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Gravity Vs. the Girl
Samantha Green has just spent an entire year in her pajamas, and she is beginning to regret it. What's more, she is haunted by four ghosts that are former versions of herself. First up is the overachieving and materialistic attorney, who is furious with Samantha for throwing away the career she worked so hard to build. Second is the lackadaisical college student who is high on life but low on responsibility. Next is the melodramatic teenager, who is consumed with her social standing, teal eyeliner and teased bangs. Finally, there is the scrappy six-year old, whose only objective is to overcome gravity so that she can fly. Samantha's ghosts alternate between fighting with each other, rallying around Samantha's budding sanity and falling in love with a string of good-for-nothing drummers. Despite her reluctance to do so, Samantha must rely on these spirits from the past to repair the present and ensure her future.
264 pages, Paperback
First published January 13, 2009
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 106 reviews
February 21, 2014
As I was reading this book I kept thinking, "now THIS is good writing". I was in love with the book, with the style, the plot movement, the characters. I felt like the author was fearless, she was going to tell the story her way in her time and she didn't worry if the readers were left scratching their heads. I loved it, I loved it, I loved it. And then it ended, and I kept looking for you know, the end. And it wasn't there, and I was really sad for like three days. I don't know if I am just not as smart as I thought I was, and I am one of the readers that got left behind scratching my head, or if I just had a vastly different vision for how the book could have gone than the author did. I just felt like there were three major plot issues that she dangled, and then left dangling. And I want them resolved. I practically need them resolved. But, it's been about a week now and I am starting to move past it and accept the fact that I will never know the answers to those questions, vital though they felt at the time. I would have given this five stars, but for the lingering resentment I guess I still feel over the ending.
December 5, 2018
Samantha Green has given up on life. After quitting her job as a lawyer at a large firm, she has spent the last year in bed, surviving on jello, but when the ghost of her six year old self convinces her to get out of bed, she embarks on a journey of self discovery. Sam must not only discover what she should do now - jobless and broke, but must face the phantoms in her past - the parts of her that made her who she is, but that she can't quite let go of - the high powered attorney, the teenager, the college co-ed, and the six year old girl whose mother died.
Wow, I really loved this book. (It has been on my to-read list for a long time, but I finally got it through an inter-library loan.) Well written and thought-provoking, I loved watching Sam come face to face with her demons, as well as the good in her past. As she grew and picked up the pieces of her shattered life, she was able to put it back together into something that fit her better than ever. There was also a little romance thrown in, which was fun.
Wow, I really loved this book. (It has been on my to-read list for a long time, but I finally got it through an inter-library loan.) Well written and thought-provoking, I loved watching Sam come face to face with her demons, as well as the good in her past. As she grew and picked up the pieces of her shattered life, she was able to put it back together into something that fit her better than ever. There was also a little romance thrown in, which was fun.
January 14, 2016
I don't know what it is about this book, but I loved it. It was something I would have hated a few years ago, but captivated me. I connected to her character and her struggle against "gravity". This book was stunning, and as far as I'm concerned, was a wonderful mix of foreshadow and clarity.
I could definitely recommend this book, though I don't know what specific audience would enjoy it.
I could definitely recommend this book, though I don't know what specific audience would enjoy it.
October 18, 2013
I really enjoyed this book. All of my friends should read it, right now. I can't remember if there are any language issues, but there is one relationship that goes too far, but you don't read any details, and the character never treats it like it is a healthy thing or a good idea.
I loved everything else about this book. The way the past is revealed throughout the present. The way the story unfolds as we learn more about the main character, piece by piece, to understand how she has arrived where she is. I love the idea of ghosts of yourself that haunt you.
The main character was a successful young lawyer who has a mental breakdown of sorts and then tries to piece her life back together with various versions of herself following her around.
The book made me wonder what parts of my life I haven't really moved past, that I'm still reliving and stuck in.
Here are my highlighted excerpts.
"'It's extra time and extra money,' the attorney explained. 'Together, that means freedom.'
True, but 'together' was the evasive lynchpin. I had known both ends of the spectrum before—well enough to know that they were the opposite of freedom. If you have too much money, it means you are locked in a job that takes all your free time. On the other hand, if you have plenty of time, but no money, you are similarly incapacitated. The latter scenario results in a year spent in your jammies. The former results in delusions that a year spent in your jambes actually sounds like a good idea. It's better to have just enough of both."
"I pulled into Jack's driveway and raced the little girl through the trees towards the house. Jack and Joe were still standing there, waiting for me. I wondered what they had talked about, then figured they hadn't talked at all. Men tolerate silence far better than women."
"As for the clients, I was just very grateful I didn't have to deal with them myself. My experience at Wallace and Kennedy had taught me that most clients are determined to shoot themselves in the foot, at least from a legal standpoint, and then they huff, puff, whine and shout when you try to talk them out of it."
