t pretend to be a feel good romp about growth. It explores what it’s like to be a dr...more
Because I am silly and rarely know what's good for me, when a book or movie seems to be marketed in such a way that it suggests that it's too relevant to my own life, I get all cynical and a little bit embarrassed and throw around the word "cloying" very easily. "Juno" has done this to me, I fear. So, I'll admit it: I held this book on the subway in such a way that you couldn't see its title. And yet, this book is a memoir about a girl who graduated with an English degree, moved to New York, que...more
I alternately hated and liked (not loved, but liked) this book. It's a little too easy to skewer the queen of gossip, to hate on the narcissistic trendy hipster she represents. The truth is, she's learned some interesting truths and she writes about them well, but on the whole, I find it a bit of a yawn.
There's little to pity in Gould's early suburban life or in her college years at Kenyon. Her certainty that she is "somehow extraordinary" isn't special, anymore than her awkward sexual experienc...more
There's little to pity in Gould's early suburban life or in her college years at Kenyon. Her certainty that she is "somehow extraordinary" isn't special, anymore than her awkward sexual experienc...more
Emily Gould's And The Heart Says Whatever left me depressed, and not because I think she evoked her own depression well.
Let me start by saying that a lot of the criticisms leveled at Gould and at this book are not necessarily dealbreakers for me. Many writers accused of narcissism have written incredibly introspective portraits of everyday lives. I don't think you have to have lived into late adulthood to write a memoir (that would eliminate Sylvia Plath, John Keats, a couple of Brontes, and a...more
Let me start by saying that a lot of the criticisms leveled at Gould and at this book are not necessarily dealbreakers for me. Many writers accused of narcissism have written incredibly introspective portraits of everyday lives. I don't think you have to have lived into late adulthood to write a memoir (that would eliminate Sylvia Plath, John Keats, a couple of Brontes, and a...more
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I'd probably like to justify my rating more than I'm going to, but basically, I liked it. I wasn't bothered by the blasé attitude (maybe actually appreciated it) and wasn't bored (because the stories interested me). And although Emily does often come off as supremely unlikeable, I empathized. Like it's tied to the blasé attitude, and if you get an honest, minimally-processed-and-polished picture of anybody and the things that they've done and why they did them and what they were thinking, they'r...more
May 31, 2010
Mary (BookHounds)
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Shelves:
2010-book-challenge,
from-publisher-author
I will never be a writer. I don't have the ability to expose myself the way Emily Gould has in this series of essays about her life and the publishing world. I had heard of Gawker.com but never actually read anything there unless it was forwarded to me and in a way, I am really glad I didn't know anything about Emily Gould's writing or life. This short book of essays really exemplifies the state of the single in NYC and how difficult it is to grow up these days. I think everyone has had a job th...more
The quote on the cover calls it both a collection of "poignant essays" and "a twenty-first century version of The Bell Jar." I found it sort of depressing to consider that people who used to read (biographical) novels about existentialist crisis now read salacious essays in their place.
Like ninety percent mindless entertainment, and the rest is split between pithy phrasings and moody recognition. Not that I discount Gould's experience as a person telling her story, but the way she's told these...more
Like ninety percent mindless entertainment, and the rest is split between pithy phrasings and moody recognition. Not that I discount Gould's experience as a person telling her story, but the way she's told these...more
I liked it, I did, but I didn't love it. I think there are some great moments where Gould talks about working in publishing, about being new to New York, about being lost and aimless and hoping to be recognized as being special. But a lot of it also felt kind of self-indulgent. And I'm not sure how I haven't thought that about all autobiography/memoir, but I definitely haven't. There were times, I think, where she felt she was being more insightful or wise than I found her to be.
All that said,...more
All that said,...more
fast read, memoir of a 30 something in nyc hipster zone. she worked in publishing, for gawker.com, for publishing again. living the life of the mind, in these times, you can imagine, is pretty shallow (nyrb it ain't) but then it is human, so that is nice. Chewing mother's little helper while having panic attacks about having a 9-5 job, being snarky as a living, slinging drinks, smoking smoke, having sex as if it means something, or could mean something. having mommy and daddy help you move to a...more
I found this to be an enticing read but I did not necessarily like the author as a person, and I think that was intentional on her part. It must be difficult to write a memoir and include some of the more unattractive qualities of yourself, but she was brave enough to do so. I found myself looking forward to reading this book- I liked her simple prose- but I didn't necessarily find it an enjoyable book in the traditional sense.
I wouldn't recommend this book to everyone. I found it relatable bec...more
I wouldn't recommend this book to everyone. I found it relatable bec...more
Emily Gould's essays of her young, disillusioned, and jaded New York self struck a cord with me as a young New Yorker who has also quickly become jaded. Gould shares stories of bad bosses, striving to get by in a city that is rarely kind to its inhabitants, mistakes made in relationships, and indifference to, well, nearly everything.
While these stories reminded me of other novels/stories I've read of bitter people living in New York, Gould's resonated with me as a young woman trying to make it i...more
While these stories reminded me of other novels/stories I've read of bitter people living in New York, Gould's resonated with me as a young woman trying to make it i...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fact vs Fiction | 1 | 5 | Sep 23, 2010 05:12pm |
Emily Gould was born and raised in Silver Spring, Maryland. She went to Kenyon College for two years, then completed her B.A. at Eugene Lang College (The New School for Liberal Arts) in New York City. She has lived in NYC - first in the East Village, then in Greenpoint, and now in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn -- since May 2001.
Since moving to New York Emily has had a number of jobs, including work at Hyper...more
More about Emily Gould...
Since moving to New York Emily has had a number of jobs, including work at Hyper...more
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“As a child I was a little bit disgusted and embarrassed to learn about the facts of life, and did not immediately connect the idea of “sex” to the feelings I got when I lay on the carpet on my stomach,idly humping a stuffed animal while watching Sesame Street. The realization that sex could be something to anticipate happily rather than to dread as another unpleasant grown-up duty came to me in a dream. Nothing overtly sexual even happened in this dream—it was a dream about lying in bed on a sunny afternoon with sun streaking the sheets, surrounded by warmth, feeling satisfied. It took life a long time for life to catch up with what this idealized version of sex could be like; it’s still not like that every time, but when it is, I notice.”
—
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