Rating: 
Summary: Forget Will & Grace. Get to know George and Nina!
Review: A two-word review for this novel would be, "wonderfully bittersweet." If Jerry Seinfeld's TV alter-ego considers helping a friend move "going all the way" in a friendship, he hasn't read this novel. This is the final friendship frontier.
This book poses the question, "Can we be there for each other always and still have other significant others?" far better than that ubiquitous sitcom has in the past six seasons, and the humor is more subtle. Stephen McCauley skillfull enraptures the reader with situations in which we don't know what we would do in the characters' shoes. He more than adequately captures that feeling of being with someone and wondering, "What the heck am I doing here?"
Remember this book was written in the 1980s when a gay main character in a mainstream novel was revolutionary. We like George. We wish that like George, we have a friend like Nina. We're pulling for them all the way to the end of the book, though we're not sure what we want for them any more than they are. When I finished the book, I felt like I was saying goodbye to some old friends whom I like even though they annoy me lots of times.
Notes to those who've seen the movie: This book is told from George's perspective, not Nina's. Nina exudes more self-confidence in the book than in the movie. George, slightly less. I think the book works best from George's P.O.V., but I had no problem with the change in the film. When I was reading the book, I was picturing Rebecca DeMornay more than Jennifer Aniston, who was still good--and whose comic timing made up for the fact that George was less humorous than in the book.
Also, the cousin wonderfully played by Allison Janney in the film is not a character in the book. But George is more humorous than in the movie, so that makes up for it. The character George hooks up with is totally different as well.
In general, the humor in the book is more subtle, and that's all I'm going to say for fear of talling too much. I actually thought the changes made for the film didn't harm it, but I still recommend the book first.
Rating: 
Summary: When standard tactics no longer work
Review: George is gay. He lives with Nina, a beautiful soulmate who sentimentally saves photos and cards and clothes, but resists real intimacy. He teaches kindergarten with Melissa, who has a radical haircut but chooses boyfriends based on whether she can teach them to dress correctly. His obsessively neat friend Timothy advises him on love while scrupulously avoiding love himself. But George is comfortable because his standard strategy for dealing with life -- changing the subject when confronted with the unexpected -- seems to work. Then, when Nina announces that she is pregnant and that she wants George to co-parent with her, the flaws in George's approach to life become achingly apparent. Torn between his real affection for Nina and his wish for a truly intimate relationship, George appealingly changes the subject, agrees without agreement, and deflects complements and commitment. This book is tender and funny and deserves a read.
Rating:
Summary: An amazing portrayal of two people trying to make life work.
Review: I also picked up "The Object of My Affection" because I knew that the movie would be out soon, and knowing that I would see it, I decided to read the book first. I couldn't put it down. The story of commitment, and questioning what really makes us tick was incredible... I found myself laughing and crying. I found George touching, witty and so special, while Nina was gutsy, and strong, yet so, I guess so real. I have read this book twice in the last two weeks - really great (I loved the movie too - but probably in part because it made the book's characters come alive :)
Rating:
Summary: This book is a keeper.
Review: I first read this book twelve years ago and have hung onto the paperback version through a dozen moves. Whenever I can't sleep, I pick it up and randomly read excerpts until I get a few laughs. McCauley is a genius at poking fun of people's absurdities. As I've grown older with the book, I see a selfishness in the lives of these people that is underneath their charm. In some way, these lives seem unworkable in the end or maybe just a waste of time. Although I can't help but to laugh at the brilliant observational writing, it feels more self-indulgent than it used to.
Rating:
Summary: One of my all-time favorite books.
