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Post by Roy Batty's Pet Dove on Feb 9, 2016 2:04:23 GMT -5
Post your thoughts here about Caitlin Moran's bildungsroman set in early 1990s Wolverhampton. Note: Patricia Highsmith's Edith's Diary ended up in a tie with How to Build a Girl in our run-off poll. You can find the Edith's Diary thread here. |
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Ice Cream Planet
AV Clubber 
I get glimpses of the horror of normalcy.
Posts: 3,833 
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Post by Ice Cream Planet on Feb 9, 2016 5:19:10 GMT -5
I just finished How to Build a Girl a couple weeks ago and I absolutely loved it. It was the first book I've read by Moran, and it won't be my last (How to Be a Woman is also on the list).
In addition to the book's many hilarious moments (one of my favorite being Johanna/Dolly's backstory about how she got a double bed), I also love how well Moran captures the working class voice of Wolverhampton. Not just finding the right dialect, but the realities of working class life and how they affect the characters' interactions with each other and their own approach to different situations (being coy here to avoid spoilers).
All and all, a great bildungsroman; one that should be taught in schools.
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Post by MrsLangdonAlger on Feb 15, 2016 19:53:06 GMT -5
I'm about halfway through it right now and I just adore it. The utter joy expressed, and the burgeoning rebelliousness, speak to the teenaged girl that still remains a bit in my soul.
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Post by Judkins Moaner on Mar 4, 2016 23:07:46 GMT -5
I only found out this was a novel like, five minutes ago. No wonder I couldn't find it in the damn women's studies section. Hopefully picking it up tomorrow and reading it before the month is out (in my copious spare time, etc.).
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Post by Ron Howard Voice on Mar 12, 2016 12:31:11 GMT -5
On page 116 and honestly, I'm slightly disappointed so far. But that's because I read Moran's other book first, and the similarities go well beyond the title. Girl born to poor family in Wolverhampton, struggles with being chubby & awkward, has canine best friend, becomes rock music journalist, hilariously learns lessons about being a woman & having sex - that's Moran's life story, and I've read it once already.
There are terrific bits of specificity unique to each book - like in this one you get Scooby Doo, in the memoir you get her mom's astonishingly unhelpful Your First Period talk - but... I'm just kinda waiting to read something I didn't already read and love.
BTW Moran is freaking hilarious.
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Post by Roy Batty's Pet Dove on Mar 13, 2016 18:05:13 GMT -5
Hey, I read this a while back and really enjoyed it. Moran is very very funny; there were a lot of really great jokes in the book. But it was also a lot better-written than I'd been expecting; I think there was a quote on the cover of my copy comparing Moran to Tina Fey, who is also hilarious, but who is better-known for being a comedian than an author, so I think I was expecting a kind of lighter comedy a la Fey, but How To Build a Girl was also a really well-written bildungsroman, full of great commentary on feminism, classism, and ironic detachment. I found the relationship that Johanna had with her father and brother really touching, although one of my few complaints with the novel would be that her mother frequently feels like an afterthought a lot of the time. I also really loved the moment where Moran describes something a character said as being said in "a way that’s so post-post-post ironic, it actually stops being communication, and simply becomes confusing and unhelpful.” Also, apologies to Ice Cream Planet , and anyone else who was reading Edith's Diary, but I probably not going to be able to get my hands on a copy of this before the end of the month. I wanted to participate, but the only Highsmith I seem to be able to find are her better-known works. Sorry about that. |
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Ice Cream Planet
AV Clubber
I get glimpses of the horror of normalcy.
Posts: 3,833
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Post by Ice Cream Planet on Mar 13, 2016 19:08:45 GMT -5
Hey, I read this a while back and really enjoyed it. Moran is very very funny; there were a lot of really great jokes in the book. But it was also a lot better-written than I'd been expecting; I think there was a quote on the cover of my copy comparing Moran to Tina Fey, who is also hilarious, but who is better-known for being a comedian than an author, so I think I was expecting a kind of lighter comedy a la Fey, but How To Build a Girl was also a really well-written bildungsroman, full of great commentary on feminism, classism, and ironic detachment. I found the relationship that Johanna had with her father and brother really touching, although one of my few complaints with the novel would be that her mother frequently feels like an afterthought a lot of the time. I also really loved the moment where Moran describes something a character said as being said in "a way that’s so post-post-post ironic, it actually stops being communication, and simply becomes confusing and unhelpful.” Also, apologies to Ice Cream Planet , and anyone else who was reading Edith's Diary, but I probably not going to be able to get my hands on a copy of this before the end of the month. I wanted to participate, but the only Highsmith I seem to be able to find are her better-known works. Sorry about that. I love how well Moran details classism and avoids mining it for misery/shocks but makes it clear just how much it affects Joanna and her family. If Moran continues with her fiction-writing career, I'll be very curious to see if she maintains that acidic bite. As for Edith's Diary, it's one of my top five favorite Highsmith novels (I'd place it at #2 or #3) and it's a damn shame that it isn't better known. When you find a copy of it, I can't wait to hear your thoughts! |
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Post by Ron Howard Voice on Apr 1, 2016 14:08:53 GMT -5
I found the relationship that Johanna had with her father and brother really touching, although one of my few complaints with the novel would be that her mother frequently feels like an afterthought a lot of the time. I also really loved the moment where Moran describes something a character said as being said in "a way that’s so post-post-post ironic, it actually stops being communication, and simply becomes confusing and unhelpful.” You're right about this - especially with the relationship with her brother. And I will say the second half, as the book moves decisively away from Moran's memoir, got way more fun for me. My favo(u)rite section is about the maturity she gains trying to be a good person in her reviewing and not just trashing everybody left and right. Maybe that's my background as a music reviewer showing...but every reader brings something totally different to the book, huh. It was good. The memoir is great. |
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