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What She Saw...

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A fresh (in more than one sense) and honest new voice in fiction is extravagantly displayed in this first novel that candidly dissects modern romance.Plagued with weird parents, an underdeveloped body, and a mind on the verge of self-deconstruction, Phoebe Fine feels ill-equipped for a journey through the hardening chambers of the late twentieth-century heart. But from fifth grade and Roger Mancuso, equal parts baby Brando and court jester, through her early adult life with New Media executive Neil Schmertz, a babytalker who prefers spooning to sex, Phoebe trudges defiantly through guyland, armed with a tart tongue, and propelled by an insatiable desire to be loved.

306 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 12, 2000

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About the author

Lucinda Rosenfeld

8 books116 followers
Lucinda Rosenfeld is the author of five novels, including CLASS, a satire about parenting, public school, and the liberal bubble.
Please see: @authorlucindarosenfeld on Facebook. Purchase here: http://amzn.to/2cNULku

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5 stars
202 (13%)
4 stars
369 (23%)
3 stars
554 (35%)
2 stars
276 (17%)
1 star
148 (9%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 101 reviews
Profile Image for Snafujello.
4 reviews
July 12, 2013
I couldn't put this book down, but i tend to have a morbid sense of humor. The main character is deeply depressed. At the same time I had a very sick fascination with learning more about her. If you are looking for a cute pick me up romantic story this is not it. I think the main problem for most people is that Phoebe is extremely unsympathetic, but what I appreciated is that the author never pretends otherwise. The character thinks too much, smokes too much, sleeps around too much, doesn't eat enough and has no worth. You learn every ugly thing about the heroine and perhaps relate to her on a certain level. Growing up most of us have struggled with an overblown vanity, but at the same time a deep conflicting insecurity.
Profile Image for Anna.
27 reviews2 followers
July 4, 2009
A completely unlikable main character made this book torture to get through. She goes through each guy she has ever dated, like or looked at chapter by chapter. I found myself rooting for her to stay alone and miserable.
Profile Image for Naomi.
8 reviews
January 11, 2014
I've never been so excited and pleased to finish a book. This was absolutely the worst thing I've read in months and I would not recommend this book to a friend, enemy or neutral acquaintance. Had I not spent the week reading this book, and had I not had a reading goal for the year, I would have abandoned this book after Phoebe Fine's elementary years.

Never in my life have I read a fictional character with so little to sympathize with. Rosenfeld appears to take every negative and depressing human characteristic and cram them all into her main character. Cheating, depression, eating disorders, seeming prostitution, extremely low self esteem and a general disregard for any one person that comes in and out of her life - I found myself attempting to read faster just so that the book would end.

The premise of the book was interesting, but reading the synopsis provided by the publishing company gives zero indication of the long and arduous self-hate that follows. Reading this book made me cringe, and I truly did not like Phoebe Fine.

I do not recommend this book, unless you feel like you're too happy and would like to take yourself down several notches. I wish I didn't have the Kindle edition, because the paperback would go in the recycling immediately. Thanks to Amazon for a delete key.
Profile Image for Page Passion .
855 reviews9 followers
September 18, 2014
This book is like nothing I’ve ever read before. I was wary to reads this because of the low ratings on goodreads, but I’m glad I did. Phoebe Fine can be an infuriating character. Some decisions she makes can make you laugh or shake your head as well as your fist. I understand how she could be unlikable, but I felt that was what made her human. Phoebe was a myriad of contradictions, but aren’t we all?

Her romantic endeavors made for an entertaining read, I’m so happy I gave this a chance. In a lot of ways I feel women, as well as men, can relate to Phoebe’s adolescent/young adult woes, especially when it comes to relationships and trying to find your place in the world.
Profile Image for Katie Fitzgerald.
Author 29 books253 followers
December 6, 2009
I'm not sure why I finished this book, when I knew 50 pages in that I wasn't really interested in it. But finish I did, and I have to say, I was left entirely dissatisfied. I don't know if it was the third person point of view that disconnected me from the novel's protagonist, Phoebe Fine, or if it was the repetition of chapter after chapter depicting boring boyfriend after boring boyfriend, but I really felt that this was nothing more than a book of lists about a pretty annoying and unsympathetic character whose life actually made me kind of sad to be a 20-something woman.

