The Anxiety of Everyday Objects by Aurelie Sheehan

by Aurelie Sheehan

In her absorbing debut novel, Sheehan's depiction of the working girl's life in the big city is as charming as it is inspiring. Single, not yet thirty, and devoted companion to her dignified cat, Fruit Bat, Winona Bartlett is a secretary at a New York City law firm. Though she finds a certain security in the rituals of her demandingly undemanding job, Winona's real ambition is to be a filmmaker. And her romantic life is a mess. When a new lawyer--a blind woman named Sandy Spires--joins the firm and challenges Winona to trust her own creative ideas, Winona is encouraged to try to be more than just a non-filmmaking filmmaker.But it eventually becomes clear that the enigmatic Sandy isn't who she said she is. After her real motives are uncovered, Winona begins to understand what it means to take risks in life and in love.

Genres: Fiction, Chick Lit, New York, Romance, Contemporary

Unknown Binding

First published February 24, 2004

Reviews

[Federica · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is divided in 4 sections each marking the main steps of Winoma's experience as a secretary at a big law firm as a non-filmmaking filmmaker. The sections are: Sincerity, Art, Sex, Innocence. When I noticed the sharp division the author makes giving a title to each section I was not particularly happy, as it felt as the author was trying to suggest me what I would have found in the pages I was going to read or, even worst, the interpretation I should have given to the facts she was describing. But I have to say that my concerns were unfounded as actually the story flows and it can be read completely ignoring the division in sections as in Wimona's life all the four elements - sincerity, art, sex and innocence - are very well combined in her personality as a continuum with a dynamic alternation of the preponderance of one or the other.

Winoma is a film-maker and see her job as secretary as something temporary while waiting to shoot the film she has in mind "The Anxiety of Everyday Objects".

The office people are very well described and characterized, as it normally happens in every working environment, by their weaknesses and extravagant peculiarities. Winoma's descritption of her work is subtle and ironic, but at the same time very realistic (anyone who has been in a secretary position will find herself depicted while walking around the office)nevertheless adding an artistic twist: she looks at everyday tasks from the perceptive typical of an artistic mind.

I really liked the book because it is the story of a woman who is able to fight against her "Anxiety of Everyday Objects", which Wimona defines as "her internal sense of disaster", believing that sooner or later she will make her dream come true; no matter how many more years she will have to work at Grecko Mauster Crill, she will finally manage to produce her film!

Will Winoma ever shoot her film? Will her Anxiety change into something different?

Read the book and you will have the answer!

[Tuck · Rating 4 out of 5]

a fine novel that reminded me of Lucy Ellmann and Muriel Spark ("A far cry from Kensington") in that the narrative quickly jumps back and forth between Winona's interactions with her employers, family and friends and her inner thoughts and dialog (mostly her thinking about the movie she wants to make called "the anxiety of everyday objects"). so it is a fun and funny read, when not terribly sad and downhearted, seeing the character think about her art and seeing the character think about being a "secretary" in a law office (in, by the way, another great character in the book, the Chrysler Building). I want to read more Aurelie Sheehan. There is a lot of interesting and thought provoking ideas here about friendship, feminism, sex, race, living in the city, work, money, style, art, and more.

[Just · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was bad. Like, really bad. Incredibly boring and bland the entire way through. Every single conversation was so awkward and weird, and things were just described in a strange way that made no sense. I really can't tell anyone what this book was about, because hardly any of it made sense. The only part of this book I liked was when the (stupidly named) cat, Fruit Bat, was accidently called Fruit Loop.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eh. Decent enough plot, but not a fan of the writing style. It felt like the author was trying to emulate Salinger.

[Cheryl Klein · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a novel about a 29-year-old, single, middle-class woman trying to navigate romance, career and creativity in the big city. But while that might be a formula for chick lit, with all its derogatory associations, Sheehan's novel has a subtle Aimee Bender-esque undercurrent of surreality. There's the protagonist's mysterious blind coworker, snippets of newspaper articles about magical bees and other oddities, and just a general sense that this world is adjacent to our own but *not* our own. Sheehan also has a flair for small, poetically human moments which make a good case for 29-year-old, single, middle-class women having more than visions of wedding dresses dancing in their heads.

