Rating: 
Summary: Serious Chick Lit
Review: I was immediately drawn into Carrie Pilby's angst filled world. As a child prodigy who skipped several grades she never seemed to fit in, but all that was supposed to change when at 15 she was admitted to Harvard. Where her father assured her there would be other people just like her, unfortunately, there is really no one just like Carrie. After graduation she is thrust into the real world at the age of 19, alone, depressed and cynical as all get out. Her therapist gives her a list of objectives to complete, in an attempt to help her learn to socialize, but Carrie would rather sleep. As an overachiever she naturally has to prove to her therapist that she can do it and to prove to herself that the world really is as bad as she thinks it is, she sets out to complete her list of objectives. Along the way she experiences many disappointments and reasons to believe that the world really is as immoral and unfriendly as she thought, but also many conundrums that entice and confuse her. A philosopher at heart she begins to analyze her experiences and try to understand this strange new world.
I really loved this book, Carrie's odd ball ways, and the wry humor of Caren Lissner. This is not the average light read that Red Dress Ink normally puts out, but if you give it a try, I think you might like it. I put this book in the same category as those of Anna Maxted and Laura Caldwell, as Chick Lit with substance.
Rating: 
Summary: Smart for Chick-Lit's Red Dress Ink
Review: Carrie Pilby is the most inventive of the books in the Red Dress series. The character has a unique voice, not the same "oh, my high heels, I need a Gucci handbag, my boyfriend loves my best friend Ginger." It's a decent read, formulaic, but with merit.
The central character, Carrie Pilby, is a "genius" who finds it hard to relate to anyone outside her NY apartment (big shocker on the chosen location, as most chick-lit books are set in the Big Apple.) She has anxiety, is pessimistic, feels alientated, but comes around in the end. Her father's "Big Lie" is a let-down, as I had figured it would be something far more interesting than what it actually is.
Overally, Caren Lissner is wasting her talents on chick lit. Her writing is tight and carefully crafted and the voice she has created for this character is excellent. However "unique" this plot may be to chick lit, the basis is easy to figure out: girl in NYC is alone, wants boy, but doesn't realize it, boy finds girl, makes girl all better. Lissner should try her hand at something a little more literary.
Rating: 
Summary: Calling "Carrie Pilby" chic-lit does it a disservice!
Review: I didn't really know what to expect when I first purchased this book, although I knew it had received strong reviews and was supposed to be funny. As this was a Red Dress Ink production, I assumed it would be your traditional romantic misadventure of some single girl. In the end, I was rewarded with a complex heroine who is struggling to define herself in the face of an unresponsive world. I personally related several times to the character of Carrie, but I did think she was a bit extreme and somewhat of a prude. The story is both fluffy yet philosophical and even quite poignant at times. It's interesting to read the about a girl who is alone, and sometimes lonely, but uncompromising in her beliefs. There's no scandalous sexy stuff here, but just some really neat ideas about being strong and independent, yet also the yearning to be connected with our fellow human beings. This is some really good writing that I think even men could enjoy. If you're looking for a kindred spirit and something other than your traditional bodice ripper, check this out. Sometimes Pilby does get pedantic, but there are good laughs to be had and important notions over which to mull.
|