"'Yeah, Mommy died. She had cancer.'
Libby's eyes grew wide, crazy with the kind of horrified curiosity with which one drives by the scene of a gruesome car accident. 'I know,' she whispered, as if she were launching into a ghost story. 'And she's never coming back.'
'Nope,' the little girl agreed, reveling in her cousin's pity, 'probably not for a really long time.'
Libby's eyebrows darted toward one another at hearing this. The voice of reverence was replaced with her usual, obnoxiously authoritative tone. 'No, Sam—not ever! Once people die, they don't come back.'
'Well . . .' the little girl thought again about her mommy was lying in a box somewhere and how Snow White was also in a box for a while but then later she got out of it and married the prince. 'I think sometimes they do come back.'
'No! They don't!'
The little girl didn't know where Libby was getting her information from, but she was pretty sure they were questionable sources at best. Snow White, Sleeping Beauty—pretty much all of history's finest princesses had come back form the dead to be with people they loved. Surely then mommy would come back to be with her. It occurred to the little girl that perhaps Aunt Sarita had told Libby that dead people don't return because she had no intention of returning for Libby but didn't want to hurt her daughter's feelings."
"Being junior class president was one of the most trying experiences of her short life.
Although you'd never know it from her crazy hair and dated fashion sense, the teenager was a bit of a perfectionist, and perfectionists are ill-suited to managerial positions because they are incapable of delegating to nonperfectionists. Most high school students are nonperfectionists. No two of them will twist a paper streamer the same way."
"Despite his whining, Alex continued with the paces, the arm-crossing, the brow-furrowing. More importantly, he resisted the urge to ask the obvious question—Why?—and he deserved loads of credit for that. For all his free t-shirt quirks, Alex was one of the few people I knew that understood a person will offer the why? upfront if she feels like offering it at all."
"When would she learn what I had learned—that it is harder to recover from the lack of a plan than to take the effort to make one in the first place? That it was harder to rebound from the lack of a plan than from the disappointment of a failed plan?"
"But he laughed lightly, and looked up at me. The blinking had completely stopped. He looked straight at me, full eye contact and everything.
It was the first time in my life that I ever felt positively adored."
"Before mommy got sick, she used to brush the tangles out of the little girl's long, fine hair every night before she went to bed—a ritual so soft and soothing that it sometimes made her dizzy. But ever since mommy was in the hospital, the little girl's hair was only combed every other day by Jack—right after her bath and when it was sopping wet. He wouldn't ever use the no-tangles spray stuff, and his weapon of choice was one of his black old-man combs with the teeth too close together. It was a painful, even torturous experience, and a part of their adopted routine they had both come to particularly dread due to the screaming and yelling and tantrum-throwing and tear-gushing that was bound to accompany it."
"'Okay,' he said. 'I'm going to stay here by the ramp with 911 already dialed on my cell phone and my finger on the talk button.'
It was the second sexist thing he said that day. Didn't he know that you were supposed to have 911 programmed into speed dial on the '9' position on your cell phone? Then I realized that only women cared about advice like that, and so the fact that he didn't know it was evidence that, like most men, he had never anticipated a violent personal attack which would require him to speed dial 911 and scream out his name and approximate location mid-struggle."
"I finally turned around. I didn't know if he could see the tears or not—tears that had waited so long to be shed that they had seemingly fermented inside my tear ducts. They burned as they splashed down my cheeks, burned so bad that I was sure they were leaving scars on my face and I would forever look like a girl who had just been crying."
"Today I realize that I am nothing more than tomorrow's ghost. In a way, it robs my sense of self to know I'm always changing; at the same time, it provides incentive to have the best today possible so I can have a positive influence on tomorrow and, if needs be, shake some sense into the living."
I loved everything else about this book. The way the past is revealed throughout the present. The way the story unfolds as we learn more about the main character, piece by piece, to understand how she has arrived where she is. I love the idea of ghosts of yourself that haunt you.
The main character was a successful young lawyer who has a mental breakdown of sorts and then tries to piece her life back together with various versions of herself following her around.
The book made me wonder what parts of my life I haven't really moved past, that I'm still reliving and stuck in.
Here are my highlighted excerpts.
"'It's extra time and extra money,' the attorney explained. 'Together, that means freedom.'
True, but 'together' was the evasive lynchpin. I had known both ends of the spectrum before—well enough to know that they were the opposite of freedom. If you have too much money, it means you are locked in a job that takes all your free time. On the other hand, if you have plenty of time, but no money, you are similarly incapacitated. The latter scenario results in a year spent in your jammies. The former results in delusions that a year spent in your jambes actually sounds like a good idea. It's better to have just enough of both."
