Young Jane Young
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3.8 • 11 Ratings
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- $10.99
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
From the author of the international bestseller The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry:
Named a Washington Post Notable Work of Fiction of 2017
A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year
A Chatelaine Best Fall Reads pick
#1 on the August Library Reads list
An Entertainment Weekly’s “13 Books to Read in August”
An Amazon’s “Best Books of the Month” for August
A Barnes & Noble “August’s Best New Fiction” pick
#3 on the September Indie Next List
“A smart, intersectional feminist tour de force.” —Washington Times
From Gabrielle Zevin, beloved author of the international bestsellers Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow and The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry, comes another story with unforgettable characters that is particularly suited to the times we live in now.
This is the story of five women...
Meet Rachel Grossman.
She’ll stop at nothing to protect her daughter, Aviva, even if it ends up costing her everything.
Meet Jane Young.
She’s disrupting a quiet life with her daughter, Ruby, to seek political office for the first time.
Meet Ruby Young.
She thinks her mom has a secret. She’s right.
Meet Embeth Levin.
She’s made a career of cleaning up her congressman husband’s messes.
Meet Aviva Grossman.
The internet won’t let her or anyone else forget her past transgressions.
“It’s brilliant and hilarious. . . . It has a heart. And a spine. It’s exactly what we need more of right now.” —Chicago Tribune
“Splendid. . . . [Zevin’s] vibrant and playful writing, and the fully realized characters taking turns as narrator, bring the story a zestful energy.” —Booklist
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Zevin (The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry) offers a satisfying and entertaining story of reinvention and second chances in the wake of a political sex scandal. Aviva Grossman was far and away the most capable intern working in the Florida district office of her local congressman until their affair was exposed and the subsequent national scandal destroyed her reputation (though, tellingly, not the congressman's) and doused her political aspirations. Fast-forward more than a decade: Aviva, a single mom, has legally changed her name to Jane Young, moved to small-town Maine, and applied her logistical competence to running her own event planning business. When the town matriarch encourages Jane to run for mayor, her youthful indiscretions threaten to derail her tentative foray back into the political arena. Divided into sections, each focusing on a different woman Aviva's mother, Jane; her 13-year-old daughter, Ruby; the congressman's wife; and Aviva the novel's structure means that plot points are occasionally re-trod, though sometimes with surprising new insights. Zevin also plays with form, crafting Ruby's section as a series of frequently hilarious emails to her Indonesian pen pal and the final section like a "Choose Your Own Adventure" novel. Real-world parallels aside, Jane's story is in the end less about political scandal and more about gaining strength and moving on from youthful missteps.