Review: I re-read this, one of my all-time favorite novels, in the wake of expected to really hate the movie. Eventually, I liked the movie fine, but the movie barely resembles the book. While the movie focuses on the character of Nina, the book is written from the point of view and is about George Mullen, a gay man in his mid-twenties in 1987 New York City. George meets Nina at a party, where his ex-lover Joley has used Nina as the instrument of the break up. Nina tells George that Joley has told her he could use a place to stay, and Nina has an extra room in her Brooklyn apartment. Thus begins the intimate but chaste relationship of the self-deprecating George and the quirky, mercurial Nina. McCauley creates an atmosphere that is at once both hilarious and touching, filled with quirky characters you would expect in New York: the ultraliberal lawyer boyfriend who dotes on Nina and is always calling her Pumpkin or Muffin or Dumpling; George's co-worker who deals with breakups by riding around crying in taxis all day; the parents who have barely seen each other even though they live in the same house; the Brooklyn landlady who makes you a lasagna an is perpetually stationed in the window next to your stoop. McCauley follows in the great tradition of "laughter through tears," and explores many themes core to the human--and gay--condition: the desire to be a parent, the intimacy of close friendship, the fear of rejection, and trying desperately to fit in and simply belong to something greater than oneself. This is a short review, as it is one of my favorite books, and pointing out the flaws would make for many more words than I have provided here. As my friend Tony promised in his inscription in 1990, "This IS what it's like to live in New York. You will laugh out loud at least once on every page." While that's a bit of an exageration, I did laugh out loud on the subway several times. That makes it pretty powerful stuff.
Rating:
Summary: THE BEST NOVEL ON THE PLANET
Review: I saw this book at a friend's shortly after seeing the movie. I asked her if I could borrow it. She said I wouldn't want to. She'd been trying to read it for awhile, and didn't like it. I decided to try anyway. Unfortunately, my friend was right. This is a definite case of a movie being much better than a book. I really liked the movie. However, the book is too long and boring. There are so many tangents in it that have nothing to do with the central story. I can't believe I even finished it. Rent the movie-don't waste your time on the book.
Rating: 
Summary: Confusing Snore-fest
Review: I saw this book at a friend's shortly after seeing the movie. I asked her if I could borrow it. She said I wouldn't want to. She'd been trying to read it for awhile, and didn't like it. I decided to try anyway. Unfortunately, my friend was right. This is a definite case of a movie being much better than a book. I really liked the movie. However, the book is too long and boring. There are so many tangents in it that have nothing to do with the central story. I can't believe I even finished it. Rent the movie-don't waste your time on the book.
Rating:
Summary: THE BEST NOVEL ON THE PLANET
Review: I've only read this book 5 or 6 times so I'm not sure I'm really qualified to review it BUT it's hilarious. If you like intelligent humor you will love all of Stephen McCauley's novels. He's a genius. His word choice is so precisely perfect, his similes are so appropriately amusing, his characters are so refreshingly REAL -- as in weak and defective -- you just adore them. This is a great book to read alone --you'll be howling with laughter and your eyes will water but it's so much fun you'll just be dying to share it . I recommend that you read it aloud to a friend or lover. Male or female, gay or straight, everyone will get a kick out of this insightful so delightful book which is almost NOTHING like the MOVIE. The movie didn't capture the spirit of the story or get much of the plot or characters right either. Skip the movie, read the book. But I dare you to read it just once. IMPOSSIBLE! F.Y.I McCauley fans should check out his new and improved website for more McCauley news including event information, "recent rants" and an interactive message center called the spin cycle forum. www.stephenmccauley.com.
Rating:
Summary: One of my favorite books
Review: If I was to be stranded on a desert Island, I'd want this book with me. I read it every year. The characters are so well writtne they have become friends. I fell in love with George and Nina instantly. The movie is NOTHING like the book, and that's a shame. Jennifer Aniston was a perfect fit as Nina, but the screenplay fell short. Anyway, George is so wonderfully drawn. I love his insecurities, and his dishevelment. The chapters when you meet his outrageously disfunctional, yet lovable family, is too funny. And when he meets Paul and gabe, they are great characters also. Nina is brilliant. Strong, funny, sassy and bullheaded. This is "Will and Grace" before the show was even thought of. And done much better. Do yourself a favor and READ this wonderful book.
Rating:
Summary: One of my favorite books
Review: If I was to be stranded on a desert Island, I'd want this book with me. I read it every year. The characters are so well writtne they have become friends. I fell in love with George and Nina instantly. The movie is NOTHING like the book, and that's a shame. Jennifer Aniston was a perfect fit as Nina, but the screenplay fell short. Anyway, George is so wonderfully drawn. I love his insecurities, and his dishevelment. The chapters when you meet his outrageously disfunctional, yet lovable family, is too funny. And when he meets Paul and gabe, they are great characters also. Nina is brilliant. Strong, funny, sassy and bullheaded. This is "Will and Grace" before the show was even thought of. And done much better. Do yourself a favor and READ this wonderful book.
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