Humans are not born forever on the day their mothers have them; life necessitates giving birth to themselves over and over again. Gabriel Garcia Marquez (translated)The difference between being famous and infamous are just a couple of letters as the titular character will tell you. We know the tawdry story, it played out in real life for another Jane Young who was vilified by the press and on social media, whose life was forever changed. It took a TED talk and a movement to give her a voice agai...

Young Jane Young didn't knock my socks off but it was entertaining in a smart kind of way. Jane Young used to be Aviva Grossman, but in her early twenties she was involved with a congressman in Florida a la Monica Lewinsky, and the scandal went viral. She then reinvented herself as an event planner named Jane Young in a small town in Maine. Zevin tells Aviva/Jane's story from a few points of view, including her mother, daughter and the congressman's wife. There is a lot of humour in how these ch...

“I’m not a murderer,” she says. “I’m a slut, and you can’t be acquitted of that.” 4 1/2 stars. Aviva Grossman is “Florida’s answer to Monica Lewinsky”. A young Jewish intern in a congressman's office, she soon finds herself caught up in an affair with the older and married man. When the affair makes it into the regional media, Congressman Levin experiences some negative press, a few tut tuts, and then goes on to enjoy a lifetime in office. His marriage survives the scandal. Aviva, on the othe

“The only past you have a right to know about is your own.”I was positutely ecstatic when I found out that Gabrielle Zevin was releasing a brand new fiction novel after The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry, which had quickly become a favorite of mine earlier this year. And similar to the aforementioned, Young Jane Young had me enamored from the first page, which I've come to realize is the author's specialty. Even though the setting is so different from her previous work, the characterizations feel s...

YOU GUYS. This was completely different from what I thought it was going to be, but I think that ultimately lead to me loving it even more. This book was fantastic and feminist and just an amazing look at relationships between mothers and daughters and oh my lanta I loved this. WOW.

Monica Lewinsky. Nearly everyone in America (and many outside it) knows that name. You might demonize her, you might feel bad for her, you may think you don't know the whole story and shouldn't judge... but when you hear that name, you have a reaction. This story is a fictional account of a young lady named Aviva Grossman, who is Florida's answer to Monica Lewinsky. A woman who made the papers for who she slept with... because that someone happened to be very married and very much in the spotlig...

Find all of my reviews at: http://52bookminimum.blogspot.com/Young Jane Young is the story about the before, during and after when it comes to an affair that will sound pretty familiar to many of you . . . . I’m not a huge reader of “Chick Lit,” but not for any real good reason other than I tend to steer myself toward stuff that’s a little darker and I don’t enjoy being emotionally manipulated. Young Jane Young was more than likely a winner for me because it didn’t try to make me have all th...

Quick and enjoyable read, but I almost gave up on it in the beginning--so glad I stuck with it! Young Jane Young is about Aviva Grossman, a young congressional intern who had a scandalous affair with a married congressman (think Monica Lewinsky). This one mistake defines Aviva’s life. The fallout from the affair results in her changing not only her name, but also the course of her life. Of course the congressman, who was 20+ plus years her senior, escapes blame and shame free. The book is com

I choose this because it was supposed to be a takeoff on Monica Lewinsky and I thought that could be interesting. Well, it is. And it’s so much more. It also makes you think. Why does the man always come out of something like this ok and the young woman “like a punchline”? Why is there still such a double standard, such a sexist, moralist attitude about women? This is like The Scarlet Letter for the Internet age. I loved that it delved into getting beyond the stupid choices we make when we’re yo...

Maui - wow-ie - beach- reading- funny! ...... sorta! .....with an undercurrent of a ‘little’ sadness. People are magnets to public scandals. It’s always a little sad to me. Author Gabrielle Zevin had me gushy over her book “The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry: “Young Jane Young”, lacked the magical- spectacular specialness: MY HEART DIDN’T SING......but.....mostly, I thought this novel was funny! In fact, I liked this book best when it ‘was’ funny - rather than thought-provoking and clever. ( which

I'd rate this 3.5 stars.Living in the Washington, DC area during the Bill Clinton/Monica Lewinsky scandal, you just couldn't escape it—everything from news to gossip to rumors to hatchet pieces about Lewinsky, even spoofs of her on Saturday Night Live and other television shows. And while President Clinton certainly was the subject of a great deal of criticism, in many people's eyes, it seemed like Lewinsky was the only one to blame, and yet for quite some time you never heard her side of th...

