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Writers & Lovers

Lily King

Start date: December 15, 2020

Discussion: Reading List

Discussion leader: Katy

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Reading List

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What Members Thought

Jun 25, 2021 Ken rated it liked it

Shelves: contemporary, finished-in-2021

Like me, Lily King calls Maine home. And like me, she knows a lot of New England geography -- much of it put to good use in this book (esp. Boston and environs, including Walden Pond, a place where you'll never be a solitary naturalist).

The novel gets off to a slow start and seems to be another story where the plot amounts to nothing happening beyond the quotidian. A day in the life. In this case, of a wannabe writer's life -- one who works as a waitress. The first half of the book, in fact, has Like me, Lily King calls Maine home. And like me, she knows a lot of New England geography -- much of it put to good use in this book (esp. Boston and environs, including Walden Pond, a place where you'll never be a solitary naturalist).

The novel gets off to a slow start and seems to be another story where the plot amounts to nothing happening beyond the quotidian. A day in the life. In this case, of a wannabe writer's life -- one who works as a waitress. The first half of the book, in fact, has way more waitressing than writing (read: Waitresses & Lovers). Then it moves more towards books and writers as now and then topics, closer to the title's message -- a plus.

So what's up with this particular day and this particular life? Mostly soap type stuff. Love interests. Which man? The old boyfriend? The new one? The younger one? The older one with kids? And let's throw in health scares. And the usual down-and-out-but-not-in-Paris-and-London stuff about being a wannabe writer in debt.

You can see how this sort of unspectacular stuff could be popular despite itself. Thanks to the always inviting first-person POV, the reader begins to feel like a friend to our young protagonist, Casey, and wants her to pull through. Also there's the "which bachelor will it be?" gameshow angle, a surefire gambit (if reality TV is to believed, and ratings say it must).

Me, I admit that I struggled through the first half. The second half moved a little better, but it seemed rather lightweight and rather like emotions were being manipulated for page turns. But it was OK! Just OK. The kind of OK that some readers would read as half-empty and others as half-full, depending on how demanding THEY tend to be about a book's originality and plotting.

If you're a writer who's curious about how much the book caters to the writing life, I'd say not much. Surely it's there, a presence, but it is not driven by writing so much as it is the personal story of a girl being adrift and needing an anchor to steady herself.

To do it, she must overcome her fears, blue giraffe-like (heh). But we all must, blue or no, and you already knew as much, right, gentle reader? The challenge, start to finish, is for King to reteach this staple of soap operas in a new way. Overall, only a partial success! ...more

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Sep 06, 2020 Abbey rated it it was amazing

So real; and so satisfying. I zipped right through this. Loved it.

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Oct 10, 2020 Jane rated it really liked it

Shelves: grief, family-story, womans-story

I loved the writing and the story. The main character is undone by grief and is trying to write her way through the grief, but struggles with her relationships with men, the exhaustion of working as a waitress and her need for family. This is the fourth book I've read in the last two months in which the main character is a writer. Given the different ways in which the characters lives as writers unfold, I'm fascinated, rather than tired of this. Several Goodreads readers commented that the begin ...more

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Oct 18, 2020 Katy rated it really liked it

Shelves: fiction

Lily King has written several novels. Her last, Euphoria, was named by the New York Times Book Review as one of the “10 best books of 2014.” Last Spring, when so many of us were confined to our homes by COVID, I noticed her current novel on a list of “best books for comfort reading” nominated by current authors. Anne Patchett said, “Writers and Lovers made her happy. Even as the narrator grieves the loss of her mother and struggles to make art and keep a roof over her head, the novel is suffuse Lily King has written several novels. Her last, Euphoria, was named by the New York Times Book Review as one of the “10 best books of 2014.” Last Spring, when so many of us were confined to our homes by COVID, I noticed her current novel on a list of “best books for comfort reading” nominated by current authors. Anne Patchett said, “Writers and Lovers made her happy. Even as the narrator grieves the loss of her mother and struggles to make art and keep a roof over her head, the novel is suffused with hopefulness and kindness. Lily King writes with a great generosity of spirit.” Even Judy Blume of young adult fame commented, “Writers and Lovers is exactly the book we need now. Witty and heartfelt…I could not stop reading.”
Twenty years ago, I had read King’s first Novel, The Pleasing Hour, a gift from a friend whose grandson was Lily King’s husband. I really liked that novel. The characters were sympathetic and the story was involving. I have not read her recent works, but I really enjoyed this one, and for the same reasons: solid believable characters; a story that was complex and interesting as it developed; and a protagonist beset with self-doubts and overwhelming challenges including, massive student debt, and a health scare. At age 31, and the end of a love affair, she is adrift, in need of a stable relationship yet committed to her art – finishing her novel. Her focused dedication despite her evident vulnerabilities is movingly exposed, and when finally resolved, make for a very satisfying read.
Certain aspects of the story provide slice of life commentary on her life. I was particularly interested by the contrasts between the staff at Iris, the restaurant where Casey worked, and the wealthy, successful clientele who patronized the restaurant. Also, I enjoyed her description of the pretentious author readings and receptions that Casey attended. I think this novel captures well the difficulty of maintaining a balance between the creative impulse and the exigencies of living life.
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Dec 12, 2021 Tony rated it it was ok

I loved her last book but I can’t get behind this one. I’ve read enough books about writers struggling to become published. And this isn’t a good version of that. Additionally, it’s OK to have a few bad men, but all of them? It feels like this is just a screed against the writing industry and men in general. She can do better.

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