Fishbowl

by Sarah Mlynowski

Allison, Jodine, and Emma discover what it truly means to be roommates when their money-making scheme to school men in the ways of women goes awry, shattering any semblance of privacy and forcing them to look deep inside themselves--a discovery that will change all of their lives forever. Original. 125,000 first printing.

Genres: Chick Lit, Fiction, Contemporary, Romance, Adult, Novels, Teen

360 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Sarah was born in Montreal, Canada. After graduating with an honors degree in English literature from McGill University, she moved to Toronto to work for Harlequin Enterprises. While she never met Fabio, she used her romance publishing experiences to fuel her first novel Milkrun.

Since then, Sarah has written four additional novels for adults: Fishbowl, As Seen on TV, Monkey Business, and Me vs. Me; the New York Times bestselling middle grade series Whatever After; the middle grade series Upside-Down Magic (with Lauren Myracle and Emily Jenkins); and the teen novels Bras & Broomsticks, Frogs & French Kisses, Spells & Sleeping Bags, and Parties & Potions (all in the Magic in Manhattan series), as well as Gimme a Call, Ten Things We Did (And Probably Shouldn't Have), Don't Even Think About It, Think Twice, and I See London, I See France. Along with Lauren Myracle and E. Lockhart, Sarah also wrote How to Be Bad, and along with Farrin Jacobs, she wrote See Jane Write, a guide to writing. Sarah also co-edited two bestselling charity collections (Girls' Night In and Girls' Night Out), and has contributed to various anthologies (American Girls About Town, Sixteen: Stories About That Sweet and Bitter Birthday, 21 Proms, First Kiss (Then Tell), Fireworks, and Vacations from Hell).

Sarah is also a co-founder of OMG BookFest, a celebration of books aimed at the early to middle grade reader (ages 7-12) that brings together commercial and award-winning authors with underserved local communities for an exciting experience of books, games and activities.

Sarah's books have been translated into twenty-nine languages and optioned to Hollywood. She now lives in New York City with her husband and two daughters.

Reviews

[Dawn · Rating 1 out of 5]

I think I paid 50 cents for this at a used book sale and I definitely overpaid. The book I read before this was an excellent, but dark, Karin Slaughter. I decided to read this next because I thought it would be a light, funny read. It wasn't. The characters in this book are so unlikable, I found myself wishing they'd encounter Karin Slaughter's murderer. The Borders sticker on the back of the book said it was YA, but it definitely wasn't. I think it said that because this author has written YA before. Maybe she got confused that she was writing supposedly adult characters in their 20's. I have read many YA books with characters far more mature than these idiots. These girls are shallow, immature and so, so stupid, especially Allie. I don't understand how anyone could live with such an inconsiderate, annoying slob, let alone be friends with her. I hate Sex and the City and everything that came out of it (for many of the same reasons I hated this book), but someone needed to tell Allie he's just not that into you! And then slap her in the face. Hard. It was not believable to me at all that Josh would be in love with her. She did nothing but talk about Clint and act like a complete moron. She was supposed to be a college graduate? Maybe Canadian colleges have lower standards than those in the US because I found it hard to believe she was even a high school graduate. As for the other two girls, they were no more likable and equally selfish. If you're going to paint Jodine as a germophobe with OCD tendencies, you can't expect readers to believe she wouldn't flush the toilet. I also couldn't figure out why they would be friends with man-stealing Emma who always needed to be the center of male attention. Do yourself a favor: pick up the latest Karin Slaughter and skip this bore-fest filled with unlikable characters.

[Tanya · Rating 1 out of 5]

I found this book to be so offensively bad, and such a complete waste of my time that I did something I've never done before........I wrote the author. Quick read? You bet. Simple language? Most definitely. Super slow developing plot? Check. Characters whose flaws don't endear them to us, but in fact, made us glad not only that they're not our roommates, but that they are made up and we're never going to meet them? Spot on.

I love picking up a book on a whim and getting turned on to new authors -- based on the disaster that was "Fishbowl" I can safely say I won't be picking up anything else by Sarah Mlynowski. Unfortunate, as reviews of her other books seem to be better, but frankly, I'm not willing to risk several hours of my time reading something that might turn out to be the same sort of drivel she penned in Fishbowl.

