I got on a Jennifer Weiner kick after enjoying Fly Away Home so much, and The Guy Not Taken was one of the few I hadn't read yet. I don't often read short stories, because I always feel let down when I come to the end of each one, wanting to stay for longer with those characters and in that world. Weiner sort of assuages that feeling, since the first few stories are about the same family at different times in their lives. But I was happy to meet, albeit briefly, the characters in her other stories, although she had the habit of ending the story just as the character was about to make a change or resolve an issue, leaving the result up to the reader's imagination. Particularly compelling was the story of a woman who decides to list her beloved, inherited apartment to help her Realtor boyfriend's career. It was as suspenseful as any murder-mystery - I found myself reading faster and faster, and holding my breath that she'd stop the motions of the sale of her fantastic apartment, even if it meant losing the guy. At the end of the book Weiner offers a little more insight and explanation about each of the stories, and she explains that the stories are, in chronological order, a look at a different stage in life. While I was reading I didn't notice that, but looking back it was neat to see.