"I pulled into Jack's driveway and raced the little girl through the trees towards the house. Jack and Joe were still standing there, waiting for me. I wondered what they had talked about, then figured they hadn't talked at all. Men tolerate silence far better than women."
"As for the clients, I was just very grateful I didn't have to deal with them myself. My experience at Wallace and Kennedy had taught me that most clients are determined to shoot themselves in the foot, at least from a legal standpoint, and then they huff, puff, whine and shout when you try to talk them out of it."
"'Yeah, Mommy died. She had cancer.'
Libby's eyes grew wide, crazy with the kind of horrified curiosity with which one drives by the scene of a gruesome car accident. 'I know,' she whispered, as if she were launching into a ghost story. 'And she's never coming back.'
'Nope,' the little girl agreed, reveling in her cousin's pity, 'probably not for a really long time.'
Libby's eyebrows darted toward one another at hearing this. The voice of reverence was replaced with her usual, obnoxiously authoritative tone. 'No, Sam—not ever! Once people die, they don't come back.'
'Well . . .' the little girl thought again about her mommy was lying in a box somewhere and how Snow White was also in a box for a while but then later she got out of it and married the prince. 'I think sometimes they do come back.'
'No! They don't!'
The little girl didn't know where Libby was getting her information from, but she was pretty sure they were questionable sources at best. Snow White, Sleeping Beauty—pretty much all of history's finest princesses had come back form the dead to be with people they loved. Surely then mommy would come back to be with her. It occurred to the little girl that perhaps Aunt Sarita had told Libby that dead people don't return because she had no intention of returning for Libby but didn't want to hurt her daughter's feelings."
"Being junior class president was one of the most trying experiences of her short life.
Although you'd never know it from her crazy hair and dated fashion sense, the teenager was a bit of a perfectionist, and perfectionists are ill-suited to managerial positions because they are incapable of delegating to nonperfectionists. Most high school students are nonperfectionists. No two of them will twist a paper streamer the same way."
"Despite his whining, Alex continued with the paces, the arm-crossing, the brow-furrowing. More importantly, he resisted the urge to ask the obvious question—Why?—and he deserved loads of credit for that. For all his free t-shirt quirks, Alex was one of the few people I knew that understood a person will offer the why? upfront if she feels like offering it at all."
"When would she learn what I had learned—that it is harder to recover from the lack of a plan than to take the effort to make one in the first place? That it was harder to rebound from the lack of a plan than from the disappointment of a failed plan?"
"But he laughed lightly, and looked up at me. The blinking had completely stopped. He looked straight at me, full eye contact and everything.
It was the first time in my life that I ever felt positively adored."
"Before mommy got sick, she used to brush the tangles out of the little girl's long, fine hair every night before she went to bed—a ritual so soft and soothing that it sometimes made her dizzy. But ever since mommy was in the hospital, the little girl's hair was only combed every other day by Jack—right after her bath and when it was sopping wet. He wouldn't ever use the no-tangles spray stuff, and his weapon of choice was one of his black old-man combs with the teeth too close together. It was a painful, even torturous experience, and a part of their adopted routine they had both come to particularly dread due to the screaming and yelling and tantrum-throwing and tear-gushing that was bound to accompany it."
"'Okay,' he said. 'I'm going to stay here by the ramp with 911 already dialed on my cell phone and my finger on the talk button.'
It was the second sexist thing he said that day. Didn't he know that you were supposed to have 911 programmed into speed dial on the '9' position on your cell phone? Then I realized that only women cared about advice like that, and so the fact that he didn't know it was evidence that, like most men, he had never anticipated a violent personal attack which would require him to speed dial 911 and scream out his name and approximate location mid-struggle."
"I finally turned around. I didn't know if he could see the tears or not—tears that had waited so long to be shed that they had seemingly fermented inside my tear ducts. They burned as they splashed down my cheeks, burned so bad that I was sure they were leaving scars on my face and I would forever look like a girl who had just been crying."
"Today I realize that I am nothing more than tomorrow's ghost. In a way, it robs my sense of self to know I'm always changing; at the same time, it provides incentive to have the best today possible so I can have a positive influence on tomorrow and, if needs be, shake some sense into the living."
August 19, 2009
Written by my mother-in-law's college roommate's daughter (follow that?) under a pen name. Apparently written in a "book in a month" challenge. I found it entertaining and creatively written. Tells the story of a 30s girl in midlife crisis who wakes up to find she's being haunted by ghosts of her former self...a six-year old girl, a emotional teenager, a laid-back college student, and the high powered attorney working at a big city law firm. The 6 year old ghost is the first to appear, begging the 30s self to help her "beat gravity," her childhood obsession of trying to fly on her bike over the gulch near her home. In the end, you realize that the 30s gal needed to defy gravity in a different way.