[Ali · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is quite possibly the worst book ever written. I don't quite understand what happened, because Milkrun wasn't awful, not great, but certainly not like this. If the author set out to create the least likeable characters ever created, then she succeeded. Hated the switching between characters and the random narrator. Just awful.

[Lisa · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh my god this is a terrible book. Looking back, I'm not quite sure why I even bothered finishing it, but I think it's probably because I needed to make sure that the one girl ended up with the guy that she was obviously going to end up with. So again, I'm not sure why I bothered finishing this. The three main characters in this thing were so annoying/selfish/ridiculous that it actually made me angry. I don't think real people actually act like this. I mean, I know some annoying people, but none of them are quite as one-dimensional as these three. The Type A, anal-retentive law student who isn't capable of loving anyone? The slutty girl who sleeps around because her dad didn't love her enough? The chubby, ditzy virgin who's in love with the friend who is obviously too much of a man-whore to like her back? The whole thing was just one "girl in her twenties" stereotype after another, with a stupid plotline and unbelievable scenarios (who's paying $20 to go to a party at a bar that is nothing more than...a party at a bar that usually has a $5 cover?). So annoying. I've got to stop stealing books from my sister.

[Jenn · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars :)

[Sofia · Rating 1 out of 5]

All my reviews contain spoilers

This book is proof that no matter how unlikeable all you’re main characters are and how kind of stupid your story is, if you are a semi decent writer, you, TOO, can someday have a book published!! ★

I am one of those people who cannot NOT finish a book once I’ve started it. That his the only reason why I finished this book. Grudgingly.

This book is centered around 3 young twenty-somethings: Allie, Jodine, and Emma. Three young women, with hardly any redeeming qualities between all of them.

Allie is the annoying nerd-ish virgin who wants so badly to have friends and people to like her, you can’t tell what is genuine or what is her just trying to suck up. She is in love with a very UNextrodinary guy (Clint) who also, guess what, has zero redeeming qualities.

Emma is the beautiful, blonde, must-have-every-man girl who, at times, seemed to be a good friend to Allie, but it seems that very little she does is for the genuine well being of anyone else. Allie wants desperately to be liked by Emma as she is the exact opposite of Allie, with probably the LEAST amount of redeeming qualities of them all. Emma is in an on-again, off-again relationship with Nick (Nick the Prick) as has refers to him most of the time, and she has the sense enough to leave him but them gets angry when he meets someone else after his multiple attempts at apologizing go ignored by Emma.

Jodine is the smart law student character with no heart and a fear of intimacy so much so that she treats her boyfriend Manny so horribly that it gets hard to read. She, by the way, insists for most of the book that they are NOT in a relationship really.

The whole “novel” is centered around the girls trying to raise money to have their recently fire-damaged kitchen repaired quickly so their landlord doesn’t find out there has even been a fire. They have a few fundraising parties at a nearby club, and also have a “seminar” for men on how to pick up women.

The only two characters in this whole story who have any sort of virtuous qualities are Manny (Jodine’s boyfriend) and Josh (the kitchen-renovator who has a crush on Allie but she is too hung up on the douche bag to see it).

In the end, the author tried to end the book with the girls discovering things about themselves that they didn’t like and trying to understand how their past traumas have affected their lack of meaningful relationships with other people (mostly Jodine). And, of course, Allie finds her “soul-mate” in Josh and, as the reader, you are glad that something good came out of all that for her, but in general, this is a book I could have NOT read and I would have felt I missed nothing.

My motto is that every book deserves a chance, even the bad ones, but this book really challenged my idea on that. The 1-star is for the writing, which is pretty good for a novel that is NOT at all good. ☻

[Brandi · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is not the greatest book. The storyline seemed cute and funny (women with different personalities live as roomates together and finally become friends) The book was just to much.... The bitchy character was to bitchy, the sweet character was to sweet, and the bossy one was to bossy. I couldn't really feel a connection to any of the characters in the book. I felt as if the author was playing into very stereotypical roles. For instance, the bossy character had a high-paying influencial job, the bitchy character was thin and beautiful and only wore the most expensive clothing, and the sweet character was the usual chubby, "plain jane" clueless character. I just couldn't get into the characters or the plot line.