I have a feeling the author wasn't trying to say that all women are pathetic and anorexic and lonely and that having meaningless sex with man after man after man is all that's left us, but I kind of felt that way from about page 100 onward, and since that isn't true for me, and doesn't really make very interesting literature, I kind of just wanted the book to end so I could be put out of my misery.

Based on reviews and the book jacket, what I was expecting was a novel telling the humorous and sad and heartbreaking stories that led Phoebe to either meet the man of her dreams or to determine that she was strong enough on her own, with or without a man. But instead, it felt like a long list of things that happened to a person I don't know and don't want to meet because she is never satisfied and has no personality outside of the bedroom.

I don't think I'll recommend this one very much.
Profile Image for Joe.
223 reviews30 followers
November 24, 2007
Soon after I read this book, I tossed it out along with my retro polyester pants and orange creepers. The concept of the novel is a clever one and it starts out as being cute and funny. Even as a gay male, I could identify with Phoebe and a lot of her unwise choices in men.
Then somewhere along the line, the book loses what little bit of charm it has and suddenly you're finding yourself not liking Phoebe that much. As each man revolves his way through her life, you begin to dislike her and her choices more and more. Some of the boyfriends listed aren't even boyfriends but rather fantasy characters, penpals and in the case of Arnold Allen (the only Black guy who stereotypically appears on her list) a criminal. By the end of the novel you're thinking that she deserves everything that has happened to her. Some guys aren't good enough, others are too good and why doesn't she have any friends? One word for you Phoebe: THERAPY!!

At first I thought this was going to be a Sheila Levine for the new millenium. Whereas Sheila's self-depreciating humor and poor choices in men endeared you to her, Phoebe's self depreciating humor had you hoping she would grab a bottle of sleeping pills and end it all. I guess Mrs. Rosenfeld is a fairly talented writer as she was able to evoke such dislike for her protagonist from me, but overall this novel went absolutely nowhere and was a complete waste of my time. I liked Bridget Jones better and that's a stretch. I wouldn't really recommend this to book anyone. Check out Gail Parent's 'Sheila Levine is Dead and Living in New York' instead.
Profile Image for Jessi.
5,601 reviews19 followers
October 9, 2010
I'm not sure which book or blog recommended this book (I think it might have been Nancy Pearl's Book Lust) but it was okay. Most reviews either loved or hated this book but I'm more ambivalent.
Phoebe Fine is a girl growing up in New Jersey at the beginning of this book. She is not the best looking girl, at least in her own estimation, but she yearns for a boyfriend. The rest of the book is an exploration of the rest of Lucy's life, told through the men she hooks up with. This includes high school, college and a few years after. Told in the first person, this book gets a little tedious with each and every chapter being about some disappointing boyfriend. The character doesn't grow, doesn't change throughout over a decade of her life. Really? I guess people in real life can stagnate, but I don't really appreciate that in a book.
Not the most fun story, but there are definite moments of brightness with an occasional turn of phrase... "She never aspired to go anywhere... except maybe back to bed."
58 reviews
January 26, 2009
Sometimes I need some chick lit...I don't really remember anything about this book.
Profile Image for Christine.
346 reviews
February 14, 2012
Thrift store find. I don't think I'll finish it.

