Thursday, May 26, 2005

In Her Shoes

(I'm trying a larger font because I'm tired of squinting at my own blog. What do you think? Let me know in the comments.)

I just finished reading In Her Shoes by Jennifer Weiner. A terrific book. I haven't really adored most of the chick lit I've read, but this one I loved. The best thing about it was the relationship between the sisters... it made me miss my sister (who passed away years ago) even more than usual.

I love to explore sibling relationships in books because they're so complex. My book All I Ever Wanted revolves around sisters, an important character in my first historical was the hero's sister, and the contemporary I'm working on now features a close relationship between the hero and his brother. But it seems to me that in chick lit, the relationship between siblings is often a major component of the plot, whereas in romances it usually seems less genuine, and more like an excuse to set up a sequel.

Naturally the most important component of a romance is the relationship between the hero and heroine, whereas in a chick lit, the most important component can be a relationship between siblings or friends. So the focus is necessarily a little different. But I don't think that means that the sibling relationship in romances can't feel genuine. Too often, when the hero's brother is introduced, it just seems like he has "SEQUEL MATERIAL" stamped in big red letters on his forehead. I'd like to see more sibling relationships in romances that are as convincing as the sisters' relationship in In Her Shoes.

10 comments:

  1. I hadn't thought of your font as too small before, but now that you've changed it I like it and find it much easier to read. I vote keep it.

    In Her Shoes has sat untouched on one of our bookshelves for years. Something about it never appealed to me, but if you say it's terrific, I'm willing to try...

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  2. The font has been bothering me whenever I look over my blog. I notice that small print everywhere has become smaller lately-- the copyright info on DVDs is inexplicably being printed in such tiny print that I can't read it at all. I used to be able to read the small print, so I feel certain the problem is that the print is getting smaller, rather than my eyes getting weaker:-). Ah, the joys of middle age...

    Anyway, thanks for the input. And yes, I really did like IN HER SHOES, even though I'm not much of a chick lit reader. I'm on a hunt for more of Weiner's books now!

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  3. Bigger is better, Ellen. ;-)

    BTW, I enjoy your blog very much! Write on...

    --Tina St. John

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  4. Enjoyed the bigger font, Ellen. Enjoyed this post too. :0)

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  5. Tina!! How are you doing? I'm pleased to see you here!

    Thanks for the feedback, ladies. I think I'll stick with the larger font, if only for the comfort of my tired old eyes *wry grin*. Or I could get bifocals instead.

    Nah...

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  6. I like the bigger font. Love your blog!

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  7. I vote for the larger font, too. Yep, bigger is definitely better!

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  8. Its always about size with you ladies, isn't it?

    {sigh}


    ;-)

    The larger font ...IS... easier to read...

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  9. Also voting for the larger font! Now that I blog-hop more, I really appreciate the easier readability. Yes, David, in this case - size does matter. *smile*

    Ellen, some of my favorite Nora Roberts books or trilogies are those with siblings or close family relationships -- the cousins of the Donovan Legacy books or the siblings in the "Ardmore-Gallagher" trilogy, etc. One of my favorite Nora single titles, however, is Montana Sky where the sisters mostly meet at their father's funeral and then are forced, by his will's dictates, to live on his ranch together. Watching them learn to relate to each other is priceless!

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