The Undomestic Goddess

The Undomestic Goddess
  - Sophie Kinsella

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

On a virtual reading group that I am a member of, several people highly recommended Sophie Kinsella. Further endorsement from a cousin, and favorable goodreads reviews, interested me into ordering this book.

It is a quick, breezy read, with some endearing characters and entertaining situations. Though I did find it humorous in parts, there was much in the story that made me (or the feminist in me) cringe. The primary source of humor in this story is the lack of domestic skills in the female protagonist – who is a high flying attorney in one of the best law firms. Now, had it been a man, this would not have been portrayed as an amusing possibility, but an acceptable (and expected) fact. Why is the lack of housekeeping abilities a hilarious abnormality in case of a career woman?

An even greater folly was the later depiction of behavior of the leading lady, who is described as one of the finest legal brains in the country, and can therefore be presumed to possess a certain amount of intelligence and composure. If she cannot take a stand and fight for for herself in face of obvious and malicious injustice, how could she have fought any legal battles with a reasonable conviction? She also behaves like a naïve teenager, going this way and that, when faced with the prospect of making important life choices. The latter may be viewed as a flaw in character development, or as an overly forced dramatization of the end on the author’s part.

Even though it came with high recommendations, and it was a decent fun read, I am not particularly impressed. Perhaps this is not a good specimen of her work, and I should try the Shopaholic books, but I do not think I am going to buy them. However, I think it is more likely that the genre - chick-lit romance - doesn’t work for me. I would rate this at 2.5, but since giving half a star is not possible, making it a 3.