The beginning was funny and bright, but now we are in poor Phoebe Fine's long terrible teens-early twenties. I didn't really need a reminder of how horrible those years were, but also, there's nothing much to LIKE about Phoebe. She's depressed and has food/anorexia issues, but where's the SPARK of her personality? It's not there. And though I liked, in the beginning, the premise of telling someone's life story through the maze of their (sexual) relationships, now I just feel like Pheobe's letting herself - no, in fact DEMANDING that she be defined by the men in her life. If I felt the author had more authority over the material, I could deal with the premise. Like, am I supposed to see how unrealistic/fucked-up straight relationships are and how damaging they can be to women? (Because that's ALL I'm seeing.) Or am I supposed to just want to eat a pint of Haagen-Dazs with Phoebe Fine, all like, "Girl, men SUCK," totally not getting the through-line of the situation? Because the AUTHOR, in my opinion, is not particularly critical. That's just me.
Profile Image for Jessa.
199 reviews2 followers
April 20, 2015
I read this book because it was on the must read books in your 20s list and I absolutely agree. This book is one of those that makes you sooo uncomfortable because you realize how vain and awful we are as human beings. Someone recently told me the pursuit of happiness is a Western cultural construct and after reading this novel, I completely agree.

The story follows Phoebe Fine and her romances from Middle School through her 20s. Each one is a battle to find someone who worships her and who simultaneously treats her bad. She takes boyfriends hoping someone will take over her life, give it meaning, fill the void, but she never really ever tries to do it herself. She is constantly searching for a life that she forgets to live it. Definitely worth a read.
Profile Image for Nickoleta.
3 reviews3 followers
July 27, 2008
It's been years since I first read this...I remember the first chapter about the German pen pal was hysterically funny, but I lost interest after that. Yet I kept reading, hoping it would get better...and I don't think it did.
Profile Image for Gabriela.
531 reviews14 followers
June 2, 2014
This book was an overdose of less than desirable modern life. I identified more than I cared to. Because it was good I felt nauseous reading it. The ending was what I predicted - it wasn't an answer to anything but it was the only plausible answer to her life.
Profile Image for christa.
745 reviews369 followers
April 13, 2007
best. chicklit. ever. phoebe fine goes through her history of men. one man per chapter. my favorite is pablo miles and how the sexualize the topography of the apartment. i steal that line a lot.
Profile Image for Elle.
3 reviews1 follower
July 24, 2015
This was a novel that was easy to read, well-written, and has left me thinking less about the character Phoebe and more about my own late adolescent self. The story, told by Phoebe, is structured around the men that romantically (or should I say sexually?) color her life. It is, if not unnervingly similar to the questions and experiences I imagine most young adult women go through to some degree, illuminating to read as an older 20-something who is married with a daughter of her own.

The novel moved at a steady pace, and while at times I felt very connected to Phoebe, I never felt like I was her; the author writes in first person, but does so in a way that keeps me feeling like a silent spectator to Phoebe's life, privy to most all of her thoughts and emotions, but still separate.

However without giving anything away, I felt as though there was something missing, some swell of catharsis or plot that seemed like it was going to happen, but never did. There are times when, frustratingly, we are suddenly shut out of Phoebe's mind and life - the fate of some of her lovers left purposefully unknown - and there are a few transitions in the later half of the novel that feel unsubstantial and leave you questioning exactly what has happened and if you need to read it again. It was almost as if suddenly Phoebe remembered she was telling the story (or that someone was listening) and chose to censor the things even she wasn't ready to think about.

Yet the captivating journey Rosenfeld takes you on is both familiar and foreign. I am not Phoebe, yet I am, or at least I was. The questions of love, self-worth, and the importance of personal connections are ones we all deal with, and I saw my younger self in some of Phoebe's fears, uncertainties, and - at times - in her painful, self-loathing(there were also a few of my own exes mirrored in Phoebe's as well).

I highly recommend reading it especially as, perhaps, an adult out of her early 20s, because I don't think I would have appreciated Phoebe's struggle as much then as I did now. While the ending leaves a bit to be desired and feels somewhat rushed (I want this review to remain spoiler free so I will leave it at that), the journey is worth taking.