[Samantha Burkhouse · Rating 3 out of 5]

The overall plot in this book is sort of mundane, but it’s the way that the author described things that really appealed to me. Winona is a secretary who wants to be a filmmaker, always working on and thinking about her screenplay, which is going to be about how the main character experiences the world in a way that things are always a little bit off, a little bit anxiety-inducing. As the book goes on, it seems to me that her screenplay is kind of a reflection of her own anxieties as well- almost as if the book IS the screenplay that she’s writing. Overall, I thought the book was very engaging and I found myself relating to the main character, Winona, a lot.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

his is the most relateable book for average, mid-20-something females I have ever read. The plot is propelled by realistic life situations instead of random, scandalous drama (she enjoys a normal amount of sex without cheating on anyone!), and the protagonist strives to do well in her current life situation while still trying to focus on her passion. I hope I’m like her in a few years.

[Margaret Rosen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I got suckered in by the title and cover and favorable reviews. It was meh as meh could be.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting one, if nothing else in its approach to resolution and the protagonist primarily responding instead of acting. It ties in with the conceptual film project as well so I pondered that a bit, though I’m not sure what to conclude about that. It was a nice read regardless.

[Ashley Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting quick read. Nothing like I imagined it would be like.

[Secret List of Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written, charming protagonist but just not such a great story. Does that make sense?

[Janet Reeves]

Not in library

[Sheila · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really this was a 2 ½ star rated book for me but I rounded up. This book was readable and sweet but maybe a little too sweet for my taste?

[Sandi T. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ugh, reading slump. -_-

[Holly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Winona, secretary by day and fledgling film maker by night, works at a Manhattan law firm. She's young and pretty and has a rather boring boyfriend, when into her life strolls striking, sharp lawyer Sandy Spires, who happens to be blind; Sandy injects action/energy into Winona's life, w/ mixed consequences.

Why a low review? The book (which has a fabulous title) *is* cleverly written, w/ charm, as promised by Richard Russo on the front cover's blurb. However, it falls a little flat - it lacks depth. I felt the literary devices were a tad too forward. For example, Winona is working on a film called "The Anxiety of Everyday Objects" about a woman who lives a pretty normal life except for the unique fact that all the little details, all the overload of information that comes at us via what we can see, is slightly off. READER: DOES THIS APPLY TO OUR HEROINE? Yes, OK, got it - make parallels between Winona and her lead character - what does Winona see/perceive slightly off? Winona was only compelling when she bucked against expectations - when she takes her sister's dog home, when she fights for an employee's right to a flexible work schedule, when she almost loses her job over the cat, when she films w/o the subject's consent - of these moments more should have been made.

[Alisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Something about this felt really '90s. Not the fashion or the technology or the vocabulary, but something about the tone, the attitude, of the narrator. Maybe it's because the narrator is a 20-something, and the 90s is when I was 20-something and I cross-associated. Whatever.

I think cats called Fruit Bat can only add charm and delight to a work of fiction. I think that lawyers named Rex can only add skepticism and doubt.

I like how Winona is always working on her movie in her head, without making any progress towards it, but she is never depicted as a loser. It would have been so easy to go that way, and to mine the humor from there. But this is her book, told from her side, and the reader does come around to her way of thinking, to see how the simple things could be good, while still being wrong.

In a way, this was a good book, and it was quite clever and unique at times, but at the same time it didn't really sing any songs to my soul.

[Kourtney · Rating 1 out of 5]

NO NO NO NO NO NO NO. No.

The author tried SO HARD to be profound and thought provoking that she sacrificed the story. The book was split up into 3 parts and it didn't get a plot line until somewhere towards the end of part 2 and the ending was so predictable it almost was laughable.

My main source of frustration. Story is going on la la la then POOF 3 SUPER EXTRA LONG paragraphs about one single thought the main character has. And the thought would revolve around something like hunger. What does it really mean to be hungry? Should she be more or less hungry because she is merely a secretary?

No seriously - the whole book was like this. If it wasn't for a reading challenge I was in, I would have thrown this book out a long time ago. I will be staying far far away from any future work from this author!

[Annie · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Anxiety of Everyday Objects had the potential to be good, great even. It undershot both and landed in mediocre. Halfway between chick-lit and modern American fiction. I thought I was going to be reading something fresh, but it's just the story of a bored, lost, underpaid secretary and how she learns to live and love. She goes through some ups and downs, gets betrayed, and falls for The One who was right in front of her the whole time.

Formulaic from beginning to end, The Anxiety of Everyday Objects isn't the worst thing I've read this year, but it was certainly one of the most predictable. If I had found it in the chick-lit section perhaps this wouldn't have come as such a unpleasant surprise, but I did not.

