Tag Archives: American Girl

Loose Girl by Kerry Cohen

American Literature June 13, 2008 Superfast Reader

Synopsis: An autobiography of a promiscuous life. Review: The most striking thing about Kerry Cohen’s Loose Girl is the inevitability of her misbehavior. Cohen’s parents divorced when she was a preteen, and neither one seems able to practice any kind of responsible or involved parenting. Her dad is the kind of guy who asks for a toke when he catches his daughter and her friends getting high, and her mother is a gynecologist who prescribes abortion pills for Cohen without even an office visit. Both…

Sexless in the City–Win a Free Copy!

American Literature April 10, 2008 Superfast Reader 1 Comment

My dear friend Anna Broadway‘s book Sexless in the City is coming out on Tuesday, April 15th. I’m so thrilled for Anna, who met the editor who bought her book in my very living room! I’ve read some sections of it and it’s just great. So how do you win a copy? Easy–just blog about it. Mention the soundtrack and get a second entry. Even if you don’t win, I hope you’ll check this book out.

Jen LiMarzi’s Making Dead Ends Meet

American Literature March 29, 2008 Superfast Reader

My friendly neighborhood humor writer Jen LiMarzi has published her first novel, Making Dead Ends Meet. I had a chance to read the manuscript & I’m really proud of her!

Story of a Girl by Sara Zarr

American Literature March 21, 2008 Superfast Reader 8 Comments

Synopsis: Deanna’s lived under a dark cloud ever since her dad caught her having sex when she was just 13, and her dreams of getting out just might expire under the weight of his disapproval. Review: I’m a latecomer getting to Sara Zarr’s National Book Award Finalist novel Story of a Girl, though it’s been on my radar for quite some time. I’m so glad I finally carved out some time to read it. I’ve often criticized young adult literature for piling on the woe,…

Marjorie Morningstar by Herman Wouk

American Literature November 2, 2007 Superfast Reader 8 Comments

Synopsis: A headstrong Upper West Side yearns to escape her family’s Jewish Bronx origins and become a Broadway star. Review: This is the third or fourth time I’ve read Marjorie Morningstar, and every time I find myself absolutely riveted for the first two-thirds, then bored and indifferent for the final third, only to be knocked out by the epilogue. The book is rich with details and some astonishing set pieces–such as Seth’s bar mitzvah–but it’s hollow at the core. It’s as if author Herman Wouk…

The Best of Everything by Rona Jaffe

American Literature October 28, 2007 Superfast Reader 4 Comments

Synopsis: 3 young women meet in the typing pool at Fabian Publishing, 1952, hoping for love and finding that life has more to offer than they ever imagined. Review: I haven’t done much rereading since starting this blog, mostly thanks to the TBR tsunami that Bookmooch yielded out of a few boxes of discarded books my mom cleaned out of her house and sent to me. My reading life has been consumed by a tyranny of the new, but sometimes an old friend is just…

Secrets, Lies, and Algebra (Do The Math) by Wendy Lichtman

American Literature July 9, 2007 Superfast Reader

Synopsis: 8th Grader Tess sees the world through algebra, but when her mother reveals her best friend might have murdered his wife, Tess can’t make anything add up! Review: Secrets, Lies, and Algebra is a great book for middle school readers. Lichtman intersperses mini-math lessons throughout, but she does it in such a way that it feels organic to the story and not message-y at all. Of course, any kid who’s determined to despise math will chuck the book across the room at the first…

Carpe Diem by Autumn Cornwell

American Literature June 26, 2007 Superfast Reader 2 Comments

Synopsis: When a schedule-obsessed overachiever ends up in Southeast Asia with the grandmother she’s never met before, she’s forced to challenge her own assumptions and maybe even take a risk or two.

Harmless by Dana Reinhardt

American Literature June 21, 2007 Superfast Reader 4 Comments

Synopsis: After their alibi is busted, three girls spin a whopper of a lie to keep from getting in trouble with their parents.

Unprotected by Anonymous, MD

On Reading April 4, 2007 Superfast Reader 2 Comments

Synopsis: A survey of the state of affairs in campus counseling, presenting the argument that sexual activity is being left out of the equation with disastrous results. Review: The full title, Unprotected: A Campus Psychiatrist Reveals How Political Correctness in her Profession Endangers Every Student, offers a very good sense of the writer’s agenda, and she provides a great deal of evidence to support her claims. The term “political correctness” seems designed to tip off the right that she’s “one of us,” but really it’s…

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