I think we all feel like our history is always with us, reminding us of what we've learned (or not learned) thru the years. This book just illustrates that phenomenon in a charming way.
I kept thinking it would make a cute chick flick--I'd cast Sandra Bullock for the lead. She's the perfect pretty girl next door.
I think we all feel like our history is always with us, reminding us of what we've learned (or not learned) thru the years. This book just illustrates that phenomenon in a charming way.
I kept thinking it would make a cute chick flick--I'd cast Sandra Bullock for the lead. She's the perfect pretty girl next door.
September 27, 2010
When I mark "romance", I think I need to qualify it as "kinda". The romance part seemed incidental to the soul-searching, getting in touch with your inner child, Margaret Atwood-esque analysis of the impact of women's relationships (especially early ones and especially with other women) on their development of their sense of self. Kind of felt like an overlong short story. I thoroughly enjoyed the unique look at the main character's fragmented self and how she "got up off the couch" at last, so to speak, and thought the characters were engaging. But also felt the "romance" was predictable and that there was a moment with a distractor that seemed totally unbelievable. There were also some really odd stylistic issues where words were used in a slightly wrong sense (not for any fresh or poetic purpose as far as I could tell) and some odd grammatical structures that were a little Yoda-speak in nature. Overall an enjoyable read, fun, interesting, a little light on conflicts and plot.
November 24, 2012
Yes, there is an element of "love story" and "beach read" here, but I found this book compelling in how it addressed the main character's depression. Also, I have often pondered the young selves within each of us, how we change over time, but how we carry with us the former child, teenager, young adult we once were, and how pivotal experiences remain with us in ways that influence us even though we have evolved. At the end of this book, I had a list of very specific ways I would have edited it, mostly to increase some subtlety and tie fewer bows, but I still felt really glad I had stumbled across it on Kindle for a quick weekend read because of the resonance about identity.
August 23, 2011
I LOVED this book! Maybe it is because I feel like I am one chocolate bar away from a nervous breakdown most of the time, that I related with Samantha's meltdown. Samantha hasn't gotten out of bed or out of her pajamas in over a year--and now she is haunted by four ghosts of her previous selves.
This was such a brilliant concept. I can only imagine what my child-self and teenage-self would think of me today. Even given the heavy subject matter of depression and lunacy, it was light, funny, touching, and insightful. I would read it again in a second :)
This was such a brilliant concept. I can only imagine what my child-self and teenage-self would think of me today. Even given the heavy subject matter of depression and lunacy, it was light, funny, touching, and insightful. I would read it again in a second :)
May 29, 2009
A good summer read, easy to get through. If you like chick-lit., this is probably one of the better of that genre. Personally, I am not so much into these kinds of novels, however, I liked this book, whereas others I have read that belong to the same category, I have strongly disliked in the past (i.e. P.S. I Love You, I know a lot of the book club loved this read, but a bit too gaggy for me, no offense).
February 7, 2010
This was not one of my favorite books that I have read lately. I really never grew to like the main character or feel for her. There were too many Sam's floating around and I was never able to connect to any of them. I would have enjoyed this story more if it had been written from the main characters POV only. There were too many voices telling this story, hence why the connection for me never happened.
July 14, 2010
I started this book having no idea what it was about, and after the first couple of pages I was about to put it down for good. I'm so glad I didn't! This was very well written. Noehren did an excellent job making me think about how people change over the course of their lives and how our past never quite leaves us and can overwhelm our present if we let it. Noehren accomplished this in a light entertaining--yet very touching at times--manner.
March 22, 2013
I read this on Beth's recommendation and loved it! I enjoyed the main character's interaction with the ghosts of her former selves and thought it was easily relate-able - I feel like we all do this to some degree, reach a point in life where we say to ourselves, "Is this where I wanted to be in life...?" Or even "Is this where I should be in life?" I loved the idea of her ghosts disappearing as she resolved issues from her personal past; it was amusing, and quick, and thoroughly enjoyable.
February 15, 2019
I loved riding along with Samantha Green as she tries to put the pieces of her life back together while at the same time figuring out exactly who she is and wants to be. This story was clever, well-written, and I enjoyed the story very much. And if any of my local friends want to read this, just let me know and you can borrow my copy.
September 6, 2009
Best book I've read in a very long time! Not only was it engaging, entertaining, and endearing, but it taught me valuable things. Thank you, Samantha Green, I am better for having known you.
May 26, 2020
Really enjoyed it. Light hearted book of a 31 year old dealing with her own demons in the form of "ghosts" of her past. Very thoughtful and funny.
January 22, 2026
I read this book many many years ago and still think of it. How heavy gravity can feel when in the midst of an emotional or mental health crisis.
February 28, 2017
Not a complete waste of time, but I didn't enjoy this book. Others at book club really liked it. The main character was not completely believable for me, but that might be because I could not relate to her or her problems.