[Kathi · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the author's writing style and the very realistic portrayal of life as a young woman trying to start her career spoke to me, but the story just dropped off at the end. The beginning was a little slow and I was wondering where it would go when all of a sudden, so many things happened and so many secrets are revealed, I thought for sure Winona's dreams would come true and she would become famous for her film, but then everything just went quiet and no one saw her film and then everyone shoved everything under the rug and it was quietly over. It could have been way more interesting or dramatic if the author had put a few more twists into the story, or kept writing a few more chapters.

[Judy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked this up at Building 19, remainders dept, on the strength of a blub on the cover by Richard Russo, "Stylish and Breezy" with "unexpected emotional depth." It was stylish and breezy. The writing was querky, as was the heroine, both erratically so that I never felt sure the heroine wasn't a ditz. Still, some sentences stand out. I think this may be a first novel. I'll look for others by Sheehan.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

It reminded very much of a modern day book of manners- perfect details, just so exquisitely done that your heart breaks for the trueness and the beauty of them. Unlike Jane Austen, the writer doesn't really have anything deep or meaningful to say about relationships between people, but she gets perfect the internal world of the dreamy but isolated introvert. And a happy ending. A good curl up on a rainy day with tea book.

[Jami · Rating 3 out of 5]

Frankly, I enjoyed this book and Winona, the main character, even though her innocence/ignorance could be a little frustrating. I found myself being proud of her as she began to gain inner strength but also felt sad at uncomfortable/embarrassing moments that brought her there. The ability to want what you have, rather than to have what you want is amazing and definitely something Winona excelled at.

[Lormac · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ehhh. (My first thought.)

Surprisingly hard to read considering the light and fluffy subject matter, probably due to the author's efforts to be clever. (My second thought.)

This is the storu of a hipster girl, working as a secretary, while thinking that she is a filmmaker, who discovers love and also that people are not what they seem. Sigh. At least the protagonist actually realizes, about, two-thirds through the book, that it is good idea if a film has something resembling a plot.

[Margaret]

Not bad but it lacked some zing! I did like the little quirky bits of personality in Winona - naming her cat Fruit Bat, rationing out 1 M&M per page of typing as a reward, a boyfriend she dubbed Jeremy the Sincere. She did seem rather easily influenced by others and easily betrayed. Thought the character of Rex needed a little more development. A good first book with potential, I would expect this author will improve and I would give her another chance. :)

[Allie · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I found this book in the sale section of the bookstore online, I thought it sounded clever and interesting. It started out great, with a strong female character, overall good writing, and a breeze to read. It got dull very fast and I started to have a hard time picking it up just to get it over with. I can sort of see why I only payed 4 bucks for it. If you want to read it, I suggest borrowing a copy.

[Tabitha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I want to love this book, but I just can't. I've read it several times now over the years - just finished the most recent reading tonight - and each time I hope that maybe it will hit that magic chord and be a satisfying read. Instead, the best I can say is that it lives up to its title and increases my anxiety every time. Winona doesn't need a man or a camera or a script, she needs a scrip for Prozac. Disappointing. Again.

[Lindsey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Story lagged a lot in places, and had some unnecessary subplots that dragged the story down. Or maybe the story just seemed depressing to me because some of the passages just hit too close to home. I too often have to bribe myself with chocolate to complete any work, give a blank stare when faced with idiotic requests, and am asked way too frequently what I'm doing at my job with university degrees.

[Liz · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book attempted to be clever, but only left me with an, "Oh, ha," feeling at best. I think the biggest problem was that most of the time I felt confused as to where the characters' motivation was coming from. When I realized I was dreading reading it after the fourth chapter, I decided not to finish it. It's not terrible, but I would have had to suffer to finish it.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was not wonderful, but I did enjoy it. It was problematic in that character relationships and motivations weren't as fleshed out as they could have been, but at time I was very sympathetic to their situations. I don't regret reading it, but it also wasn't one of my favorites. Very average.

[Merredith · Rating 3 out of 5]

having recently become a secretary to some lawyers, i was interested to read this book about a secretary to some lawyers. a secretary who wants to become a filmmaker, and i dont but still. i thought she was going to have an affair with her new blind boss. most people might not think that so its not giving away to say she doesnt. that woman is so simple minded, but grows up some by the end.