[Virginia · Rating 1 out of 5]

Why? Just why? This book is horrendous. Our themes include : drama, and comedy. 3 spoiled, ungrateful teens burn their kitchen in a fire and have to earn back the money to fix it. So they work, and that's it. The comedy is stupid and the dramatic effect doesn't work. So I guess the idea told through the theme's is work hard to accomplish what you need, but that wasn't what I felt. The three protagonists didn't actually work hard at all to accomplish anything and yet they still accomplish what they want. Not to mention their utterly annoying. There wasn't any symbolism I could recall in this story and there are no actuall reasons to like this book. I dont recommend this at all. My point is made.

[Tin · Rating 3 out of 5]

• Ending felt a little rushed.

• I'm glad that in the epilogue, although everyone was redeemed, Emma didn't get a happily-ever-after (just yet). I think she needs to earn it, after all the crap and misery she made her roommates go through.

• Jodine deserves to be happy. Manny deserves to be happy too, but not with Jodine. He deserves better than that. And i'm happy with how their story ended.

• Allie needs to grow up. But i have to admit, being the only one among the three girls to have a happily-ever-after feels just about right. Although flawed, she was on the poor receiving end of her roommates crazy antics. She deserves all the love and Josh.

• Story could have been a little more meaty, but towards the end, it felt like the author just wanted to get it over with, that the chapters got more lazy. Still loved the book though. And the author. I still have a few more Mlynowski on my shelf that i can't wait to read.

[aCupcakeBlonde · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really love who the author uses the different chapters to seperate which point of view we are hearing the story from. Each Character has a distinctive and seperate voice and the writing style reflects their personalities. The chapters told by the all knowing narrator are hilariously written and a fun way to see how a third person outside of the inner minds of the charcters views them from the outside. Very insightful and clever. The writing is quick and sharp and this is a very fun read. I enjoyed getting to know these three girls and following their love lives intertwined with the need to raise some serious cash to fix their burned kitchen. Three completely different people thrown together as roommates and how they come to work together and learn a lot about themselves. A great, fun book.

[Plum-crazy · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Smart, witty and a little bit bitchy, Fishbowl lets you press your face against the glass, see into the lives of three unique roommates -- and laugh your head off." So says the blurb, well, I didn't laugh my head off but it was an amusing read.

The three girls are totally different types: Allie is sweet & naive, Emma is vain & self-centered & Jodine quite frankly is a bit anal. Their escapades are amusing even if some are a little predictable -no-one is going to be surprised to read Emma nicks Allies fella!

I liked the way each chapter is written by one of the girls so you get their take on the current situation & there's also "The Irritating Narrator who adds her two cents a nice touch used to overview all three girls at once.

[Bookluver · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was OK, compare to what I have read in the past. I was kinda disappointed by all of the in-detail sex and makeout scenes.....Oh yeah and by the way there was a lot of cuss words.. But other than all of that bad stuff it had a good story line of trust between three friends that share an apartment in the Big Apple in New York City

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book!! These three room mates find trouble every where they go! It was sooo funny!!!

[Rachael Levine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good chick lit ...esp if you have ever had a roommate

[Brigitte Alouqua · Rating 3 out of 5]

Vous savez déjà que je suis parfois un peu bizarre… Eh bien avec ce roman, j’ai eu deux impressions totalement opposées. D’un côté j’ai un un ressenti de trop, d’un autre de trop peu… Trop de certaines choses et trop peu d’autres. En fait, je trouve que ce n’est pas très équilibré dans la globalité, et cela m’a réellement gênée. Malgré tout, j’ai passé un bon moment en compagnie de Emma, Allie et Jodine.

Un point que j’ai apprécié par contre, c’est que j’ai eu l’impression de me sentir proche de ces trois filles en folie. De par leur pensées, leur dialogues intérieur, eh bien c’était comme si je me trouvais en elle et que j’apprenais à les connaître encore mieux qu’à travers les yeux d’une autre personne, car j’étais moi-même le personnage concerné.