May 4, 2010
Over the last month, I've read a lot of books I would have passed by on a library or bookstore shelf without giving it a second glance. While I'm not disappointed to have read those books, I've finished most of the books thinking that they hadn't really penetrated or changed me in the way that I like to be transformed by the books I read. Without this Whitney experience, I doubt I ever would have read Gravity vs. The Girl, and I would have missed out.
While it's not a perfect book (Noehren tends to be a little heavy-handed with the metaphors and the love story is fairly predictable, for example), Gravity vs. The Girl is the first Whitney Book that showed quite a bit of imagination in the premise. It's the story of Samantha Green, who has spent the last year in bed after deciding that the big-time life of a corporate lawyer leaves her feeling impossibly empty. The ghost of her six-year-old self finally helps her rise from her bed, and they escape to her childhood home, where three other ghosts from Samantha's past (the lawyer, the student and the teenager) join forces to help Samantha get well. In doing so, Samantha has to confront the way she's lived over the last 30 years, and set things to right so the ghosts can go away.
At the beginning of the book, Samantha has been in a deep depression. And Noehren seems to imply that a change of scenery, a purpose, and a few ghosts can cure mental illness. I would have liked her to show Samantha taking anti-depressants or talking to a mental health professional, along with working with her ghosts. That's my major criticism of the book. But after reading about characters' shiny blond locks and dazzling smiles in the last 11 books, it was a relief to read about outfits made out of the castoffs of a lawyer's professional wear and old running t-shirts, about greasy hair, about characters who know what's right and still choose the wrong.
So far, all of the books I've read have fallen into one of a few categories: they have LDS characters and take place in our current society or they don't have LDS characters and take place in the past (Tribunal, with LDS characters and a historical setting is the main exception). Gravity vs. the Girl is unique in that it takes place in modern times, and the characters aren't LDS. Samantha lives with guys and hangs out in bars, she steals her best friend's boyfriend. She's a good person, but she often makes dumb choices. But Noehren's Mormon background comes through when she talks about things like funeral potatoes and modest dresses. I don't have a lot to say about this phenomenon, and I'm not passing judgment about it, I just think it's kind of curious.
While it's not a perfect book (Noehren tends to be a little heavy-handed with the metaphors and the love story is fairly predictable, for example), Gravity vs. The Girl is the first Whitney Book that showed quite a bit of imagination in the premise. It's the story of Samantha Green, who has spent the last year in bed after deciding that the big-time life of a corporate lawyer leaves her feeling impossibly empty. The ghost of her six-year-old self finally helps her rise from her bed, and they escape to her childhood home, where three other ghosts from Samantha's past (the lawyer, the student and the teenager) join forces to help Samantha get well. In doing so, Samantha has to confront the way she's lived over the last 30 years, and set things to right so the ghosts can go away.
At the beginning of the book, Samantha has been in a deep depression. And Noehren seems to imply that a change of scenery, a purpose, and a few ghosts can cure mental illness. I would have liked her to show Samantha taking anti-depressants or talking to a mental health professional, along with working with her ghosts. That's my major criticism of the book. But after reading about characters' shiny blond locks and dazzling smiles in the last 11 books, it was a relief to read about outfits made out of the castoffs of a lawyer's professional wear and old running t-shirts, about greasy hair, about characters who know what's right and still choose the wrong.
So far, all of the books I've read have fallen into one of a few categories: they have LDS characters and take place in our current society or they don't have LDS characters and take place in the past (Tribunal, with LDS characters and a historical setting is the main exception). Gravity vs. the Girl is unique in that it takes place in modern times, and the characters aren't LDS. Samantha lives with guys and hangs out in bars, she steals her best friend's boyfriend. She's a good person, but she often makes dumb choices. But Noehren's Mormon background comes through when she talks about things like funeral potatoes and modest dresses. I don't have a lot to say about this phenomenon, and I'm not passing judgment about it, I just think it's kind of curious.
May 14, 2015
I picked this up because it seemed like a catchy title. I did NOT read the plot summary on the back...if I had, I probably wouldn't have read the book. What I did read was the author bio: "Riley Noehren is the acclaimed author of zero bestselling novels. Gravity vs. the Girl is her first official work of fiction, but she has been lying to herself her entire life. Riley resides in Los Angeles where she enjoys consistent weather." I just loved that, and figured her sense of humor would come through in the book. I was not disappointed, and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the story, even though I guess technically it was a "romance" or "chick lit" which are normally not my thing.
It was not a perfect book, but it was far superior to a lot of the other fiction out there, and I was abundantly grateful to the author for writing a book where each character felt real and believable (again, so uncommon this this genre), the romance was secondary to the main character's journey of redemption and self-discovery, and (most shocking of all) there was no profanity (seriously, zero!) and no sex scenes. I wish all the other authors of contemporary fiction would take note--it can be done, and the book doesn't have to suffer for it.
