Four Blondes

Rating:
Summary: Light Reading
Review: I bought this book for only a couple of euros, which was definitely a good thing. These four stories are good light entertainment, though not much beyond that. Bushnell writes in a very distant style which keeps us from getting to know the characters too well and also prevents the reader getting too absorbed in the story. No big problem, that. Bushnell hasn't really mastered the whole "Show, don't tell" thing (I suppose that there's not much room for that in a short story), and instead resorts to blunt statements like: "Janey was scared." "She was usually never this frank." Having said that, she does have a knack for dialogue (not that you would want to associate with anyone who acted the way that her characters do), and there is *some* sort of character development going on. Three stars (actually more like 2.5) - an okay book, but don't expect too much.

Rating:
Summary: Burn Baby Burn: Don't Waste Your Time
Review: In hopes of one of the stories being good, I kept on reading each woman's story, and it never got better. No doubt this is the only book that I have been inspired to throw in my fireplace. The way she wrote these characters, it seems that Bushnell is a misogynist: 1) is a whore, 2) is a despiteful bitch 3) is crazy, 4) is boring and unoriginal. And most of the characters are so underdeveloped, like the Princess - supposedly she turned crazy and hooked on prescription drugs after her in-law offered her a Xanax. Pa-lease. If you are looking for a good read, don't buy this book.

Rating:
Summary: Satire and the City
Review: I was extremely pleased with Four Blondes. I had very much enjoyed reading Sex and the City for its dark humour and wit, and had assumed that Four Blondes would be unlikely to live up to the same caliber. However I was proved wrong.

Like S&TC, Four Blondes is a collection of short stories, this time focusing on the four women in the title. Divided into four stories, that of the ageing party girl/model, the anorexic princess, the high powered businesswoman and a writer looking for love, Bushnell paints each story with a satiric brush. Despite having money, looks and power, the first three women are seemingly insecure and unhappy. Four Blondes shows how each woman tries to regain a sense of control over their seemingly overwhelming, highly pressured lives, and how different personalities are more effective at this than others. Some women prosper whilst others fall short.

If I can find a fault with the book it is with the final woman's story, obviously based on Bushnell herself. I found her story rushed and pointless, as though it was added only to bulk up the book. It seemded more of a footnote than a story itself. It wasn't unenjoyable, but it was not as superb as the previous three tales.

The relative shortness of each woman's tale (compared to an entire book) was refreshing as it meant that the reader does not becomes bored with each story and is always left wanting more. A great read for anyone who lacks the concentration to read lengthy novels with a running narrative.

Somehow managing to be more glamorous than its older, expectionally successful sister, Four Blondes is a very dark, sometimes depressing look at New York woman who have it all. All that glitters is most definately not always gold.

An absolute must read.

Rating:
Summary: VERY VERY OFFENSIVE RUBBISH
Review: This must be the worst book ever written.All the stories are boring but the fourth one was downright offensive.Mizz Bushnell just used this story to talk aload of [...] about the English.I am English and I found this book offensive in the extreme.Also it's a load of [...] I bet she has never been to England in her life,let's hope she keeps it that way .If I could bring [...] I would for this book.

Rating:
Summary: Good Read
Review: I found most of this book very good with a few exceptions. It is definitely just for fun and not an excellently written book! I love Sex & the City and enjoyed a couple of the characters in this one. I would definitely read Candace's next book! It's a guilty reading pleasure.

Rating:
Summary: Good, Boring & I want to hurry up and get this over with
Review: I have not read Candice Bushnell's books in order. In fact I read Trading Up first. I really shouldn't have picked this one up at all. The first chapter is pretty good. Then you go to the second chapter which get more boring as it moves, rather crawls along. The third chapter was truely draining but did pick up a bit towards the end. Overall, just leave this one alone.

Rating:
Summary: I wish the stories had intertwined more...
Review: Overall each of the four novellas were very interesting to read. Bushnell did a job job of giving each character her own personality.

But, I kept waiting for these four women's lives to meet up, and effect eachother in some way, and that never happened. Because it never happened, I felt that there was something lacking in each of the stories because the endings were so open, and there was no sense of closure.

Rating:
Summary: Weak
Review: It seems to me the only reason this book was published was to tout the name of Candace Bushnell, who inspired the popular television series, Sex and the City. But if you read it (and Sex and the City) you will learn that the writing is no where near as good as the writing on the television show. The trampy characters in Four Blondes are boring and cliché and give the reader no reason to like them.

Chick lit is fun when it's well written and the characters have some redeeming qualities. This is just a weak attempt to entertain by exposing four bimbos with a repulsive lifestyle.

Sorry.