A review by chloewood
Young Jane Young by Gabrielle Zevin
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I only picked this book up as I enjoyed the author's recent publication Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow so much. While this is a very different book (there is not a focus on characters' emotional connection to video games) it was a really enjoyable read. Knowing little about the novel, I was surprised by the strong feminist themes that ran throughout and I loved the character of Ruby, the 13 year old daughter of our main character, Aviva Grossman aka. Jane Young.
The is split into four sections, one following the life of Rachel Grossman as she deals with the aftermath of her daughter's scandalous affair with a much older congressman, one following the new life of said daughter, the once young political intern who moves away, changes her name and begins a new life as an events planner, assisted by her daughter Ruby, a section which follows Ruby's attempts to discover her identity, and a section- in journal form- that traces events from Aviva's POV, past to present.
With strong themes of forgiveness, independence and family, the last section was my favourite, closely followed by the section from Ruby's perspective.
The is split into four sections, one following the life of Rachel Grossman as she deals with the aftermath of her daughter's scandalous affair with a much older congressman, one following the new life of said daughter, the once young political intern who moves away, changes her name and begins a new life as an events planner, assisted by her daughter Ruby, a section which follows Ruby's attempts to discover her identity, and a section- in journal form- that traces events from Aviva's POV, past to present.
With strong themes of forgiveness, independence and family, the last section was my favourite, closely followed by the section from Ruby's perspective.