Last word first: A funny, sad, but ultimately uplifting novel. Read it!Description: Just into her thirties, Anna Lasko is a frustrated high school teacher whose abusive boyfriend, Adam is away for four months. Thinking she's going to a bridal shower, Anna finds herself in the middle of an intervention by her friends, trying to convince her to break up with Adam. The Prairie Bridesmaid gives an in-depth look at Anna's life, from her relationship with her fiercely independent grandmother to her thoughts on the geeky kids in her writing group to her fights with her bridezilla of a friend, Sara.
My Thoughts: This book was different than I thought it would be. Based on the cover blurbs, I was expecting a slightly dark romantic comedy. The Prairie Bridesmaid has many laugh out loud moments, but it's not really a comedy, but rather a chronicle of Anna's attempts to break free of a poisonous relationship.
Like watching a car wreck, I was cringing but couldn't look away as I read about the beginnings of Anna's relationship with Adam, the first moments when she realizes something is wrong. Through the use of flashbacks, the author relates moments in time that show how Anna got to where she is, so tangled in a relationship that she can't get out, even though she doesn't even like the man she's supposed to love.
Despite the heavy subject matter, Bridesmaid is incredibly readable, largely due to the humorous and well-written extra characters. Anna's grandmother, a Ukranian immigrant who is obsessed with planning her funeral and refuses to leave her farm even though she is nearly blind, was my favorite. Anna has a group of interfering but supportive girlfriends who also deserve a mention. Anna herself is a delightfully quirky and flawed protagonist... you can't help but root for her. At least I couldn't, even when I was internally yelling at her to smarten up.
Great writing and fantastic characters make this story worth checking out. It's more than just chick lit!
About the Author: DARIA SALAMON is a freelance writer whose work has been published by the Globe and Mail, the Winnipeg Free Press and Uptown Magazine. Her short fiction and creative non-fiction has been shortlisted for the Writers’ Union of Canada’s Emerging Writer Short Fiction Award, the Larry Turner Award for Creative Non-Fiction, and the Canadian Authors Association’s North of 55 Writing Contest. In 2005, she wrote a monthly humour column on wedding planning for the Winnipeg Free Press called “The Wedding Diaries.” She lives in Winnipeg, Manitoba. From the Prairie Bridesmaid website.
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20 comments:
I'm gonna check this out. Thanks!
Based on the title and cover, I would have read this expecting chick lit. From your review, I can see that it is much more in-depth than that. I think I'd be interested in reading how Anna got into the position she's in; never having been through it myself, I often just shake my head in wonderment when I hear of the relationships people are in, wondering how it got to be that way. I'll have to check this one out.
The description makes it sound a bit chicklit-y so the fact that it's actually a bit darker is somewhat appealing. The Ukrainian grandma does sound like a fun character. My own grandma was a Ukrainian immigrant who lived in Winnipeg. :)
I definately need to check this out - it sounds really great.
I'm glad you enjoyed it. I've never heard of it before, but it doesn't sound like my type of book.
shutupimreading.blogspot.com
Jessica
At first glance the book could definitely be misconstrued as Chick Lit, which I don't read much of. I am glad to see that it is more of a story with seriousness to it. Although it is difficult to read about abuse, I have read many books (fiction and non-fiction) on the subject. I can relate to it on a personal level.
Thanks for hosting the giveaway!
Happy Canada Day, too!
k9kutter64(at)yahoo(dot)com
I can certainly see why the others mentioned that it struck them initially as looking like a chick-lit book -- the cover and title certainly seem to imply that. But it's obviously a darker, more intense book then that. I like books that focus on strong characterization so I should probably try this one.
That poor girl. It's amazing how some realizations just sort of smack you in the head, though. And despite how easy some people make it sound, getting out a relationship is very hard no matter how toxic it is.
Valorie
morbidromantic@gmail.com
thx for the contest,,ahh summer reading
thehighflyer3@hotmail.com
I agree with all those who said the cover looks like chicklit. I had in fact seen this book somewhere but dismissed it bcoz I thought it was chicklit.I have read many books on abuse and it's always great to see the person standing up against it. Nice Review.
I'm intrigued by this one! Have you seen her post on her blog about encountering someone who hated this book? She was very philosophical about it.
Oh and I featured this book in one of my lookalike posts. I still think it has a very odd cover!
From the title and the cover I would never have picked up this book, but having read your review it does put it in a different light. Although it does sound like chick I get the impression that it goes deeper than that, sort of like a mix between Marian Keyes and Jodi Picoult and the result is something in between?
I don't think this is my type of book. The cover, the title, and the description do not appeal to me in any way. It looks like perfect summer reading, though. :)
I'm not sure if I'd like to read this since it seems so sad. But the story seems interesting enough so maybe I'd give it a try. :)
I don't see the connection between the story and the cover, but I would like to read it. I want to see how the author lays out the story with humor. :D
Sounds like an interesting book, and a book that would make me stop now and again cos of the subject.
blodeuedd1 at gmail dot com
I always enjoy books that have funny quirky characters in them.
libneas[at]aol[dot]com
Do you know where it's set? 'Cause prairie could be Saskatchewan, and very few books are set where I live.
The title and cover gave me one impression which then changed when I read the synopsis which then changed again when I read your review. Your review makes me think that I might enjoy the book(while the title, cover and synopsis did not). Though I'm not sure how much I like flashbacks.
Sounds a little like a depressing kind of book which I usually try to avoid as I read to relax.
Carol
buddytho {AT} gmail DOT com
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