You can read a more personal, spoiler filled review on my blog: http://discoverdragons.weebly.com/

-Elle
Profile Image for Tina Madan.
24 reviews6 followers
December 7, 2014
The book was an easy read, but was recommended to read in my 20s. It was awful at describing romance and dating at this age. But! It was wonderful at describing what it should be, which is not what the main character is going through. She is unlike able after high school and eventually the narration tells the reader that she is aware of how she's being detrimental to herself. And she puts herself into a low, no self respect position that makes me feel so much better about my own self. I would have rather this boo covered more years of her life, maybe so she figured out finally how to do it right. But otherwise, it was just depressing and not even eloquently written. I'm not one to say I have a good amount of experience with life, love, and people but at 22, I definitely feel more confident and self loving than this character. But then again, maybe that's what the book is really about. Because our main character does mention how she hates that she does certain things regarding men, but is afraid of what happens if she's truly true to herself and her values. But, it got me through several train rides and I wanted to finish it and know what happened. Just wish it had carried over into her 30s or even possibly her 40s. Good idea, could have been better executed.
Profile Image for Johanna Descoins.
18 reviews2 followers
March 10, 2014
Up until page 260 (out of 284) I was so incredibly tempted to throw this book in the recycling. As other reviewers have mentioned, the main character is so unsympathetic and such a gross caricature of a human being that she's literally painful to read about, and impossible to care about. I have never met a person or a fictional character with so few redeeming qualities (or really, no redeeming qualities.) Reading this book felt like being forced to hang out with a truly, truly awful person.
And then I found myself relating to one of her boyfriend scenarios, and I realized that it's very possible others could relate to aspects of her personality/relationships that I found completely unbelievable. Rosenfeld really covers all the mistakes and negative qualities one person could have, so chances are you'll find *something* to relate to in this book.
Nonetheless, aside from some beautifully keen observations, this book was downright painful and I can't say I took anything good away from reading it.
Profile Image for Josh.
898 reviews
July 12, 2010
This book chronicles the love life of a “chick” from middle school to early twenties. Each chapter is entitled “in Guy X”. So the title of each chapter is, “What she saw in Guy X.” The premise is clever, and it works. The character is all too believable, exhibiting a lack of self esteem and poor choices all throughout her love career. I did not like the protagonist and found her shallow and uninteresting. The fact that the book ends with the protagonists early 20s is also a let down. Basically, the protagonist mistakes attention for love at every turn and suffers for it. It is very realistic, but a bit of a letdown. It describes perfectly why women find “nice” guys very boring and sexually unattractive. However, the protagonist’s refusal to think about her situation at all made her extremely unattractive to me, the reader.
Profile Image for James Wagner.
2 reviews
May 27, 2013
“Well, let it pass, he thought;
April is over, April is over.
There are all kinds of love in the world,
but never the same love twice."

- F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Sensible Thing, 1924, from the preface of What She Saw...: A Novel

"Moreover, there were times when she thought she loved Kevin, too. Though what she probably loved even more than Kevin was the idea of someone being in love with her. It seemed like a radical notion. It seemed like the 'real thing.'"

― Lucinda Rosenfeld, What She Saw...: A Novel

"But she was feeling pretty disappointed with herself, with what adult life turning out to be a series of unpaid bills and unwanted hairs."

― Lucinda Rosenfeld, What She Saw...: A Novel
Profile Image for Min Wan.
5 reviews2 followers
September 11, 2013
What She Saw... takes the reader through the odyssey that is Phoebe's love life. It is interesting to watch Phoebe grow up before our eyes, beginning with a sweet, curious kid to a messed-up adult still in search of love and fulfillment. autocom cdp pro The men that come into Phoebe's life sometimes stay, most often go, but always leave behind a piece of themselves that Phoebe carries with her. It is also interesting to see how each relationship develops and how, ultimately, they crumble. By the book's end, readers are left wondering about Phoebe -- does she make it; does she find true love; does she finally mature and realize that she is more than just the other half of a man?
Profile Image for Elysabeth.
316 reviews11 followers
February 5, 2010
I liked this book a lot -- despite some of the bad reviews I've seen. This book tracks the life of Phoebe Fine as she moves from (dysfunctional) relationship to (dysfunctional) relationship. Yes, Phoebe has her problems, and has her destructive tendencies, but I truly was cheering for her the entire time. I think, as a woman in my late 20s (and happily married, I should add), I could identify with some of her relationship hangups, even if only sometimes through my own fantasies. I wanted her to find what she wanted, whether that was love of someone else -- or possibly enough love of herself.

