Throwback Thursday was originally created by Renee at It’s Book Talk to share older books published more than a year ago.
Normally I wouldn’t pick up a book entitled Good in Bed. Even in the romance genre this title would come across as less story and too steamy for my taste. However, this little gem was recommended to me by a trusted librarian so I borrowed it and quickly became deeply invested in these characters.
Jennifer Weiner’s writing in Good in Bed reminds me of Olivia Goldsmith, one of my favorite authors. Like Goldsmith some of Weiner’s books have been adapted for film. However, Good in Bed has been left to the pages. And I am grateful. I loved the main character, Cannie Shapiro and enjoyed picturing her without trying to match or compete with a movie.
And, believe me, Cannie is fun to picture. At 28 years old Cannie describes herself as having a “plus-sized body” which, as many of us know, is a size 2-4 in Hollywood. Rather, my Cannie was a gorgeously curvaceous young woman with a sharp wit, a cadre of formidable friends and a rat terrier named Nifkin. Her humor and her face when telling weight loss stories or attempting to down-play her angst at her father’s abandonment captured my imagination. Cannie is a talented writer working at a newspaper under a woman that I think we have all worked under at some time in our lives. Aptly named Grace (for her lack thereof), I recognized this woman immediately by her lack of female solidarity. Cannie does have emotional baggage to unpack and this book follows her year of forced self-discovery and transformation. And it all starts when her ex-boyfriend decides to use their relationship as a basis for his monthly national magazine articles. The first one, “Loving a Larger Woman” is just the beginning.
Can I just pause to say that the idea of someone writing about our romantic relationship in a magazine makes me break into a cold sweat. Being described as “Larger” would most definitely lead to a decade of never leaving the house. Amazon didn’t exist in Cannie’s time but having a Prime membership would allow me to literally never leave the house. Cannie may get mad, badmouth (but still long for) her ex, but she doesn’t hide.
Which is why it’s important to note that the blurb for Good in Bed makes the book sound like a lovely beach read. Rather, I think this books holds up beautifully as a reflection of the time in all of our lives when we focus on putting out the fires of our childhood and work on becoming a true adult. If it hasn’t happened to you yet, I still recommend Good in Bed. Perhaps Cammie’s story will help you plot your own path.
Tell me, please!
Have you read Good in Bed?
What would you do if an ex wrote about your love life?
Attachments, by Rainbow Rowell, was published in 2011 and takes place from late 1999-2000. This, for any reader born after 2000, was the real beginning of companies using intra-web applications and playing with allowing employees to have access to the internet. There were rampant concerns about Y2K and IT people came out of the shadows to save us all. And, obviously, read our e-mails.