Pour moi, le gros point positif, c’est que finalement, c’est une lecture pas prise de tête, une lecture faite pour se détendre sans penser à rien d’autre. Oublier nos problèmes le temps de lire ce bouquin, franchement cela fait aussi du bien de temps en temps. Et j’avoue que certaines situations ou réliques ont eu le don de me faire sourire ou de lever les yeux au ciel, mais dans le bon sens du terme.

C’est avec le sourire également que j’ai terminé ma lecture. Finalement, c’est vrai que je ne dévoile pour ainsi dire rien, mais croyez-moi que le peu que je pourrais vous dire partirait automatiquement dans le spoiler, et je trouve cela dommage d’avoir déjà trop d’informations avant de faire la découverte soi-même.

[Sue · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was OK. Story of 3 roommates in Toronto. 1st a slut, 2nd a virgin, 3rd a superserious student. About hteir relationships with each other and men. Each chapter written from perspective of different roommate. Pretty shallow.

[Ellie Jewell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book so much I finished it in 3 days!
I love the characters and how they all have something you don’t like but it makes complete sense for all of them ! The storyline was great, the different perspectives was really nice and just reading the book was super enjoyable!

[Kayla McCullough · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pros: quick read, like a sitcom, can keep you engaged

Cons: full of the early 2000s eating disorder troupes where wearing anything above a size 2 means you’re fat. Not the most flattering portrayal of women

It’s like a bad TV show I yell at the characters but I can’t stop watching

[Anna Edmondson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m not sure how this book ended up on my to read list...it was very mills & boon (may in fact be mills & boon!), pretty implausible and had some painful dialogue! Quick read though...

[Brandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was cute. All the characters were pretty good. Funny yet annoying in their own ways.

[Sohana Maharaj · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't enjoy this book at all. None of the characters were likeable, and the ending was a letdown.

[Tracey · Rating 2 out of 5]

I got this book for free and it was really bad. I had trouble finishing it.

[Tricia Cassavaugh · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 1/2 - 4

[Jen Chaba · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'd liken this to the novel version of a romantic comedy movie. It was cute but with no substance.

[Elusive · Rating 3 out of 5]

‘Fishbowl’ is about three women who have to acquire enough money to pay off a repair bill after a fire in their apartment destroys the kitchen. In this process, they become friends and learn a lesson from their decisions.

The best thing about this book is the humour. The storyline sounds incredibly serious but the author writes in such a way that it’s a light and fun read. The three characters are distinct and have quirks which make them come across as ‘real’. Allie is somewhat naïve yet she’s really friendly and welcoming. Her quest is to be with her friend Clint who doesn’t seem to realize her feelings for him. However, she’s confident that he secretly likes her and is waiting for the perfect moment to confess how he feels. I found Allie to be pretty annoying at times especially when she laughs in her trademark hyena style and when she is oblivious to the fact that Clint isn’t interested.

Jodine has the combination of being OCD and perfectionist. Therefore, it’s weirdly ironic that she constantly forgets to flush the toiletbowl. This just didn’t make any sense to me. Anyone who’s that anal about cleanliness would never ever forget to do such a basic thing. If anything, she should flush the toiletbowl at least three times after using it. Besides that, she also works out a lot and practices a healthy eating habit (not always though). I liked Jodine (except for the flushing thing) as she made a lot of sense and seemed more mature than the other two girls.

Emma is the beautiful one who has to have every guy’s attention whether she’s interested or not. After breaking up with her ex Nick, she ends up eyeing Clint. This leads to lots of drama. I liked that Emma was quite driven and could come up with ways to get her way (though this usually involves using her sex appeal). However, she’s self-centered and doesn’t care about other people’s feelings. Her storyline involving Clint was good but it could have been better if it had been further fleshed out.

Overall, the book had a decent but somewhat abrupt conclusion. Anyhow, it’s worth checking out for the comedy and quirky characters.