4.75/ 5Oh what an amazing read! I wasn’t planning on reading this book at all but it had just been staring me down on my shelf so I picked it up!📖 👩‍💼And I am so glad I picked it up because I enjoyed it so much!! I haven’t heard anyone talk about this so I feel like it’s underrated and definitely needs to be read!📖🏙It has a lighthearted tone all throughout it but it talks about some serious issues. We talk about sexism and how often the woman gets blamed after an affair. 🌃I really enjoyed this b...

What happens in the aftermath of an intern and congressman’s affair? To the congressman, nothing. His career and marriage remains intact and life goes on pretty much as before. To the young intern, Aviva, everything changes. She’s the victim of slut-shaming and her job prospects dry up. A simple google search ensures her past will follow her everywhere. So she starts her life over, moves to a different state, and legally changes her name to Jane Young. It’s now some years later and she’s a singl...

There are decisions we make when we're young that are certainly not the same decisions we'd make when we're older. Unfortunately for others, the internet doesn’t allow them to move on. Since our digital memory holds on to everything, both the relevant and the irrelevant details alike, it can cast an ever-present and unchanging shadow. There are some acute and uncomfortable social observations in this book, specifically how the online media can damage and/or destroy a person's life. One of the im...

It’s a keeper….What a fun read this was! It’s about an intern, Aviva, who has an affair with a congressman. Sound familiar? Of course we all think of Monica Lewinsky. I figured the story would be boring and predictable, but it wasn’t. Intelligent and well-put-together crosses out the fact that it’s on the lightweight side. Wait! As soon as I said that, I wanted to slap myself, because lightweight is a horrible word, really, in a book review. This book is entertaining and it’s smart, period! Not

When my book club discussed Gabrielle Zevin's The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry two summers ago, I was the woman on the patio who was yawning into her glass of Pinot Grigio.I just didn't get how a story that started strong and had such a fantastic setting could wither into such a bland and colorless bore.Last week I ordered Young Jane Young, Gabrielle Zevin's most recent novel, with some trepidation, but I always think it's a good idea to give a writer (and a person) a second chance, and within min...

YJY has the same charm and depth as The Rosie Effect and substantially more of each than Where'd You Go, Bernadette. In the interest of full disclosure, I'm not a fan of moral relativism and/or "I was young" uttered by 21+ year-olds as a rationale for adultery, and, still, I found YJY to be fresh and understated, with one caveat. The initial 30 -50 pages or so are comprised of a multitude of annoying Miami-Jewish-mom stereotypes. Having said that, if you are seeking humor-tinged contemporary fic...

4.5 stars rounded upThanks Esil for recommending another fantastic book. Young Jane Young is a thoroughly enjoyable novel with a very modern structure. It's one of those rare finds that I've come to appreciate: light without insulting my intelligence, occasionally amusing and with a cast of interesting characters.The first chapters were probably my favourites because of Mrs Grossman, nee Shapiro, who was delightfully funny, with her dead- pan observations; it made me think of some of the charact...

Such a great novel for anyone and everyone! Addresses feminism on all levels, all ages, with fun, intelligence, humor. Audiobook reader Karen White is stellar.

I couldn't walk past a copy of "Young Jane Young," especially with that eye-catching cover, and leave the store without it. Having "The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry" on my favorites shelf, I'd been looking forward to Gabriel Zevin's next novel for the past several years.The basis of this storyline has been played out in real life more times than we'll ever know, with the scandalous Clinton/Lewinsky affair being the most infamous to-date and a permanent part of our nation's history.Aviva Grossman,...