Anyway, I recommend this book to anyone of my demographic. I'm sure you'll enjoy it.
I have to include a paragraph that rang so disturbingly true to me, and also made me laugh:
"Although you'd never know it from her crazy hair and dated fashion sense, the teenager was a bit of a perfectionist, and perfectionists are ill-suited to managerial positions because they are incapable of delegating to nonperfectionists. Most high school students are nonperfectionists. No two of them will twist a paper streamer the same way. The inconsistency is maddening--some are tightly wound, while others barely twist at al. Roughly eighty percent of a class president's responsibilities involve overseeing the twisting and hanging of paper streamers; the remaining twenty percent is a combination of balloons, shouting, clapping and metal cash boxes."
It was not a perfect book, but it was far superior to a lot of the other fiction out there, and I was abundantly grateful to the author for writing a book where each character felt real and believable (again, so uncommon this this genre), the romance was secondary to the main character's journey of redemption and self-discovery, and (most shocking of all) there was no profanity (seriously, zero!) and no sex scenes. I wish all the other authors of contemporary fiction would take note--it can be done, and the book doesn't have to suffer for it.
Anyway, I recommend this book to anyone of my demographic. I'm sure you'll enjoy it.
I have to include a paragraph that rang so disturbingly true to me, and also made me laugh:
"Although you'd never know it from her crazy hair and dated fashion sense, the teenager was a bit of a perfectionist, and perfectionists are ill-suited to managerial positions because they are incapable of delegating to nonperfectionists. Most high school students are nonperfectionists. No two of them will twist a paper streamer the same way. The inconsistency is maddening--some are tightly wound, while others barely twist at al. Roughly eighty percent of a class president's responsibilities involve overseeing the twisting and hanging of paper streamers; the remaining twenty percent is a combination of balloons, shouting, clapping and metal cash boxes."
May 23, 2010
Full review posted here.
Inbetween Sundays, one of the weekly podcasts I subscribe to, has this little fun little segment called Chick Flick or Horror Movie, where one of the hosts would say the title of a movie and its synopsis, and the other would have to guess if it’s a horror movie or a chick flick. Easy enough? Not for the hosts, both male, which is part of the fun: I find it hilarious to hear them think that Britney Spears’ first movie Crossroads is a horror movie. The thing that struck me about the game is the fact that there are few grey areas, since genres in Hollywood seem to be mutually exclusive. Most commercial movies are typically classified only under one specific genre: a comedy movie may be able to teach life lessons and bring some tears to but it won’t be classified as a drama, just like a horror movie cannot be a romantic comedy.
Books, however, are a different story. In literature more so than in cinema, genres evolve as more and more books are written and published. Nowadays, many books are a mixture of two or more genres. Of course, it’s not always easy to classify books into their respective mixed genres, especially if you're rather broad and loose with classifications, as I am: I only really divide books into two genres, fantasy and non-fantasy. Anything that falls out of the ordinary is fantasy for me.
Which brings me to my conundrum with Riley Noehren’s Gravity vs. the Girl. This Whitney Award winner for Best Novel by a New Author in 2009 reads like standard non-fantasy chick lit right from the opening pages...click here to read the rest of the review.
Inbetween Sundays, one of the weekly podcasts I subscribe to, has this little fun little segment called Chick Flick or Horror Movie, where one of the hosts would say the title of a movie and its synopsis, and the other would have to guess if it’s a horror movie or a chick flick. Easy enough? Not for the hosts, both male, which is part of the fun: I find it hilarious to hear them think that Britney Spears’ first movie Crossroads is a horror movie. The thing that struck me about the game is the fact that there are few grey areas, since genres in Hollywood seem to be mutually exclusive. Most commercial movies are typically classified only under one specific genre: a comedy movie may be able to teach life lessons and bring some tears to but it won’t be classified as a drama, just like a horror movie cannot be a romantic comedy.
Books, however, are a different story. In literature more so than in cinema, genres evolve as more and more books are written and published. Nowadays, many books are a mixture of two or more genres. Of course, it’s not always easy to classify books into their respective mixed genres, especially if you're rather broad and loose with classifications, as I am: I only really divide books into two genres, fantasy and non-fantasy. Anything that falls out of the ordinary is fantasy for me.
Which brings me to my conundrum with Riley Noehren’s Gravity vs. the Girl. This Whitney Award winner for Best Novel by a New Author in 2009 reads like standard non-fantasy chick lit right from the opening pages...click here to read the rest of the review.
