12.31.2007

The Way Life Should be: A Novel




By Christina Baker Kline

On both the inside flap and the back of this book, there is heavy praise from well known writers like Anita Shreve and Jacquelyn Mitchard, as well as rave reviews from publications such as the Boston Globe. I must be a pretty tough critic because I was not overly impressed. Kline starts out with a cute story about a Jersey girl trying to make it big in Manhattan as an event planner. One day at work, Angela finds an ad for an internet dating site that asks, “Do Soulmates Exist?” As she peruses the various listings, she stumbles upon “MaineCatch” who is, not surprisingly, a fisherman in Maine with a quaint seaside cottage, rugged good looks and an adorable dog named Sam. They email, phone and eventually share a romantic one night tryst in Boston. Sounds perfect so far, right?

This is when the story starts to unravel. Unfortunately, Angela’s new love distracts her from an important museum event she’s working on. She makes a fatal mistake that ruins the party and suddenly finds herself jobless, her reputation ruined. She immediately decides to pack up all her belongings and go to Maine to be with MaineCatch, even though she barely knows him. This move also turns out to be a huge mistake, also not surprisingly, when Angela discovers there is no seaside cottage or adorable dog, just a messy, philandering bachelor living alone in a bare, newly built condo. Although I give kudos to Angela for leaving MaineCatch, everything works out a little too perfectly for me when Angela lands on her feet, finding a slightly kooky yet charming group of friends, and a job at a coffee shop that leads her to her dream of teaching the wonders of Italian cooking to all the locals and transplants in her perfect little town. It's all a little too Lifetime movie of the week for me. The only possibly redeeming thing is that Kline included recipes for the dishes that Angela cooks at the end of the novel. I’m kind of scared to try them though; what if they turn out to be as bland as this book?

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