I look forward to reading the follow-up novel.
Profile Image for Michelle.
58 reviews
August 10, 2014
I was absolutely thrilled with the format and raw honesty of this book. Did I love the main character? As all the other reviewers have pointed out, no, I did not love the main character. Phoebe is a depressed narcissistic anorexic and is actually quite boring. But the point of the book for me was that it doesn't matter what Phoebe was actually like, being young means learning about yourself through experience and often through the eyes of those people who you wish would love you, or that you loved them, which is exactly what Phoebe was doing. I look forward to reading more of Rosenfeld's work.
Profile Image for Ange.
301 reviews
March 15, 2015
Each chapter of this book is about a different romantic interest in Phoebe's love life. She's the progeny of a music-geek family and her older sister is leaving big footprints for Phoebe to follow in. This is a coming of age story and one that I could certainly identify with, at least from the viewpoint toward the string of unsuited suitors. As the reader and one who recalls with vivid memories the various loves of her life in chapters, I could easily ride the emotional rollercoaster the protagonist was on through first blush, loss of innocence, and other rites of passage. I enjoyed the growth and variety found in each chapter and will surely recommend this one to all my lady friends.
3 reviews
June 18, 2007
I would say this book was decent, and a pretty easy quick read. However, I definitely thought it went downhill halfway through. I don't know what it is about books with a central female character these days, but the character seems to turn into this crazy, neurotic, insecure, man-obsessed freak. I am not saying girls like this don't exist in the world, but I just think it becomes a bit painful to read about girls with so many issues (that move very quickly from relatable to unrelateable).

Anyway as I said, the book isn't terrible.
Profile Image for Nicky Enriquez.
712 reviews14 followers
June 2, 2013
At this particular moment, I feel as though this was the perfect book for me to read. It's interesting to experience the transgression of Phoebe's relationships with time. Rosenfield also describes the relationships Phoebe has with her "best friend at the moment" during her escapades with these gentlemen, and that was an intriguing aspect to examine in parallel with her romantic relationships. I think I learned some things about myself in the process. Definitely worth the read - just wish I could see more of Phoebe's story.
Profile Image for Lisa Guzman.
771 reviews5 followers
July 12, 2013
I was unimpressed. The concept is okay...what she saw and then IN such and such boy per chapter, which is a unique idea. But the execution was disappointing. I'm sure it was all just supposed to be realistic but the author never gives you the satisfaction of the main character actually finding love. The sibling rivalry undercurrent did strike a' nerve with me, not because of my siblings but because I'm about to have my second kid and I worry about one of them feeling the way the main girl did in relation to her sister. So at least that was thought provoking.
71 reviews
April 12, 2014
This was a really good coming-of-age but never really getting there kind of book. I identified with Phoebe and then she went batshit on me. But the character descriptions made me laugh and I didn't want to stop reading about this girl even though I stopped understanding her compulsion to make a mess of her life. I actually liked that all of Phoebe's worst characteristics were shown because I know there have been times where I thought all I had were my worst features. I relate to painting the worst possible picture of yourself and taking some weird kind of pleasure in being miserable.
Profile Image for Becky.
57 reviews
August 30, 2007
This was an interesting idea for a novel, until I realized that the main character had no personality. At all. I'd have liked to read about What She Saw In all those ex-boyfriends if she'd had a position, an opinion, or any sort of characteristics of her own. Perhaps that was the point, but in that case, you're better off reading Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca which does a much better job of examining the "young woman as blank slate" and is a suspense-driven potboiler to boot.
Profile Image for Andrea.
715 reviews28 followers
February 6, 2009
This book was an interesting look at how relationships change throughout a person's life. It took a detailed look at what a person is looking for in romantic partners from young on. I was a little disappointed in the ending, but I was amused throughout the book and sometimes wished that I had had more longer-lasting relationships before I married. I think I thoroughly missed some of those relationships.
Started: 1/27/09
Finished: 2/4/09
304 pps

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