American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld

Yesterday, I finally finished reading American Wife, by Curtis Sittenfeld. I'm relieved to be done with it, it was definitely a long one. I'm not entirely sure that I would recommend this book to someone, in part because I don't like to talk politics unless I have to (I'm too much of a peacekeeper in that respect), and in part because it wasn't the fantastic read I had hoped for. If you do choose to read it, it's better as a library book, in case you don't love it (wish I'd done that).

When I first heard that Ms. Sittenfeld was going to write a fictionalized version of Laura Bush's life, but with some very different events and characters, my interest was piqued. Not too sure why, since I've never really followed the history of Laura Bush, but it sounded like an interesting concept, I suppose. It didn't quite live up to the expectations I had for it. Perhaps because at some point, it felt a little too real, and I didn't quite feel like reading a biography.

While the plot held my interest nicely in the beginning, by the time Alice Blackwell, the Laura character, made it to the White House, my interest fizzled. I had a hard time finishing that last quarter or third of the book; perhaps the other reason was because I had started to read another book simultaneously, one that's truly captivating, and that's The Secret Life of Bees. Perhaps my interest just focused elsewhere.

What are you reading? Do you love it? Don't forget to share your book recommendations with me, I love, love, love book recommendations.