Reviewed by Martha G on
Reading updates
- Started reading
- 22 October, 2018: Finished reading
- 22 October, 2018: Reviewed
Young Jane Young
by Gabrielle Zevin
By the author of international bestseller The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry.
Aviva Grossman, an ambitious intern in Florida working for a politician, makes the life-changing mistake of having an affair with her boss - who is beloved, admired, successful, and very married - and blogging about it. When the affair comes to light, Aviva takes the fall. She is slut-shamed, labelled as fat and ugly, and considered a blight on politics in general.
Aviva sees no way out but to change her name and move to a remote town in Maine. She starts over as Jane the wedding planner, tries to be smarter about her life, and to raise her daughter to be strong and confident.
But when, at the urging of others, Jane decides to run for public office herself, that long-ago mistake trails her via the Internet like a scarlet A. These days, the past is never, ever, truly past, everything you've done lives on in the digital world for everyone to know about for all eternity. And it's only a matter of time until Ruby finds out...
Young Jane Young is a funny, serious and moving novel about the myriad ways in which roles are circumscribed for women, whether they are young and ambitious interns; mothers attempting to steer their daughters through a male-dominated world; political wives facing an age-old knowledge that fidelity isn't always honoured; or young girls feeling bold about their many choices before they realize the gender restrictions all around them. Gabrielle Zevin captures the double standards alive and well in every aspect of life for women.