March 23, 2013
As I started reading this book I felt that I had walked into The Christmas Carol meets Elodia Strain. Noehren takes a very comical look at our Heroin's nervous breakdown through the eyes of all of her "past selves." It was a bit confusiing at times and for the first half I wondered if there would always be these conversations going on between the six year old ghost, the teenage ghost, college student ghost and professional ghost. But just as every good book evolves so did my feelings about these ghosts that were slowly helping Sam come to terms with who she really is. Sound like a crazy plot? Well it kind of is - but I think that is what made it so enchanting. It is really different from the typical chicklit, very cleverly written and somewhat insightful. I put the book down this morning and just felt "good."
I couldn't help but think of one of my favorite songs "Defying Gravity" from Wicked. Sam's whole journey throughout the book was about learning how to defy the gravity that was holding her back.
Thank you Beth for this great suggestion - you were spot on!
The writing style of this book also reminded me of "Love Walked In" only on a much more squeaky clean level.
Favorite Quote From Book:
"Today I realized that I am nothing more than tomorrow's ghost. In a way, it robs my self of self to know I'm always changing; at the same time, it provides incentive to have the best today possible so I can have a positive influence on tomorrow and, if needs be, shake some sense into the living." (Samantha Green, 264)
I couldn't help but think of one of my favorite songs "Defying Gravity" from Wicked. Sam's whole journey throughout the book was about learning how to defy the gravity that was holding her back.
Thank you Beth for this great suggestion - you were spot on!
The writing style of this book also reminded me of "Love Walked In" only on a much more squeaky clean level.
Favorite Quote From Book:
"Today I realized that I am nothing more than tomorrow's ghost. In a way, it robs my self of self to know I'm always changing; at the same time, it provides incentive to have the best today possible so I can have a positive influence on tomorrow and, if needs be, shake some sense into the living." (Samantha Green, 264)
Read
September 6, 2010I REALLY loved this book! It was the perfect summer read!
It is sort of an updated version of "A Christmas Carol". The heroine on the novel is followed around by the ghosts of her former selves. Imagine being haunted by your teen-age self! Yikes!
This book had it all! The main character was interesting, witty, and likable. A host of other supporting characters with equally charming characteristics, (my favorite was the cousin) add to the fun. There is also a sweet love story with a perfect man. Yeah, I know....a perfect man? Remember, it is a work of fiction. Actually that is one of the weaker points of the man, he is a little too perfect.
This book was missing three things: 1.sex, 2.violence, and 3.foul language.
I reread this book in 2020 because 2020 was a year that needed some fun! It is my favorite book and I'm sooooo sad to see that it is no longer available to buy on my kindle. What happened to Riley Noehren? I wish she had more books!
I have one complaint for the author: Why haven't you written more!
Run, don't walk to your favorite bookstore and get this book today!
It is sort of an updated version of "A Christmas Carol". The heroine on the novel is followed around by the ghosts of her former selves. Imagine being haunted by your teen-age self! Yikes!
This book had it all! The main character was interesting, witty, and likable. A host of other supporting characters with equally charming characteristics, (my favorite was the cousin) add to the fun. There is also a sweet love story with a perfect man. Yeah, I know....a perfect man? Remember, it is a work of fiction. Actually that is one of the weaker points of the man, he is a little too perfect.
This book was missing three things: 1.sex, 2.violence, and 3.foul language.
I reread this book in 2020 because 2020 was a year that needed some fun! It is my favorite book and I'm sooooo sad to see that it is no longer available to buy on my kindle. What happened to Riley Noehren? I wish she had more books!
I have one complaint for the author: Why haven't you written more!
Run, don't walk to your favorite bookstore and get this book today!
August 25, 2010
Really liked this book a lot! I thought the whole idea of the book was great and very creative! It's about Samantha Green, a successful lawyer who realizes her big-time corporate lawyer life isn't all it's cracked up to be and she ends up spending a year of her life in bed in her pajamas. Her six-year-old ghost of herself helps her get out of bed and on the road to healing. She goes back to her childhood home where three other entertaining ghosts haunt her as well (the lawyer, the student, and the teenager.)
I loved this idea of your own ghosts from your past haunting you -- I'd never thought about it but while I was reading this book I started to think about any "ghosts" from my past that might be haunting me. We're all a compilation of our past experiences whether for good or bad. I think we have to make the best out of our individual experiences and lives. It was really fun to read this book and see how Samantha makes amends with her ghosts and is eventually healed. Definitely recommend it -- I'm going to buy this one!
I loved this idea of your own ghosts from your past haunting you -- I'd never thought about it but while I was reading this book I started to think about any "ghosts" from my past that might be haunting me. We're all a compilation of our past experiences whether for good or bad. I think we have to make the best out of our individual experiences and lives. It was really fun to read this book and see how Samantha makes amends with her ghosts and is eventually healed. Definitely recommend it -- I'm going to buy this one!
