Ashley’s Comments (group member since Jun 02, 2011)

Ashley’s comments from the Reader's Ink group.

That's an interesting perspective, Lauren. And not just because I show up in paragraph 3.

I wonder if part of the lack of shifts is due to the fact Sullivan wrote this while still quite young (right?).

Sorry, I'm sucking as discussion leader this time around.

Anyway, I kept getting Sally and Celia mixed up. April was the only one with a SUPER clear identity, mainly because she was so extreme. Overall, I think I liked Bree best. She was the most complex.

April was a caricature of a radical feminist, which bugged me. To boot, she was always under someone's control. I thought the dynamic between her and Ronnie WAS interesting, paralleling Ronnie with an abusive, controlling partner, keeping her in her place for the sake of ideology---so, a flipping of sexism, in a way.

With Bree, I was glad Sullivan dodged romanticizing her relationship, just because it's a lesbian one--a common trap of those who include such plots.

I gave it a 4. Like Lauren, I have the sneaking suspicion that my sheer enjoyment and nostalgia of college life and friends puffed up the rating a bit. Eh, who cares. I liked it. My review is here:
http://sharingtheshelf.blogspot.com/2...

What did you think of Sullivan's portrayal of feminism? Like, dislike? Why?

What role does sex play in the girls coming into their own vs. falling down flat on their faces? How do their choices and experiences shape them?

How did Commencement reflect your own 18-to-25-year-old years? Was Sullivan's depiction of the girls' friendship realistic to you? And for those of you (us) who graduated from college in the early 2000s, do you agree that with one reviewer's comment that our generation of women face TOO MUCH choice?

Although Smith College is an all-women's college, men are present throughout. How do you think the all-women's nature of the college benefited the girls? Held them back? Did it make much difference at all?

Which girl (woman) was your favorite? Which one did you most identify with?

How would you rate Commencement? Defend your rating.

My favorite was The Snow Child, though I really liked Where'd You Go, Bernadette?, Foreign Affairs, and Beauty Queens.

Least favorite? Hrmmm. I liked elements of all the ones I actually read, but maybe Circus in Winter.

I too was charmed by the relationship. It seemed genuine, quirky, and not overdone. Bee's loyalty to her mum (particularly in the school parking lot), and vice versa, was sweet. They had a mutual understanding of each other, where each accepted the other for who she was. Bernadette didn't try to mold Bee into being anyone other than Bee---she was fundamentally accepted by her mom. And Bee simply understood her mom and loved her as she was, not wishing she was more Audrey-like or whatever. I thought the whole dynamic was sweet.

And right, Bernadette was too attached to have permanently disappeared!

I thought Soo Lin was the funniest character in the entire book. Her emails where she's trying to get across how important x, y, or z are, her perception of Microsoft, and her general cattiness utterly cracked me up. OH! And the Victims Against Victimhood, or whatever it was, was so fabulously campy and appropriately over the top. Her high strung nature going against Elgin's even, clodding, clueless personality was pitch-perfect.

I gave it a 4. This is possibly because I'm so partial to the Seattle element and what I know about Microsoft culture. And really, I thought it was an ultimately sweet, fun, witty read and really enjoyed it. Good pick, Lauren!

Per usual, my review here: http://sharingtheshelf.blogspot.com/2...

I'm going with befuddled genius. I thought his character was hilariously adorable. Soo Lin is OBSESSED with him, and he's so clueless. And then they have the awkward, unpleasant sex, which was perfect plotting. But I think Elgin has another layer to him. He's genuinely distressed about his wife, but he tries everything except actually COMMUNICATING with her. He's also just so polite. He doesn't communicate well with ANYONE.

The open ending wasn't my favorite. For starters, I was reading it on my kindle and had NO IDEA I was at the end. I hit the next "page," and BAM, there was the acknowledgments page. So, well, that tells me that my innate inner reader need something more concluding and tied up.

I think Esther is fundamentally likable. She's TOUGH, brash, and slightly obnoxious, but she's also tender when she needs to be, not to mention decent and kind. She also gave us an outsider view of Mabel, who's so introverted and introspective. I kind of saw Mabel through Esther's eyes at times---was this city girl just getting cabin fever?

I think Faina forces Mabel to expand her view of what it means to be a mother. She cares, she worries, she loves. She feeds her and sews her clothes. Like millions of women, Mabel has no biological children, but she still "mothers," similarly to how teachers, siblings, aunts, and other adults do. And Faina proves that Mabel is a great, great mother--she's fully a mother, in my view.

I didn't find Faina selfish at all. She has her own "essence" that is what she is, just as Mabel's selfhood is tied up in being a mum. It is Faina's nature to be Faina--she transcends the real, which is why I think the more bodily tasks--childbirth, nursing--are so difficult for Faina.

Oh, and Lauren, I think I get your "angst" thing. I just finished a different book that was heartbreaking, but I was sort of too tired to enjoy it. Ya know?

I put my review here: http://sharingtheshelf.blogspot.com/2...

I gave it a 5. I loved it. LOVED it. I loved the relationships, the fairy tale atmosphere, the redefining of what it meant to be a mother, all of it. I thought the writing was gorgeous and I mourned a bit when I finished it. In fact, I was bummed it was a library book, because if I had actually bought it, this was one I would've held onto (and I very rarely keep books).

Faina. Oh, Faina. Was she real?