Fleishman in Trouble ... a bit overrated

Having just finished Fleishman is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner I find myself thinking of the book still the next day, so in that sense it is a successful novel.  That being said, I didn't really like the book all that much.  I found the author's choice of formatting to be inconsistent.  The flipping between a third person voice describing Toby's and Seth's perspectives but then suddenly the next chapter is in the first person.  You come to realize this is Libby telling her side of the story but seemingly as an insider into their stories.  The story line itself, was average although I did find the ending charming and leads you to wonder how the story would play out. The author did characterize the competitive nature of the city quite well as I recall it from my years living there. 

The aspect of the story I dislike the most was the tone of story.  I guess in general I don't like books that try to tell me how I should think on a particular subject.   It seems as though the author was whining about the state of women's lot in life.  What I feel is missing in this perspective is the reality of how much better women have it in the Western world than in most of the rest of the global society.  I did appreciate the perspective of how 2 women who made different decisions about careers vs staying at home were both burdened by their decisions.  What I did not care for was the implication that a woman who chooses to leave her career to raise children is less of a person.  That is suddenly made you stupid or inadequate.  I made the choice to stay home and I don't regret it other than sometimes missing the extra money for extravagances but we certainly don't do without.

 I was  director in an international investment bank before I chose to stay home and I don't feel I have to explain that nor am I less of a success or less intelligent because I chose to raise my child full time.  The author seems to think otherwise.  I don't think one choice is easier than the other, both decisions have their own pluses and minuses.  In general I think women should support each other rather than trying to cut each other down.  This seems to be an issue in business and in social settings.   Maybe if women stopped having an us vs you mentality things would be easier on everyone. 

All in all I found this book okay.  Nothing special and I don't really get the hype that it received. 

  Fleishman Is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A bit too much of a preaching message for me

I am not sure how much I really like this book The representation of the competitive nature of the city was accurate from my experiences while studying and working in NYC. The story itself was good but I didn't care for the narration style. I didn't like the fact that much of the story is told in third person but then suddenly would switch to first person. I understand it is exposed to.be Libby telling the story that is her novel but I felt the flow just didn't work.
I also grew tired of the woe is the burden of women undertone and the blatant life isn't fair became annoying. I felt as though the story story was saying I must be a dumb woman because I am willing to be a stay at home mom and even enjoy it. That somehow I'm shallow because I no longer strive for success in business, I strive for success in our family instead.

I do agree with the Author that it is annoying when men are revered for watching their children and it isn't babysitting if they are your own kids. Overall this book was not what I expected it to be . I got annoyed at the need to make a statement and found it a distraction even though it was the point of the turmoil the female characters were experiencing.

I guess the Author achieved her goal in getting me, the reader, to think about the mom from a different perspective than my own so in that sense this was a successful novel. I think in general though, I do not care to have books I read preach at me and state one perspective or another is the best. Most things in life have 2 sides and 2 perspective to consider.


View all my reviews

Challenge Prompts

The Challenge Prompts I will use this for are:

1. Library Love  #LibraryLoveChallenge -  Book 18
2. Alphabet soup Author- #AlphabetSoupAuthorChallenge-  "F"
3. AtoZ and Alphabet soup challenge #AlphabetSoupChallenge-  "T"
4. Color Coded:  #7  White
5. Wizarding World Tour  
• Uagadou-  Read a book where a character follows a dream
6. Popsugar- #popsugarreadingchallenge #8 with an upside down image on the cover
7. 52 Books in 52 weeks  #35 An author’s debut book  
8. Book List Queen #36  A debut Novel
9. NJM #NJMBookChallenge2020  #18 a work by a debut author