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What Members Thought
I would write that this book was "interesting" but really, that's too easy.
Seriously, though, I really enjoyed this book. The story is about a group of teens who become friends through a summer arts camp where they label themselves "The Interestings". The rest of the book chronicles their lives and how their relationships evolve over time. Wolitzer is a solid writer and her insight into human nature can be keen at times. Overall, this book didn't blow me away, but I became invested in the charac ...more
Seriously, though, I really enjoyed this book. The story is about a group of teens who become friends through a summer arts camp where they label themselves "The Interestings". The rest of the book chronicles their lives and how their relationships evolve over time. Wolitzer is a solid writer and her insight into human nature can be keen at times. Overall, this book didn't blow me away, but I became invested in the charac ...more
2.75 stars, but not enough to make it to 3. I really admire the scope and ambition of this novel. Following a set of friends who miraculously stay together over a lifetime, with all the highs and lows of envy and comraderie, and dealing with what happens after childhood. What happens to our expectation for our lives after the promise and exuberance of childhood is over. The problem of a gifted child expected to go out in the world and make it, or not make it.
The problem is that the question bec ...more
The problem is that the question bec ...more
This is a very nice little novel about a group of friends who meet at a creative arts summer camp, and their lives over the next forty-plus years. Over the course of the novel, we see their reactions to historical events such as Watergate, the AIDs virus, 9/11, and the economic crash. It's all very New Yorkerly, if I may coin a phrase, but while I liked the book just fine, it failed to wow me.
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Sweeping, compelling book. Perfect beach read with substance and great writing.
Meg Wolitzer is an excellent storyteller and she puts a lot of great writing mechanics to use in "The Interestings" in order to follow the lives of a group of baby boomers from NYC. This group of friends, however, is so entirely annoying that they did everything a poorly crafted character can do to drag down Wolitzer's novel. It was an arduous uphill battle to get through this book because I simply didn't care about the characters, not even one of them. For a writer who, as I already noted, has
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something is pretty off with this book. maybe it's the lack of likable characters? or the setting that is not as interesting as i hope to be? (summer camp, new york city.. all's a bit meh in this book). And also, the confusing timeline and plot are quite frustrating for me. anyway. not my fave, but again, this is my first time reading meg wolitzer.
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Jan 04, 2013
Sam
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Mar 20, 2013
Elizabeth
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Apr 29, 2013
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Aug 19, 2013
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Sep 22, 2013
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Dec 03, 2013
Amy
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Mar 04, 2014
Linda
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May 23, 2014
Katy
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Feb 07, 2015
Jen
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Jul 27, 2015
Jen
marked it as wishlist
Jan 17, 2016
Jocelyn
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Jan 19, 2016
Amy Nash Parker
marked it as to-read