[Betsey Geier · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you have ever experienced living with a roommate then you need to read Sarah Mlynowski's Fishbowl. I've had this book on my "To-Read" list since 2005 (though it was released in 2002), but I'm glad I waited until I was 24 to finally pick it up at the library. It describes the plight of a woman in her early twenties perfectly, and I don't think I would have enjoyed it as much if I wasn't experiencing these exact same emotions, problems, and parties. There are three roommates in a rent-controlled Toronto apartment, and each roommate has the opportunity to recount the events in her own voice. The self-proclaimed "annoying omniscient narrator" tells the reader on the first page there is going to be a fire, but the story becomes more interesting as the characters learn to take responsibility for their mistakes... and they all make plenty of mistakes. The girls are all different - an OCD, controlling law student, a free-spirited designer, or a love-sick girl who hasn't found her place in life - yet, they all come together to keep their apartment after burning down the kitchen. The point of view of the narrator changes from chapter to chapter as the three girls in their early twenties learn to navigate growing up and living on their own for the first time. Though all three of the characters are completely relatable, the ending of one of the protagonists seems a bit exaggerated. Overall, this book was laugh out loud funny in places, and I couldn't stop reading. I'd recommend this book to anyone between the ages of 22-26, but anyone who has lived through their twenties will enjoy this book.

[Melissa He · Rating 3 out of 5]

I chose to read this book is also by Sarah Mlynowski. It's about this girl who is living in this apartment, and she's renting it out to two other tenants so they can split the rent payment into three parts. So the apartment is huge, and the rent is low. It sounds like a pretty good deal, right? That's what it is on the outside. In reality, they find it kind of awkward for three strangers to live together, much less, have no privacy due to the fact there are three people occupying the apartment. However, when the smoke alarm starts to ring, one of the girls turn it off, finding the constant rings very annoying. Then a fire starts because the smoke alarm did not warn them. Then the apartment burns down. It's fine though, because apparently, through insurance, the home will be refixed. What they don't know though, is that they have to pay for the insurance. Because they do not have any jobs at the moment, they decide to teach guys on how to deal with women. Eventually, they earn the money, and they are able to afford the insurance. The story generally did not draw me in, so I discontinued reading it.

[legobatgvrl · Rating 1 out of 5]

Like someone had already stated in their review, Allie is too immature to even be remotely likeable, both to readers and to any other characters in the book. She's a complete loser and making Josh like her for whatever forced and made up reason is also making his character into a complete loser, which is a pity. Emma is so annoying and it doesn't make sense anyone would actually wanna be real friends with her. The only remotely likeable character between the three girls is Jodine, and even then I don't wanna be her friend if I meet her in real life, which is saying something.

I read this book because I really love the Magic in Manhattan series and wanna read more of Mlynowski's works, but this one was a co plete bummer. If these characters—especially Allie—were middle or high school students, like Rachel in Magic in Manhattan, it probably would have made much more sense. I think the main problem in the characterization is that Mlynowski struggled to get out of her comfort zone, which is making middle and high schoolers as her main characters.

[Alexis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Three women have just become roommates... and a fire forces them to team up to pay for the damages by throwing parties and having a "How to Pick Up Women" seminar.

Notes: I like Allie. Of course, compared to slutty Emma and uptight Jodine, who wouldn't like Allison. At first, she reminded me much like two of my close friends, and it was a bit funny. So anyway, I really regret buying this book. That's harsh, isn't it? Perhaps after reading Shopaholic, I had gotten into a Becky-groove... and I just wasn't up to Sarah's style of storytelling. I don't enjoy it when narrator's talk to the reader -- especially when they start talking about non-story related junk. Nor do I enjoy having to read 2000 (that's what it felt like) similies / metaphors / analogies. Is it possible to leave the first description as is -- I'm not 6 years old. But of course, the story had it's highlights... err, I just can't seem to think of it right now.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Allison is getting new roommates and she is excited. Jodien and Emma move in and all the fils couldn't be more different. Allie is the people pleaser, naive, kind of innocent one, who is she wants to be and what she wants to do with her life still. Jodien is in law school and is very driven in all that she does. Emma is the most social of the house, she works entry level at a fashion magazine, she is always looking for a guy, and always challenging her roommates and their patients with her ideas and activities.

When the apartment has a fire and the girls, who don't have renters insurance, have to raise money to fix the damages. Putting their differences aside and working together brings them closer together as friends. But will it keep them together when secrets are revealed.