You know that feeling when you take a chance on a book and it's really, really great?

...Yeah, that's this one.

(Yes, I realize that updating this blog the day after I talk about not being around much in the future is kind of lame and stupid, but I'm trying to take advantage of the fact that my homework load has not picked up full steam yet)

When I picked up Elisa Schappell's Blueprints for Building Better Girls, it was mostly because I thought that the cover art and title were interesting. 

I don't read short story collections very often; Before Blueprints, I had only read three other short story collections before: 

1. An F. Scott Fitzgerald short story collection of Flappers and Philosophers and Tales of the Jazz Age (Here)
2. Firebirds (here)
3. Different Seasons, by Stephen King (which was awesome, btw)

For that reason, my choosing Schappell's Blueprints was therefore more of a shot in the dark kind of deal, and it was a task that I was kind of wary about undertaking. As I've said before on this blog, I don't read "contemporary" "adult" fiction very often, so I don't have a good understanding yet of what authors I do and don't prefer.

I'm really, really happy to report that I loved this collection. 

To be honest, I read this book a few weeks ago, so I can't remember any passages from it specifically; however, the theme throughout each story was, "you have no idea what is going on in my head."

(God, I feel like that's such a stupid way to summarize the book, but that's all I have. Sorry.)

Different reviewers (from the NY Times and Bitch Magazine) cited the stories as focusing on "womanhood," which is something I should have said above  I agree with; many of the women in Blueprints are often at odds with themselves as well as with each other. Relationships are dissected, scrutinized, and redefined; Heather, "the school slut" in the first story, makes an appearance in the last one as well, as a mother with a teenage son. 

The women in these stories enter each others' lives at various points, and in different ways. I liked that aspect of these stories (I'm a huge fan of "easter eggs" in books), although the sappy part of me wishes that some of the other characters (Kate and Bender specifically) had more of a role to play in other people's stories. Despite that, I really liked being able to take their thoughts and emotions into consideration even if I was reading the story that surrounded one of their friends or coworkers. 

There were times reading this book when I felt outraged on behalf of the characters, as well as times when I was furious at them. Each of these women are shown to struggle and succeed in different ways; there is no "correct" way to deal with the disappointment and sadness and confusion that they felt, but in considering my own expectations for their behavior I was able to more fully understand what had shaped me to think why my way was the "right" one. I'm still trying to figure out where I "fit in" as a feminist, and so this book really helped me examine some parts of myself that I wasn't aware of without being obnoxious or patronizing.  

Does any of that make sense?

What I'm trying to say here is that I really, really liked this book; it's sharp, and smart, and doesn't play the rules in using classic female stereotypes. If you're looking for a book to read that has punch, and wouldn't mind trying out a short story collection, look here - Schappell has just what you need. 

Peace out, Chickadees (as my grandmother would say)

-M