Howdy Bookworms!
Despite the fact that I occasionally whine about the fact that I live in a cornfield, (a gross exaggeration, to be honest. At least half the fields are soybeans) but I LOVE the Midwest. I love the food, I love the people. It’s far from perfect, but it’s home. I think you know where this is heading. I picked up yet another book based in no small part on the fact that it was partially set in the Midwest and starred Midwestern characters. I’m very predictable that way. I received a complimentary copy of I’m Glad About You
Alison and Kyle were high school sweethearts in Cincinnati, Ohio. Kyle was an idealistic and religious young man seeking to change the world with a medicine. Alison wanted desperately to break away from the Midwest and pursue her dreams of becoming an actress. With their dreams pulling them in opposite directions, Kyle and Alison throw in the towel on their relationship after a tumultuous six year run. Alison goes on to get her big break in NYC while Kyle marries, starts a family, and practices medicine in Cincinnati. Though they’ve both seemingly moved on, they still can’t quite seem to shake the hold they have on each other. As their paths continue to cross they’re both forced to examine their choices and the compromises they’ve made to pursue their dreams… Even when their dreams don’t turn out the way they imagined they would.
Ooooh this book. Gosh, I can’t quite pinpoint how I feel about it. Let’s start with what I loved. My BFF lives in Cincinnati so I got way too excited reading shout outs to Graeter’s Ice Cream and Skyline Chili. I personally don’t quite get the Skyline phenomenon (don’t tell my “nephew”), but Graeter’s? SO GOOD. Plus their zoo totally has a penguin exhibit. You’d think that wouldn’t be a huge draw, but my local zoo? Zero penguins. It’s devastating. I really dug the Midwestern charm and the mention of casseroles and foods full of mayonnaise. Lemme tell you about my jello salads, y’all!
That said, I tend to have a difficult time relating to story lines that go behind the scenes of Hollywood, fame, and fortune, because it seems so foreign to me. The stories seem to be at best bittersweet and at worst fully tragic. Hence, Alison’s time in the spotlight didn’t resonate with me the way I’d hoped it would. Well, except for her diet. Hollywood, please just stooooooooooop with making the starlets get extra super skinny. They’re so hungry! Also Kyle’s approach to his Catholicism kind of confused me. Granted, it’s a pretty rules-heavy religion (a thing I know from personal experience) but he seemed to practice in the least pragmatic way possible. He’d screw something up but the choice he’d make to atone was way worse than what he’d done in the first place. The dude is a doctor but often severely lacking in common sense when it comes to his personal life.
So there you have my mixed bag o’ feelings about I’m Glad About You by Theresa Rebeck. If it sounds even remotely interesting to you, though, you should probably read it. I need someone to hash this out with.
Talk to me, Bookworms! I seem to always have trouble relating to Hollywood plots- is there a setting or situation that you run into in books that always kind of throws you?
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lostinliterature108
I am the same with the Hollywood thing. I just avoid that storyline, even if it is an author I really like. Also, for some reason, I have had no success from any Irish authors or books set in Ireland. I have no idea why but I haven’t enjoyed any Irish stories or authors. Unless, there was an author sometime that I didn’t realize was Irish. It’s weird, I know.
Words For Worms
I took an entire class in college on Irish short stories. It was definitely academic, but there’s a lot of deep seeded sorrow in Irish literature (at least there was in what I studied.) I can see how it wouldn’t work for everyone.
mwgerard
Hooray, Midwest! I go every summer to visit family in rural Illinois. There is also an amazing county fair.
Words For Worms
OMG, where in rural Illinois?! DO I KNOW YOUR PEOPLE? (I’m sure I do not know your people, but I may have at least heard of their tiny town. Wouldn’t that be a riot?)
mwgerard
Haha! Cumberland County – Greenup & Hidalgo. It’s off of I-70 about 45 minutes west of Terre Haute, but before you get to I-57 to head up to Chicago.
Words For Worms
I am ashamed to say I do not know of this tiny town. I grew up in the southwest suburbs of Chicago and have since moved to Central Illinois so I’m fairly well versed in the state’s midsection, but I know almost nothing about the Indiana borderlands. Except that I’ve obliviously driven over them on a number of occasions only to say “yay, Indiana! Next, Ohio! (Or Kentucky, depending on where I’m headed, obviously.)
JoulesDellinger
I actually like Hollywood behind-the-scenes stuff. Maybe because I was a theater minor and did a bunch of plays when I was younger, but I find it humanizing when the ‘stars’ seem so unattainable. As for things I avoid in books, I CAN NOT deal with cheating. And zombies. Or cheating zombies.
Words For Worms
LMAO. Cheating zombies. Now THERE is a million dollar idea!
DoingDewey
I love reading books set someplace I recognize. That can be a lot of fun 🙂
I can’t believe you live somewhere that the zoo has no penguins! I figured that would be one of your top criteria when choosing a place to live 😛
Words For Worms
Sadly, I did not check on the status of penguin filled zoos when I moved here for college, nor did I anticipate staying post graduation. Oh life. Sometimes it’s a strange journey.
Unruly Reader
Casseroles and jello salads — the foods of my people! [serious Iowa nostalgia in full swing here…]
Words For Worms
Now I am looking forward to Easter dinner more than usual because my MIL is the queen of jello (she taught me all I know) and I’m guaranteed cheesy potato casserole (AKA Party Potatoes)