In the High Peaks
















Saturday, May 5, 2012

The Red Book and Other Tales

As I mentioned yesterday, I confess I'm reading the new bestseller The Red Book by Deborah Copaken Kogan, about four Harvard women 20 years after their 1989 graduation. If the premise sounds all too familiar, that's because this plotline has been done over and over again. Yet this one has an irresistable lure for me because I lived near Harvard Square for three years when I was fresh out of college. I also dated my share of Harvard men while a college student (only because my college choir had many concerts and rehearsals with the Harvard Glee Club), so I'm curious to see where Kagan takes this one.

I'm equally interested in Kagan's memoir Shutterbabe, about her exotic and hair-raising adventures as a footloose freelance photographer from 1989 into the 1990s in war-torn Afghanistan, and Zimbabwe to Russia, and Haiti. If you're interested, check out these fascinating interviews, a brazenly negative, anti-feminist one from Salon and another from The Digital Journalist.

3 comments:

  1. You got a big smile from me because you're right - this plot is all too familiar! However... living near Harvard Square and dating Harvard men is a great reason to read this book! (Also, very cool that you sang in a choir after college!)

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  2. Kate,
    Yes, I've been wondering just what it is about this plotline that fascinates readers so--both women and men.

    Thanks for visiting!

    Judith

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  3. I enjoy this type of novel although, yes, indeed, it does sound like a familiar plot. But in this case I'm even more interested in the non-fiction book. Thansk for bringing it to my attention.

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