The Shampoo Effect: A Read with Jenna Pick
A Novel
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4.0 • 689 Ratings
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
READ WITH JENNA BOOK CLUB PICK AS FEATURED ON TODAY | AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER!
“Funny, drama-fueled, and full of Jackson's breezy wit. . . Brilliant.” —Coco Mellors, New York Times bestselling author of Blue Sisters
“A delicious, unputdownable portrait of a group of friends navigating love, marriage, and young parenthood.” —Belle Burden, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Strangers
An ambitious young woman arrives in a small seaside town and insinuates herself into an old group of friends, shaking up friendships and marriages. . . A smart, witty novel of love, money, sex, and friendship, from the New York Times bestselling author of Pineapple Street
When Caroline Lash arrives in Greenhead, Massachusetts, she falls head-over-heels for Van Whittaker, a fleece-wearing, litter-collecting kayak enthusiast with long, floppy hair and the personality of a Border collie. Born and raised in this picturesque coastal village, Van runs with the same crowd he did as a kid: His ex-girlfriend, Bailey, a beautiful girl who attracts men like moths to a flame; Augusta, old money, horsey, and snobbish; and Fran, surrounded by brothers and sons, too fed up with boys to ever consider marrying one.
Together, the group runs wild through the marshes, beaches, and bars of Greenhead, drinking on houseboats, spending long afternoons sunbathing with their children, and playing games the way they always have. But when Bailey discovers that she is pregnant with Van’s baby, the delicate balance of the group’s friendship is thrown off. Soon Caroline is cast out of the circle and what she does next—in a potent mix of fury and heartbreak—exposes long-held secrets and works the entire town of Greenhead into a lather.
Dazzlingly funny, sexy, and as juicy as it is astute, The Shampoo Effect is a story of late-night parties, early mornings with small children, the dawn of midlife, and a group of old friends finally growing up despite all their best efforts to the contrary.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
This charming, easygoing novel explores the difference between friendship and love—not to mention the challenge of growing into adulthood with the people who still remember your junior-high haircut. When aspiring writer Caroline moves from New York to a cozy North Shore Massachusetts town, an embarrassing first encounter turns into a casual situationship with local environmental scientist Van. It even comes complete with admittance into Van’s tight-knit circle of lifelong friends. But when an idyllic summer of beach hangs, cookouts, and decades-old in-jokes gets suddenly upended, everybody has to reconsider what they want from themselves and from each other. Jenny Jackson (Pineapple Street) has written what feels at first like a light and frothy New England beach read, but as the story rotates from one character’s perspective to another, the all-too-real insecurities and blind spots just under the pals’ breezy banter click into focus. The Shampoo Effect goes down like a fizzy summer cocktail with an unexpected kick.
Customer Reviews
Summer Story for all to ponder
The characters eventually become connections as the first chapters finish, and relationships become more identifiable. It is hard to not be reminiscent about one’s own early/mid- adulthood as you engage with the remainder of the title :)
LOVED, LOVED, LOVED!
Loved this book! The very real characters and messiness of adult life with children is so hard but amazing.
Original
Started slow. But able to remember the relationships. The ending was worth the wait. mac