Book Review: Confessions of a Shopaholic (Shopaholic #1)
Howdy Readers!
Time for another book review!
Since I enjoyed The Notebook (my review here) I thought I would try another popular chick lit book for my reader’s advisory class for grad school.
After some incessant GoodReads searches I found Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella.
I really enjoyed the 2009 film adaptation, so I figured I’d give this a go. After all, who doesn’t love a good sale? On to the review!
Blurb
Becky has a fabulous flat in London’s trendiest neighborhood, a troupe of glamorous socialite friends, and a closet brimming with the season’s must-haves. The only trouble is that she can’t actually afford it–not any of it.
Her job writing at Successful Savings not only bores her to tears, it doesn’t pay much at all. And lately Becky’s been chased by dismal letters from the bank –letters with large red sums she can’t bear to read–and they’re getting ever harder to ignore.
She tries cutting back. But none of her efforts succeeds. Becky’s only consolation is to buy herself something … just a little something….
Finally a story arises that Becky actually cares about, and her front-page article catalyzes a chain of events that will transform her life–and the lives of those around her–forever.
GoodReads
Amazon
***Brief disclosure***
I am an Amazon affiliate and earn a tiny commission for purchases made through the Amazon links in this post at no cost to you. It’s a great way to help me keep things running on my blog if you’re already intrigued enough to make a purchase.
The Review
Considering I don’t read a lot of chick lit, I was blown away by this read.
In this novel, we follow Becky, a 25 year old in the UK who loves to shop. The only problem is she doesn’t know when to stop. As she continues to dodge collection attempts, Becky struggles to find control of her shopping habit and her place in life.
It’s hard to know where to start with this review. A lot of elements really meshed well with this book.
The first thing that comes to mind is the conversational tone of the book. Kinsella has created a narrative that draws you in and doesn’t let go. Our MC Becky speaks to the reader, and it’s like having one of your girl friends to gab with, making it very entertaining and full of drama and exaggerations, which I love.
I listened to the audiobook for a few chapters of this book, and I actually liked it despite usually having difficulty focusing with the format. The voice was female, British, and sounded young enough to be Becky. I also think she personified her through tone really well too.
Becky is a fun, quirky character. She is young and foolhardy, and while older adults may find her actions a bit unbelievable, I remember a time in my early 20s when I acted very much like her. This and other flaws in her character made her easy to relate to.
Through her actions, Becky came off as a younger Amelia Bedelia who keeps approaching things terribly wrong in life, and I found it really comical and engaging. Its like watching a train wreck that you can’t take your eyes off of while cramming your mouth full of popcorn. The drama was great, and I enjoyed all the plot twists along the way. It made the journey unpredictable and riveting.
Ultimately, this novel is a great start to a series, and I think anyone who’s survived their 20s can appreciate Becky’s misguided adventures. Definitely pick this book up!
That’s A Wrap!
Well that’s it for this book review. I hope you enjoyed it!
Have you read this book? Are there other similar books you’ve read that you simply have to gush about? Feel free to leave a comment. I’d love to start a conversation!
Have a great day!
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Reading your review, I thought, “This would make a good movie.” Then I realized you said there already was a movie! (Obs, I didn’t watch the movie.)
Haha, it was a fun movie (2009), though very different from the book. Book is a bit better, and the romance was understated, which I love. I’d actually continue this series sometime.
Yay I’m so glad this books continued to work for you and that you’ve loved another book out of your comfort zone.
Yeah, I’m finding that chick lit isn’t really all that bad. I’m making sure I read the preview first and that I enjoy what I see first before committing to it. That seems to ensure success. 🙂
That’s good. And that’s I pretty good idea.
I rarely read chick lit, Jonny, and I hate shopping. BUT, you made this one sound really fun, and I like quirky characters. I might force (lol) my husband to watch the movie with me. 🙂
Yeah, me either to be honest. This is my second, and I’m finding that I actually don’t mind chick lit as much as I thought I did. How strange!
Haha, I think you’d love the movie. Though the plot points are quite a bit different from the book, I think the actress depicted Becky’s zany ways pretty well. Have fun!
I find that I enjoy just about any genre if the book is skillfully written. I was shocked at how much I enjoyed historical fiction when I tried it. Lol
You hit the nail on the head there, my friend! So long as the writing itself draws you in and is well done anything is enjoyable. Ooo, which historical fiction did you try? The first one I think of is Outlander.
The most recent one was “The Russian Concubine.” It’s set in China during the Communist Revolution. It was great. My only complaint was the cover and title since there’s no concubine in the story. The author told me that the publisher did that because they thought it would sell more books. She was very annoyed to say the least.
Oh interesting! I don’t know anything about the Communist Revolution so maybe I could learn something. 🙂
Wow, I would be pissed too, but at least the book is a hit!
🙂
I picked up this book a while back, and just . . . dnf’ed it. It wasn’t because it was bad, it was okay, and there were moments that made me smile, but as you said, some of the actions were just too unbelievable. I guess I’m old. 🙂
I totally get it. I don’t think this is for everyone. You definitely have to be willing to suspend belief in some instances, that or be a terrible hot mess like I was in my 20s to relate to some of the more zanier things she does.