Is It August 14th Yet?

The month of August is going to be a very exciting month. Not only will it mark my sixth month anniversary since moving to the city (August 15^th), and not to mention my sister’s birthday (Happy Birthday, Mel!) but it also brings something I have been waiting three years for. That’s right, my all-time favorite book, The Time Traveler’s Wife, is finally premiering as a movie.

The movie was originally due to release on Christmas day of 2008, but to my dismay it was pushed back (Merry Christmas, Brenna. You will now have to wait 8 more months for the one present you were most excited about). My patience is wearing off. Is it August 14^th yet?

I couldn’t be happier with the casting: Eric Bana as Henry and Rachel McAdams as Claire. My only concern is that IMDB has not listed Ingrid as a character. I’m going to be upset if she is not included, as she is an important character that reveals much about Henry before he met Claire.

Check out the trailer here.

And, it goes without saying, if you haven't read it yet pick up a copy asap. You will not be disappointed.  

Publishing and Dating: Not So Different

After a few more weeks working as an all-around editor, social media marketer and personal assistant, I am beginning to learn a few ins and outs of the publishing world. After considering the last few weeks I have come to conclude that the publishing world is not much different from the dating world (at least here in New York) and this is why:

As an editor, you can’t spend your nights cooped up at home, endlessly going over manuscripts. If you want to further your career (which I do!) you’ve got to get out there and meet as many people in the industry as you can. This means attending book release parties, signings and any other industry event you can manage your way into. It might be easier to come home from work and jump on that stack of manuscripts you’ve got to read, take notes on or edit – but the rewards of finishing up your work early aren’t nearly as exciting as shaking the hand of an editor at Simon & Shuster (which I did last night) or meeting the Ambassador of Sri Lanka (which I also did last night) and telling them a little about what you do.

As a dater (for lack of a better word) you also can’t spend your nights at home gossiping with your roommate about last weekend’s debauchery and her bewilderment of why the guy she is dating hasn’t called her back after he watched her give her number to another guy – it’s not like they were exclusive (but clearly, not a good idea). It might be easier to pick up a bottle – ok two bottles – of wine and lay around in pajamas chatting while watching reruns of Sex and The City. But this behavior will not promote meeting new people and, more importantly, new investment bankers. Sometimes you’ve got to switch up the pajamas and wine for a pair of peep-toed pumps and a dirty martini to get out there. Expand your horizons and your opportunity!

I’ve also learned a lesson of disillusionment. One day, you get a new manuscript and can’t wait to begin working! The synopsis sounds fabulous – it’s got to be good. The beginning starts a little slow, but you swear it will pick up. Keep reading… still slow. Make a few more notes, reader further… crap. It’s not what I expected.

I am going to compare this let down to men. Yes, we have all been there. You meet a cute guy, he asks you out. He seems smart, not too cocky and is tall enough that you can wear heels when you meet again (thank God). You meet again, have a drink or two and become disillusioned by the whole thing. It turns out he is cocky, because he’s so smart, and can’t stop talking about himself. Great. The synopsis seemed promising, but once you open it… crap.

However, in both cases, you’ve got to finish up (making notes or downing your drink) and move on. Not every manuscript and not every guy will turn out as exciting as they seem, but it’s those few inbetween that do live up to their potential, that make it all worthwhile. 

Book Worth Reading: Prep

When I picked up Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld I thought I was in for a light read. Girl goes to High School and leaves enlightened and changed. Published by Random House, Prep earned the title of One of the Ten Best Book of the Year (2005) by The New York Times Book Review.  After finishing this quick read and allowing it to sink in, I realized this novel reaches much deeper issues.

Detailing the experiences of a midwestern girl on scholarship at a prestigious prep school on the East Coast, Prep is a modern day commentary on social class conflict. Sittenfeld forces the reader to question and challenge their wider social world.

After I began reading, it was hard for me to put this novel down.  I was truly engaged and wanted to know what would happen to our main character, Lee Fiora. 

Lee finds herself at Ault as a shy, awkward insecure 14-year-old. Of course she changes over the next four years, but these changes are ever so subtle and slow that it is realistic. 

I also liked that Sittenfeld portrayed Lee as having ”wisdom beyond her years,” regardless of the cliché.  It is refreshing to find an author who puts so much faith in today’s youth.  For instance, as Lee reflects on a relationship she had ended with a boy who worked in the kitchen at Ault (and didn’t attend the school - a reason to end it as others in her class began to judge her) she considers, “I was wrong, I screwed up – how else can I say it? But there was plenty I learned from Dave. Later, after all that happened between Cross Sugerman and me, I even saw Dave as practice for Cross, as preparation. He made me ready; there are many people we treat wrong, and later, we’re prepared to treat other people right. Perhaps this sounds mercenary, but I feel grateful for these trial relationships, and I would like to think it all evens out – surely, unknowingly, I have served as practice for other people.

The idea of certain relationships preparing, or prepping, you for others is not a thought that crossed my mind at the age of 15. However it is an idea I believe in. There is no way you can prepare for a mature relationship without experiencing the immature ones first. This is not to say each relationship after an immature one will prove to be the ladder, but it does make you think back to those “practice” relationships and how they changed those that would follow. I believe this goes for romantic relationship as well as friendships. 

Overall, I recommend this book for anyone who has forgotten what it is like to be awkward and unsure of your place in the world.  This book will make you think long after you have closed it. While there are many coming of age novels out there, Sittenfeld tells this story so well. I believe the quality of this book lies in its realism.