January 9, 2013
MARCH 2013: If you need some smart, fun chick-lit -- this is your book! I thoroughly enjoyed this one from start to finish. It reminded me of that movie The Kid with Bruce Willis: the main character, Sam, is haunted by ghosts from her past and has to learn from each of them to move on with her future. It's a clever, fresh idea that the author uses to propel her well-crafted storyline. And even though this is a self-published novel, the writing is phenomenal -- I hope this author writes more! We need more of this kind of book out there -- clean, fun, and smart!
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OCTOBER 2016: Reread this when the kids and I were sick -- I needed an easy read. I enjoyed it just as much the second time as I did the first time. I didn't remember that Sam's mom had died of cancer, which should be a bit of a sensitive subject for me right now, but I actually appreciated the treatment of that theme: weighty without being dark or heavy.
Grab this on your Kindle or Kindle app (it's only 99 cents!) -- it's a great read!
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OCTOBER 2016: Reread this when the kids and I were sick -- I needed an easy read. I enjoyed it just as much the second time as I did the first time. I didn't remember that Sam's mom had died of cancer, which should be a bit of a sensitive subject for me right now, but I actually appreciated the treatment of that theme: weighty without being dark or heavy.
Grab this on your Kindle or Kindle app (it's only 99 cents!) -- it's a great read!
March 29, 2016
This is the most original book I've read in a while, though it could be considered a reverse Scrooge story--the ghosts of her former selves pull Samantha out of the depression she's been in for a year and slowly help her find a new life for herself. I absolutely loved this book, it's one of my favorites right up there with The Help. I think what they have in common is really good writing and and amazingly distinct voices coming from the characters. Though I couldn't say I technically relate to the main character in her life experiences, still I felt like I understood her and cared about her. This book had many LOL moments for me, but was also poignant and serious at times. It was packed full of life commentary, had zero bad language, and a good romance without anything offensive. We had a good book club discussion on this one. It's self published so there were some annoying typos, but the .99 Kindle version is a great deal.
May 26, 2010
After a year in bed Samantha Green is being chased around by the 6 year old ghost of herself who manages to convince her to get out of bed, and would have convinced her to get dressed but for the ghost in the closet. Sam is haunted by 4 ghosts of herself and until she retraces her past and her present, she can't have a future. There were parts of this book that were slow because in many ways, Sam wasn't as interesting as the ghosts of herself were. But as she recovered her equilibrium, moved back with her widowed father and started working again, she started to look at her past through different, adult, eyes and discovered that there has always been a reason for her actions, even if she couldn't articulate it at the time. I liked her concept that ghosts don't haunt places, they haunt people and we all have them. I'll be looking for mine.
June 1, 2010
It's like "A Christmas Carol" and a Marian Keyes novel had a baby! A fun book, yet thought-provoking, that takes a look at the different stages of one young woman's life, how she's changed, and how she SHOULDN'T have changed, interestingly enough. At times I thought it was a tad uneven: some of the things that happen are very serious, like her childhood self's inability to process the death of her mother, and her own severe bout of depression, while other events and characters seem to be played for laughs . . . which felt inappropriate. I am fascinated to see what Noehren does next, though! I loved her characters, and their other "selves", particularly Samantha's cousin, Libby.
January 3, 2013
To be fair, this isn't the type of book I usually read. I thought the writing was very good and the concept was GENIUS. Being 'haunted' by the ghosts of various times in her life. The reason I gave it a four star is because I'm not a fan of wordiness. If I see long paragraphs I tend to skim and there are a lot of longer descriptive paragraphs in here. Most of this book is her thinking about things that happened in her past, which the author conveys very cleverly and I found myself laughing and nodding many times (when I read these parts). I really think this is an enjoyable, well written book. Just not for me.
October 7, 2013
General premise of the book was good and I enjoyed the idea and many of the details, especially the idea of the ghosts leaving as she figures things out along the way. It kept me reading. Yet the writing was messy and overdone, too many tangents and details that were unnecessary. Some great moments, but others that really didn't seem at all believable in any way. Generally I felt the writing needed a lot more work, editing, and paring down. More "red pencil" work should have been done before publication, and as hard as that editing can be to the author, it would have made an infinitely stronger book.
March 1, 2016
I LOVED this book!!! Very entertaining and also thought provoking. Post-nervous breakdown Sam is haunted by ghosts of her former selves, her interaction with them helps her eventually get out of her funk and become a happier and healthier self. It was funny and true and had a good romance thrown in too. I read a borrowed copy but ordered it from Amazon as soon as I finished. I'm the same age as Sam and could very much relate to the Strawberry Shortcake-loving 6 yr old, thte weepy Corey-loving teen, and the Doc-Martin wearing college girl. Couldn't relate to the lawyer Sam, but that's probably a good thing! Buy this and read it now!
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